Burlingame, California

History

Burlingame is situated on land previously owned by San Francisco-based merchant William Davis Merry Howard. Howard planted many eucalyptus trees on his property and retired to live on the land. Howard died in 1856 and the land was sold to William C. Ralston, a prominent banker. In 1868, Ralston named the land after his friend, Anson Burlingame, the United States Ambassador to China. After the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, hundreds of lots in Burlingame were sold to people looking to establish new homes, and the town of Burlingame was incorporated in 1908. In 1910, the neighboring town of Easton was annexed and this area is now known as the Easton Addition neighborhood of Burlingame.

Burlingame is known as the City of Trees due to the number of trees within the city (18,000 public trees). In 1908, the Burlingame board of trustees passed an ordinance "prohibiting cutting, injuring, or destroying trees". The city also has many parks and Eucalyptus groves that add to the overall tree numbers.

Highways

There are four highways passing through Burlingame. Highway 101 runs near the bay running from San Jose to San Francisco. Highway 82, also known as El Camino Real, follows a parallel course. Highway 35 connects with Interstate 280.

Caltrain

Caltrain has been serving Burlingame since 1985 when it bought out Southern Pacific. It used the same depot that was used in the early 20th century.

BART

Bay Area Rapid Transit has its final stop in Millbrae, just north of Burlingame. BART's tracks are within Burlingame city limits.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 6.1 square miles (16 km²). 4.4 square miles (11 km²) of it is land and 1.7 square miles (4.4 km²) of it (27.25%) is water.

Climate

This region experiences warm (but not hot) and dry summers, with no average monthly temperatures above 71.6 °F. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Burlingame has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate.

Demographics

The 2010 United States Census reported that Burlingame had a population of 28,806. The population density was 6,537.9 people per square mile (2,524.4/km²). Details regarding the demographic profile are shown below.

The population was spread out with 6,256 people (21.7%) under the age of 18, 1,496 people (5.2%) aged 18 to 24, 8,872 people (30.8%) aged 25 to 44, 8,136 people (28.2%) aged 45 to 64, and 4,046 people (14.0%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40.5 years. For every 100 females there were 90.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.2 males.

There were 13,027 housing units at an average density of 2,956.7 per square mile (1,141.6/km²). There were 12,361 households with average household size of 2.29. There were 7,183 families (58.1% of all households); the average family size was 3.02.

According to the U. S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS), 2015 median household income was $94,500 and per capita income was $62,019.

Government

In the California State Legislature, Burlingame is in the 13th Senate District, represented by Democrat Jerry Hill, and in the 22nd Assembly District, represented by Democrat Kevin Mullin.

In the United States House of Representatives, Burlingame is in California's 14th congressional district, represented by Democrat Jackie Speier.

Economy

In the 1920s Burlingame became a popular location for automobile retailers which became known as "Auto Row". In the 1960s, various airline support service businesses opened in Burlingame due to its proximity to San Francisco International Airport. Today, LSG/Sky Chefs, Inc., Virgin America, and China Airlines are all located in Burlingame. Historically, Burlingame has also been home to many candy and chocolate companies. There is the Burlingame Museum of Pez Memorabilia, Guittard Chocolate, the See's Candies lollipop factory, and family owned candy stores Powell's, Aida Opera Candies, and Nuts for Candy.

Over the past decade, Burlingame's economy has diversified substantially and it has become an attractive location for biotechnology companies owing to its proximity to South San Francisco, the birthplace of the biotechnology industry. Biotechnology companies with offices in Burlingame include: Annai Systems, Breathometer, Cala Health, Cleave Biosciences, Collaborative Drug Discovery, Confidence Clinical Research, Corvus Pharmaceuticals, Igenica Biotherapeutics, Kindred Biosciences, Omnitura, Phoenix Pharmaceuticals, Pulse Biosciences, and Vector Labs.

Additionally, multiple high technology firms have established offices in Burlingame due to its location between the booming technology centers of Silicon Valley to the south and San Francisco to the north. Tech companies with Burlingame offices include: Zecco.com, Natsume, Color Genomics, CarWoo, Jobvite, DataStax, Sprint’s M2M Collaboration Center, YouWeb, OpenFeint, CrowdStar, BitGravity, Veebeam, and TellApart.

Preschools

There are nineteen preschools in Burlingame. They are A Child's Way, Palcare, Stepping Stone, Peninsula Temple Sholom, Bridge Point Academy, Burlingame Montessori, St. Paul's Co-Op Nursery School, Learning Links, Morning Glory Montessori, Sunshine Family Child Care, United Methodist Co-Op Nursery School: Toddler Room, Kiddie Lab, First Presbyterian School, and Tout About Toys.

Primary and secondary schools

San Mateo Union High School District operates local high schools while the Burlingame School District operates elementary and middle schools.

Burlingame High School is the city's sole public high school. Burlingame Intermediate School is Burlingame's sole public middle school. There are six public elementary schools serving Burlingame. They are Franklin Elementary, Lincoln Elementary, McKinley Elementary, Roosevelt Elementary, Washington Elementary, and the newly reopened Hoover Elementary. According to the 2009 Base Academic Performance Index (API) Scores from the California Department of Education, the Burlingame School District ranks among the best in the state, with 4 out of their 6 public elementary schools (Roosevelt Elementary, Washington Elementary, Franklin Elementary, and Lincoln Elementary) scoring well between 880 and 925, and with ratings of 9 or 10. Burlingame school district enrollment has continually been increasing as young families move to the city. The city has passed two bond measures to add new facilities and modernize existing facilities to provide state-of-the-art classrooms. The city recently extensively renovated and modernized the Hoover School, which was built in 1931 and reopened in 2016.

Mercy High School is the only private Catholic all-girls high school in Burlingame. It was founded in 1931 by the Sisters of Mercy. The school itself is located in the prestigious Kohl Mansion which is a Historic Landmark. Also Our Lady of Angels School and St. Catherine of Siena School are located in Burlingame. In 1921, the silent version of the film Little Lord Fauntleroy, with Mary Pickford, was filmed in the Kohl Mansion.

Public libraries

Burlingame Library is located in Burlingame. It was established by city ordinance October 11, 1909. Following the Loma Prieta earthquake in 1989 the City approved a bond issue to reconstruct the library. The architecture has won awards and was featured in Library Journal as well as earning a cover story in American Libraries. There is a secondary location on Easton Drive, which is substantially smaller than the main branch. Both are operated by the Peninsula Library System, the library authority for the county.

Points of interest

Notable people

In popular culture