Livermore is a city located in Alameda County. Situated on the eastern edge of the San Francisco Bay Area in the state of California, as of 2010 Livermore had a population of 80,968 people. William Mendenhall founded the city, naming it after a local rancher and friend called Robert Livermore, who had decided to move to the area during the 1830s.
The city is also home to the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, after which the chemical element known as livermorium was also named. The south side of the city is home to a number of vineyards and has developed executive subdivisions situated close to Ruby Hill, while the city, which is considered to be a part of the Tri-Valley area along with the likes of Amador and San Ramon Valleys, has also redeveloped its downtown district.
Livermore is the third richest midsize city in the whole of the United States, according to the most recent information from the US Census. Seven years ago, back in 2005, Livermore’s median household income was $96,632. This put it behind Newport Beach, California, which had a median household income of $97,428, and the city’s western neighbor Pleasanton, California, which had a median household income of $101,022.
Figures from the United States Census Bureau put the total area of Livermore at 25.2 square miles. There are a number of watercourses that drain the city, including Arroyo Mocho, Arroyo Seco, Arroyo Las Positas and Arroyo del Valle. The Mocho Subbasin is the main aquifer underlying the city. There are also a number of areas of seismic activity located close to the city, such as the Tesla Fault and the Greenville Fault. The climate in Livermore is Mediterranean, with mild to cool wet winters and warm to hot dry summers.
The culture of the city keeps some traces of the ranching and farming traditions that existed from the days of Robert Livermore, though it is now largely reflective of a suburban population. There is a strong blue-collar element in the city, as well as a number of professionals who work in the Bay Area’s high tech industries and the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. There have also been a number of recent housing developments that have included hundreds of million dollar homes, resulting in the relocation to Livermore of much wealthier individuals, and a renovation of the city’s downtown area, which includes features such as the Bankhead Theatre, office buildings, the Livermore Cinema, a parking structure, a state of the art library that opened eight years ago back in 2004, and Livermore Airport.
The city also supports a number of arts organizations, including Del Valle Fine Arts and the Livermore Amador Symphony and, in the valley, the classical ballet company known as the Valley Dance Theatre, the Livermore Valley Opera and the Valley Concert Chorale. Livermore has also played host to the World’s Fastest Rodeo in the shape of the Livermore Rodeo, which claims to feature more riders on an hourly basis that any other event of its kind.
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