McKinleyville

History

The Wiyot and Yurok people continue to live here in their traditional territories and both groups are ingrained within the McKinleyville community. McKinleyville is a community made up of a combination of smaller settlements. Joe Dows settled in the general area in the 1860s and that area was known as Dows Prairie. Slightly south was a small community called Minor (also known as Minorville). Minor was first settled in the late 19th century. Just south of Minor was Calville. Calville was settled by the employees of the California Barrel Company. After President William McKinley was assassinated in 1901, the community of Minor changed its name to McKinleyville in his honor. All three areas are collectively considered to be part of McKinleyville. The first post office at McKinleyville opened in 1903, closed in 1921, and was reopened in 1955. McKinleyville is a community with mainly retail and professional businesses to serve its residents but is not an incorporated city or town.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of , of which is land and , or 1.2%, is water. McKinleyville consists of several watershed areas. The north bank of the Mad River is the farthest watershed to the south. The next watershed to the north is Mill Creek, then Widow White Creek, Norton Creek, Strawberry Creek, Patrick Creek and finally the farthest watershed to the north is the south bank of the Little River. To the west lies the Pacific Ocean. The area sees summers that are not as foggy as Eureka and Arcata to the south, and run a few degrees warmer. McKinleyville has a cool-summer Mediterranean climate (Köppen Csb) typical of the North Coast that is characterized by mild, rainy winters and cool, mild summers, with an average temperature of 55°F (13 °C). The area experiences coastal influence fog all year round.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Common Raven

  Corvus corax Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  18,599
• Song Sparrow

  Melospiza melodia (A.Wilson, 1810) · Aves
  18,430
• Black Phoebe

  Sayornis nigricans (Swainson, 1827) · Aves
  15,019
• Turkey Vulture

  Cathartes aura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  14,681
• Great Egret

  Ardea alba Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  11,524
• European Starling

  Sturnus vulgaris Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  11,106
• Mallard

  Anas platyrhynchos Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  10,893
• House Finch

  Haemorhous mexicanus (P.L.Statius Müller, 1776) · Aves
  10,787

Most recent

• M 2.52 — 2026-09-22
  40 km W of Petrolia, CA
• M 2.6 — 2026-09-22
  47 km WNW of Petrolia, CA
• M 2.5 — 2026-09-21
  21 km W of Petrolia, CA
• M 2.96 — 2026-09-21
  21 km WSW of Petrolia, CA
• M 2.61 — 2026-09-18
  17 km W of Petrolia, CA
• M 3.52 — 2026-09-16
  20 km WSW of Petrolia, CA