Modesto emerged as a stop on the railroad connecting Sacramento to LA. The City of Modesto is Central Valley’s cultural hub with plenty of historic and cultural things to experience and explore. Did you know that the City of Modesto has been honored as a “Tree Centre” about 29 times? Did you know that “American Graffiti”, an award-winning movie of 1973 by George Lucas was shot in Modesto? Know more such interesting facts on the City of Modesto.
Image By Amy Vickery (Own work) [CC BY-SA 4.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
Modesto Geographic and Demographic Fast Facts
- Modesto is in Stanislaus County, California and is the largest city of the county.
- It is officially known as the “City of Modesto”.
- It is located in the center of the San Joaquin Valley, one of the well-known agricultural areas in the US.
- It is the eighteenth largest city in California, United States.
- The ethnic composition of Modesto includes White-65.0%, African American-4.2%, Native American-1.2%, Asian-6.7%, Pacific Islander-1.0%, from other races-15.5%, and two or more races-6.3%.
Modesto History Fast Facts
- The City of Modesto emerged as a stop on the railroad linking Sacramento to Los Angeles.
- Modesto was founded in 1870.
- In 1884, it was incorporated as a municipal city.
- Originally, the town was to be named Ralston to honor William C. Ralston, the Central Pacific Railroad director, but he was very modest and asked to find a new name. In honor of William C. Ralston modesty, it was named “Modesto”, a Spanish word which means “modest”.
- Modesto grew rapidly and by 1910, the population was more than 4,500.
- Soon, it was known as the “Garden City” and “Rose City because of many lawns and rose bushes.
- In 1911, the slogan for Modesto was selected- “Water, Wealth, Contentment, Health”.
- In 1912, the Modesto Arch was constructed, which is situated at 9th and I Streets.
Modesto Government and Economy Fast Facts
- The City of Modesto has a Council-Manager type of government.
- The city is home to a large agricultural industry.
- The city has one of the world’s largest winery- E & J Gallo Winery. The Gallo Glass Company is the world’s largest wine bottle manufacturing company.
Modesto Important and Interesting Fast Facts
- “American Graffiti”, an award-winning movie of 1973 by George Lucas was shot in Modesto.
- The city is one of the birthplaces of modern rock ‘n roll. The rock music was started in the city by Maddox Brothers and Rose in 1938.
- According to Forbes (2009, December), the City of Modesto was ranked at 48th position out of 100 in the list of “Best Bang for the Buck Cities”.
- It was listed as one of the “Top 25 Cities for Doing Business” in the category “Medium Cities” by Inc. Magazine (2004).
- The city has the largest garden club in CA.
- The city is home to the Modesto Nuts minor league baseball team.
- The Star War Series creator- George Lucas was born in Modesto.
- Carol Channing, the popular American actress, comedienne, singer and 3 times winner of Tony Award is from Modesto.
- The city has been honored as a “Tree City USA” several times.
- “The Modesto Bee” is the daily newspaper in Modesto.
