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Woodside is a small incorporated town in San Mateo County, California, United States, on the San Francisco Peninsula. Woodside is among the wealthiest communities in the United States, home to many technology billionaires and investment managers, with average home prices exceeding 5 million dollars. It has a council–manager system of government. The population of the town was 5,309 at the 2020 census.[1] Woodside is among the wealthiest communities in the United States with a median household income of $375,561, median family income of $401,591 and median home price exceeding $4.5 million. [edit] History and culture
The Woodside area was originally home to natives belonging to the Ohlone tribe. In 1769, led by Gaspar de Portolá, Spanish explorers searching for San Francisco Bay camped at a site near Woodside. Woodside is said to be the oldest English-speaking settlement in the southern part of the San Francisco Peninsula. The first English-speaking settlers arrived in the early 19th century to log the rich stands of redwoods. Charles Brown constructed the first sawmill in Woodside on his Mountain Home Ranch around 1838. Brown's adobe house, built in 1839, still stands today. By mid-century, the Woodside area had a dozen mills producing building materials for a booming San Francisco. In 1849, during the California Gold Rush, 20-year-old Mathias Alfred Parkhurst purchased of timberland and named it “Woodside"; of course, this name was kept. By the late 19th century, Woodside was home to country estates. The Sequoia Redwood trees in Woodside are currently 3rd generation growth. The first generation of the Redwood trees were used to build San Francisco original homes. After the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, the loggers returned to Woodside to cut the second growth of redwood so they could be used for the rebuilding of San Francisco. In 1909, the Family, a private club, set up camp facilities and rustic buildings in Woodside at the Family Farm, a rural retreat used by club members for recreation. Gatherings at the Family Farm include an annual Farm Play, written and performed by members. In 1912, the Family pooled funds to build Our Lady of the Wayside Church in Portola Valley, designed by 19-year-old Timothy L. Pflueger, his first commission. The historic building was repaired at a cost of US$600,000 after the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. Woodside was incorporated in 1956 and it retains a rural residential character even though it is only a short commute to Silicon Valley and Stanford University. In early 2022, the town drew widespread derision for declaring itself a mountain lion habitat to avoid state affordable housing requirements. It backed down on that attempt after California Attorney General Rob Bonta denied this claim. Bonta wrote: "There is no valid basis to claim that the entire town of Woodside is a habitat for mountain lions. Land that is already developed — with, for example a single-family home — is not, by definition, habitat. (...) Our message to local governments is simple: act in good faith, follow the law, and do your part to increase the housing supply." [edit] Research Tips
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