Solano County, California

Solano County is a located in Bay-Delta region of the  of, about halfway between  and  and is one of the nine  counties. As of 2000 its population was 394,542. The is.

History
Solano County was one of the original counties of California, created in at the time of statehood. Prior to statehood, it had been referred to as Benicia County.

At the request of General, the county derives its name directly from an Indian Chief, of the , a  tribe of the region and Vallejo's close ally. Chief Solano at one time led the tribes between the and the. The chief was also called Sem-Yeto, which signifies "brave or fierce hand." The Chief was given the Spanish name Francisco Solano during baptism at the Catholic Mission, and is named after the Spanish, Father. "Solano" is a common surname in the north of Spain, specially in Navarra, Zaragoza and La Rioja.

is located just east of Fairfield.

Geography
According to the, the county has a total area of 2,348 (907 ). 2,148 km² (829 sq mi) of it is land and 201 km² (77 sq mi) of it (8.55%) is water.

A portion of the South Campus at the is in Solano County.

Unincorporated communities

 * - located within the city limits of Fairfield.
 * - within or just outside of NW Vacaville.
 * - located within the city limits of Fairfield.
 * - within or just outside of NW Vacaville.
 * - within or just outside of NW Vacaville.
 * - within or just outside of NW Vacaville.

Adjacent counties

 * - south
 * - west
 * - west
 * - north
 * - east

Endangered species
Solano county has a number of and  including the  ', commonly known as Contra Costa goldfields and the annual plant ' or False Venus' looking glass.

Solano County has several inactive mines including the  and, both of which are subject to ongoing environmental monitoring; these mines were worked in the first half of the twentieth century.

Major highways

 * [[Image:I-80 (CA).svg|20px]]
 * [[Image:I-505 (CA).svg|25px]]
 * [[Image:I-680 (CA).svg|25px]]
 * [[Image:I-780 (CA).svg|25px]]
 * [[Image:California 12.svg|20px]]
 * [[Image:California 37.svg|20px]]
 * [[Image:California 84.svg|20px]]
 * [[Image:California 113.svg|20px]]

Public transportation
Solano County is served by several transit agencies: Each agency interconnects with each other, enabling transit trips throughout the county. Service also connects with stations in Contra Costa County. Transit links are provided to Napa, Yolo and Sacramento counties as well.
 * , which also operates the Baylink Ferry to San Francisco

and provide long-distance intercity service.

Airports
General aviation airports in Solano County include: the, and

Demographics
As of the of 2000, there were 394,542 people, 130,403 households, and 97,411 families residing in the county. The was 184/km² (476/sq mi). There were 134,513 housing units at an average density of 63/km² (162/sq mi). The racial makeup of the county was 56.37%, 14.91% or , 0.79% , 12.75% , 0.78% , 8.01% from , and 6.39% from two or more races. 17.64% of the population were or  of any race. 75.7% spoke, 12.1% and 6.6%  as their first language.

There were 130,403 households out of which 39.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.70% were living together, 13.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.30% were non-families. 19.60% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.90 and the average family size was 3.33.

In the county the population was spread out with 28.30% under the age of 18, 9.20% from 18 to 24, 31.30% from 25 to 44, 21.70% from 45 to 64, and 9.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 101.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.20 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $54,099, and the median income for a family was $60,597. Males had a median income of $41,787 versus $31,916 for females. The for the county was $21,731. About 6.10% of families and 8.30% of the population were below the, including 10.30% of those under age 18 and 6.30% of those age 65 or over.

Politics
Solano is a strongly Democratic county in and  elections. The last Republican to win a majority in the county was in.

Solano is part of California's, , and congressional districts, which are held by Republican  and Democrats  and , respectively. In the Solano is in the 7th and 8th Assembly districts, which are held by Democrats  and, respectively. In the, Solano is part of the 2nd and 5th Senate districts, which are held by Democrats and , respectively.

Trivia
In 1985 the  strayed off his migration route and ended up in  at which point rescuers from  and other volunteers were able to turn him around in the narrow river channel.