Palm Springs

History

The first humans to settle in the area were the Cahuilla people, who arrived 2,000 years ago. Cahuilla Indians lived here in isolation from other cultures for hundreds of years prior to European contact. They spoke Ivilyuat, which is a Uto-Aztecan language. Numerous prominent and powerful Cahuilla leaders were from the area, including Cahuilla Lion (Chief Juan Antonio). Palm Canyon was occupied during the winter months, but they often moved to cooler Chino Canyon during the summer months. The Cahuilla Indians had several permanent settlements in the canyons of Palm Springs due to the abundance of water and shade. Various hot springs were used during wintertime. The Cahuilla hunted rabbit, mountain goat, and quail while trapping fish in nearby lakes and rivers. While men were responsible for hunting, women were responsible for collecting berries, acorns, and seeds. They also made tortillas from mesquite seeds. Ancient petroglyphs, pictographs and mortar holes can be seen in Andreas Canyon. The mortar holes were used to grind acorns into meal. The Agua Caliente ("Hot Water") Reservation was established in 1876 and consists of . are located by Downtown Palm Springs. The Native American land is on long lease land and next to one of California's high-end communities, making the tribe one of the wealthiest in California. The first name for Palm Springs was given by the native Cahuilla: "Se-Khi" (boiling water). When the Agua Caliente Reservation was established by the United States government in 1876, the reservation land was composed of alternating sections () of land laid out across the desert in a checkerboard pattern. The alternating non-reservation sections were granted to the Southern Pacific Railroad as an incentive to bring rail lines through the Sonoran Desert.…

Geography

Palm Springs is located in the Colorado Desert. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and (1%) is water. Located in the Coachella Valley desert region, Palm Springs is sheltered by the San Bernardino Mountains to the north, the Santa Rosa Mountains to the south, by the San Jacinto Mountains to the west and by the Little San Bernardino Mountains to the east. Palm Springs has a hot desert climate (BWh in Köppen-Geiger classification), with over 300 days of sunshine and of rainfall annually. The wettest "rain year" on record was from July 1926 to June 1927 with — of which fell during three days in mid-February — and the driest from July 2001 to June 2002 with . The winter months are warm, with a majority of days reaching and in January and February afternoons often see temperatures of and on occasion reach over , while, on average, there are 17 mornings annually dipping to or below ; Summers are extremely hot, with daytime temperatures consistently surpassing while overnight temperatures often remain above . The mean annual temperature is . There are on average 176.6 afternoons with a high reaching , and can be seen on 114.8 afternoons. The climate of Palm Springs is suitable for some palm trees, although tropical types that need more water and humidity do not grow as well. On October 1, 2024 the temperature in Palm Springs reached , tying the record for the highest temperature in the United States in October, after the same temperature was reached in nearby Mecca on October 5, 1917. The locale features a variety of native Low Desert flora and fauna. A notable tree occurring in the wild and under cultivation is the California Fan Palm, Washingtonia filifera. The fauna of Palm Springs is mostly species…

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Common Raven

  Corvus corax Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  13,768
• House Finch

  Haemorhous mexicanus (P.L.Statius Müller, 1776) · Aves
  11,748
• Costa's Hummingbird

  Calypte costae (Bourcier, 1839) · Aves
  10,565
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  10,476
• Verdin

  Auriparus flaviceps (Sundevall, 1850) · Aves
  9,326
• Yellow-rumped Warbler

  Setophaga coronata (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  9,231
• Northern Mockingbird

  Mimus polyglottos (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  8,911
• Western Bluebird

  Sialia mexicana Swainson, 1832 · Aves
  8,224

Largest nearby schools

• Palm Springs High
  High · Palm Springs · 1,584 students · 23:1 ratio
• Rancho Mirage High
  High · Rancho Mirage · 1,491 students · 21.9:1 ratio
• Cathedral City High
  High · Cathedral City · 1,395 students · 20.2:1 ratio
• James Workman Middle
  Middle · Cathedral City · 1,028 students · 22.8:1 ratio
• Nellie N. Coffman Middle
  Middle · Cathedral City · 953 students · 21.7:1 ratio
• Cielo Vista Charter
  Elementary · Palm Springs · 872 students · 22.4:1 ratio
• Sunny Sands Elementary
  Elementary · Cathedral City · 721 students · 23.3:1 ratio
• Two Bunch Palms Elementary
  Elementary · Desert Hot Springs · 711 students · 22.2:1 ratio

Most recent

• M 2.83 — 2026-06-26
  19 km NNE of Indio, CA
• M 2.82 — 2026-06-09
  7 km SE of Loma Linda, CA
• M 3.18 — 2026-06-09
  7 km SE of Loma Linda, CA
• M 2.54 — 2026-06-03
  1 km E of San Jacinto, CA
• M 2.65 — 2026-05-16
  20 km SW of Ocotillo Wells, CA
• M 2.51 — 2026-05-12
  3 km WSW of Lake Henshaw, CA