Merced

Sister cities

• Somoto
• Albury

History

The first Merced post office opened in 1870. Merced incorporated in 1889. Since 2005, Merced has been home to the University of California, Merced. Historic cultural attractions in the city include The Mainzer Theater which is known for its historic and architectural value, the County Courthouse Museum , the Merced Multicultural Arts Center and the County Library. Also within a short distance from the city limits are the Castle Air Museum, Lake Yosemite, and Merced Falls. The city of Merced along with its surrounding cities are serviced by the Merced Sun-Star and the Merced County Times. The Merced Sun-Star daily newspaper has a circulation of 14,219 daily and 18,569 Saturday in the Merced area. The paper was sold to U.S. Media in 1985 and was acquired by The McClatchy Company in January 2004. Homes at the median level in Merced had lost 62% of their value from the second quarter of 2006, when they peaked at $336,743, the biggest drop anywhere in the country. Home prices have since rebounded, with the median sale price in April 2018 at $247,000 and stabilizing at around $400,000 in February, 2022 through January 2026. Investors from outside of the Valley were helping to drive up home prices. The metro area went to a 14.2% unemployment rate in December 2013. Having since recovered to a rate of 8.7% in April 2018. Some efforts have been directed towards diversifying its economy and are showing a lowering trend in the overall unemployment rate, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. During the Great Recession Merced suffered one of the greatest property price collapses in the country and house prices at the end of 2009 had fallen to 1998 levels, according to Zillow, making housing affordable compared to many other California locations. The economy has…

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all land. A major groundwater plume containing the contaminant PCE was discovered in Merced in 1987. Subsequently, drilling of new water wells was severely restricted. Merced has a cool semi-arid climate (Köppen: BSk), with its annual precipitation falling just short of a mediterranean climate. The city features hot to sweltering, dry summers and mild, damp winters. There are an average of 99.7 days with highs of or higher and an average of 27.8 days with lows of or lower. The record highest temperature of was recorded on September 6, 2022. The record lowest temperature of was recorded on December 24, 1990. The wettest "rain year" was from July 1982 to June 1983 with and the driest from July 2013 to June 2014 with . The most rainfall in one month was in January 1909. The most rainfall in 24 hours was , which occurred on January 30, 1911 and March 9, 1911. |source 2 = National Weather Service }} ;Notes:

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Black Phoebe

  Sayornis nigricans (Swainson, 1827) · Aves
  4,311
• Red-tailed Hawk

  Buteo jamaicensis (Gmelin, 1788) · Aves
  4,131
• Great Egret

  Ardea alba Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  3,992
• Killdeer

  Charadrius vociferus Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  3,981
• White-crowned Sparrow

  Zonotrichia leucophrys (J.R.Forster, 1772) · Aves
  3,723
• Red-winged Blackbird

  Agelaius phoeniceus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  3,591
• Western Meadowlark

  Sturnella neglecta Audubon, 1844 · Aves
  3,460
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  3,431

Largest nearby schools

• Atwater High
  High · Atwater · 2,095 students · 21.8:1 ratio
• Golden Valley High
  High · Merced · 1,956 students · 22:1 ratio
• Merced High
  High · Merced · 1,894 students · 22.5:1 ratio
• El Capitan High
  High · Merced · 1,839 students · 21.9:1 ratio
• Buhach Colony High
  High · Atwater · 1,746 students · 20.8:1 ratio
• Pioneer Elementary
  Elementary · Merced · 1,126 students · 21.2:1 ratio
• Weaver Middle
  Middle · Merced · 1,003 students · 23.3:1 ratio
• Farmdale Elementary
  Elementary · Merced · 1,001 students · 21.3:1 ratio

Most recent

• M 2.62 — 2026-09-17
  21 km E of Alum Rock, CA
• M 2.54 — 2026-08-28
  22 km SE of Yosemite Valley, CA
• M 2.92 — 2026-07-31
  11 km ESE of Gilroy, CA
• M 2.76 — 2026-07-30
  10 km ESE of Gilroy, CA
• M 2.96 — 2026-07-27
  12 km ESE of Gilroy, CA
• M 2.73 — 2026-07-14
  11 km ESE of Gilroy, CA