Daly City

Sister cities

• Quezon City

History

Archaeological evidence suggests the San Francisco Bay area has been inhabited as early as 2700 BC. People of the Ohlone language group probably occupied northern California from at least the year A.D. 500. Though their territory had been claimed by Spain since the early 16th century, they had relatively little contact with Europeans until 1769, when as part of an effort to colonize Alta California, an exploration party led by Don Gaspar de Portolá learned of the existence of San Francisco Bay. Seven years later, in 1776, an expedition led by Juan Bautista de Anza selected the site for the Presidio of San Francisco, which José Joaquín Moraga soon established. Later the same year, Franciscan missionary Francisco Palóu founded the Mission San Francisco de Asís (Mission Dolores). As part of the founding, the priests claimed the land south of the mission for 16 miles for raising crops and for fodder for cattle and sheep. In 1778, the priests and soldiers marked out a trail to connect San Francisco to the rest of California. Upon independence from Spain, prominent Mexican citizens were granted land parcels to establish large ranches, three of which covered areas now in Daly City and Colma. Rancho Laguna de la Merced was acres and covered the area around a lake of the same name. A decade later, several families left as increases in the fog density killed grain and potato crops. The few remaining families switched to dairy and cattle farming as a more profitable enterprise. The Daly City area served as a location where San Franciscans would cross over county lines to gamble and fight. As tensions built in approach to the American Civil War, California was divided between pro-slavery, and Free Soil advocates. Two of the main figures in the debate were US Senator David C.…

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all land. Daly City is bordered by the cities of San Francisco, Brisbane, Pacifica, South San Francisco, and the town of Colma. The city borders several unincorporated areas of San Mateo County. It surrounds Broadmoor, and borders San Bruno Mountain State Park, the Olympic Club, Lake Merced, and unincorporated areas near Colma. Seismic faults in and near Daly City include the San Andreas Fault, Hillside Fault, and Serra Fault. Neighborhoods of Daly City include Westlake, St. Francis Heights, Serramonte, Top of the Hill, Hillside, Crocker, Southern Hills, and Bayshore. Westlake is notable for its distinct architecture and for being among the earliest examples of a planned, large-tract suburb. It was the inspiration for Malvina Reynolds' 1962 song "Little Boxes", and later a coffee-table book and documentary Little Boxes: The Architecture of a Classic Midcentury Suburb. Bayshore, the easternmost neighborhood of Daly City, was an incorporated city, Bayshore City, from 1932 to 1940; it was annexed to Daly City in 1963. Several Daly City neighborhoods, such as Crocker, Southern Hills, and Bayshore, share a street grid and similar characteristics with adjacent San Francisco neighborhoods, such as Crocker-Amazon and Visitacion Valley. Several neighborhoods associated with Daly City lie outside of its city limits. Broadmoor is an unincorporated area completely surrounded by Daly City. Colma is an incorporated town sandwiched between Daly City, South San Francisco, and San Bruno Mountain. These enclaves are in charge of their own police and fire services, but share some services with Daly City. Daly City's climate is similar to that of San Francisco's western areas such as the Richmond District and…

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Anna's Hummingbird

  Calypte anna (R.Lesson, 1829) · Aves
  86,951
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  75,590
• White-crowned Sparrow

  Zonotrichia leucophrys (J.R.Forster, 1772) · Aves
  73,184
• House Finch

  Haemorhous mexicanus (P.L.Statius Müller, 1776) · Aves
  71,076
• Western Gull

  Larus occidentalis Audubon, 1839 · Aves
  68,001
• Black Phoebe

  Sayornis nigricans (Swainson, 1827) · Aves
  65,359
• Common Raven

  Corvus corax Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  62,720
• Song Sparrow

  Melospiza melodia (A.Wilson, 1810) · Aves
  60,410

Largest nearby schools

• Burlingame High
  High · Burlingame · 1,519 students · 21.1:1 ratio
• Westmoor High
  High · Daly City · 1,302 students · 22.4:1 ratio
• South San Francisco High
  High · South San Francisco · 1,280 students · 19.4:1 ratio
• El Camino High
  High · South San Francisco · 1,173 students · 18.9:1 ratio
• Jefferson High
  High · Daly City · 1,159 students · 21.1:1 ratio
• Mills High
  High · Millbrae · 1,141 students · 21.5:1 ratio
• Capuchino High
  High · San Bruno · 1,091 students · 17.9:1 ratio
• Burlingame Intermediate
  Middle · Burlingame · 1,013 students · 21.1:1 ratio

Most recent

• M 2.51 — 2026-09-29
  5 km W of Yountville, CA
• M 2.6 — 2026-09-27
  26 km WSW of Westley, CA
• M 3.32 — 2026-09-27
  27 km WSW of Westley, CA
• M 2.51 — 2026-09-19
  10 km ENE of Milpitas, CA
• M 2.56 — 2026-09-17
  21 km E of Alum Rock, CA
• M 2.6 — 2026-09-16
  3 km ESE of Santa Rosa, CA