El Dorado County (/ˌɛl dəˈrɑːdoʊ/ ; El Dorado, Spanish for "The Golden [one]"), officially the County of El Dorado, is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 191,185. The county seat is Placerville. The county is part of the Sacramento-Roseville-Arden-Arcade, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is located entirely in the Sierra Nevada, from the historic Gold Country in the western foothills to the High Sierra in the east. El Dorado County's population has grown as Greater Sacramento has expanded into the region. Where the county line crosses US 50 at Clarksville, the distance to Sacramento is 15 miles (24 km). In the county's high altitude eastern end at Lake Tahoe, environmental awareness and environmental protection initiatives have grown along with the population since the 1960 Winter Olympics, hosted at the former Squaw Valley Ski Resort in neighboring Placer County.

What is now known as El Dorado County has been home to the Maidu, Nisenan, Washoe, and Miwok Indigenous American nations for centuries. The region became famous for being the site of the 1848 discovery that sparked the California Gold Rush. As a result, the name "El Dorado" was derived from the Spanish word for, "The Gilded One". The County of El Dorado was one of California's original 27 counties created effective February 18, 1850 (the number has risen to 58 today).

The final segments of the Pony Express mail route ran through El Dorado County until its replacement with the telegraph service in 1861; U.S. Route 50 follows the Pony Express route today.

The Placerville Mountain Democrat, California's oldest surviving newspaper, serves El Dorado County.

The Caldor Fire started on August 14, 2021, near Little Mountain, south of Pollock Pines in El Dorado County, about two miles (3.2 km) east of Omo Ranch and four miles (6.4 km) south of Grizzly Flats. It initially burned slowly, but exploded in size on August 16 due to high winds. By the night of August 16, it was 6,500 acres (2,600 ha). On August 17, the fire grew to 30,000 acres (12,000 ha) as it expanded rapidly north and east, crossing the North Fork Cosumnes River and approaching Sly Park Reservoir. By August 20, the fire had burned nearly to U.S. Route 50, forcing a closure of the highway. Over the next few days, the fire crossed Highway 50 in the vicinity of Kyburz. Starting on August 27, winds drove the fire rapidly east towards the Lake Tahoe Basin. By August 30, it had reached Echo Summit, less than five miles (8.0 km) from South Lake Tahoe.

There are only two municipalities in El Dorado County: Placerville and South Lake Tahoe.

This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (July 2024) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

The El Dorado County Sheriff provides court protection, county jail administration, and coroner service for all of the county and provides patrol and detective services for the unincorporated areas of the county. Incorporated cities Placerville, population 11,000, and South Lake Tahoe, population 22,000, have municipal police departments.

• James Hume (Feb 18, 1850 - November 7, 1852)
• Steven Charles Austin (Nov 7, 1852 - November 7, 1856)
• William Tanner Henson (Nov 7, 1856 - September 15, 1859)
• Walter J. Burwell (Sep 15, 1859 - August 15, 1863)
• Henry Gooding (Aug 15, 1863 - November 7, 1867)
• Jacob Hart Neff (Nov 7, 1867 - November 7, 1871)
• Charles Benjamin Dunnam (Nov 7, 1871 - November 7, 1875)
• Jason McCormick (Nov 7, 1875 - November 7, 1881)
• George Burnham (Nov 7, 1881 - November 7, 1883)
• Thomas Augustus Galt (Nov 7, 1883 - November 7, 1887)
• George H. Hilbert (Nov 7, 1887 - November 7, 1898)
• Archie Speer Bosquit (Nov 7, 1898 - November 7, 1907)
• Gilbert Cook (Nov 7, 1907 - May 9, 1912)
• Albert George Bradshaw (May 9, 1912 - November 7, 1914)
• Charles E. Hand (Nov 7, 1914 - November 7, 1925)
• Charles F. Woods (Nov 7, 1925 - November 7, 1931)
• George Martin Smith Sr. (Nov 7, 1931 - November 7, 1941)
• Lowell Fred West (Nov 7, 1941 - November 7, 1949)
• Rowland Lee Morris (Nov 7, 1949 - November 7, 1955)
• Ernie Carlson (Nov 7, 1955 - November 7, 1965)
• Robert Mitchum (Nov 7, 1965 - November 7, 1971)
• Ernie Carlson (Nov 7, 1971 - November 7, 1975)
• Al Coombs (Nov 7, 1975 - November 7, 1977)
• Richard "Dick" Pacileo (Nov 7, 1975 - November 7, 1991)
• Don McDonald (1991 - 1997)
• Hal Barker (1997 - 2002)
• Jeff Neves (Nov 7, 2001 - November 7, 2010)
• John D'Agostini (Nov 7, 2010 - January 3, 2023)
• Jeff Leikauf (January 3, 2023 - Present)

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,786 square miles (4,630 km), of which 1,708 square miles (4,420 km) is land and 78 square miles (200 km) (4.4%) is water.

The county, owing to its location in the Sierra Nevada, consists of rolling hills and mountainous terrain. The northeast corner is in the Lake Tahoe Basin (part of the Great Basin), including a portion of the lake itself. Across the Sierra crest to the west lies the majority of the county, referred to as the "western slope." A portion of Folsom Lake is in the northwest corner of the county.

Much of the county is public land. The Eldorado National Forest comprises a significant portion (approximately 43%) of the county's land area, primarily on the western slope. The Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit, formerly part of the Eldorado and two other National Forests, manages much of the land east of the crest. The Pacific Crest Trail runs through the eastern part of the county, along or roughly paralleling the Sierra crest. The county is home to the Desolation Wilderness, a popular destination for hiking, backpacking, and fishing.

• Placer County – north
• Douglas County, Nevada – northeast
• Alpine County – southeast
• Amador County – south
• Sacramento County – southwest

• Fountain-Tallman Soda Works
• John Pearson Soda Works
• Combellack-Blair House
• Rubicon Point Light

• Heavenly Ski Resort
• Sierra-At-Tahoe Ski Resort

• Placerville Speedway

• California Shenandoah Valley AVA
• El Dorado AVA
• Fair Play AVA
• Sierra Foothills AVA

The vast majority of the population lives in a narrow strip along U.S. Route 50, with the majority living between El Dorado Hills and Pollock Pines. The remainder resides in the South Lake Tahoe area, and in various dispersed rural communities.

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1850	20,057		—
1860	20,562		2.5%
1870	10,309		−49.9%
1880	10,683		3.6%
1890	9,232		−13.6%
1900	8,986		−2.7%
1910	7,492		−16.6%
1920	6,426		−14.2%
1930	8,325		29.6%
1940	13,229		58.9%
1950	16,207		22.5%
1960	29,390		81.3%
1970	43,833		49.1%
1980	85,812		95.8%
1990	125,955		46.8%
2000	156,299		24.1%
2010	181,058		15.8%
2020	191,185		5.6%
2023 (est.)	192,215		0.5%
U.S. Decennial Census 1790–1960 1900–1990 1990–2000 2010 2020

El Dorado County, California – Racial and ethnic composition
Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.

Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)	Pop 2000	Pop 2010	Pop 2020	% 2000	% 2010	% 2020
White alone (NH)	132,725	144,689	140,141	84.92%	79.91%	73.30%
Black or African American alone (NH)	745	1,296	1,436	0.48%	0.72%	0.75%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)	1,272	1,553	1,273	0.81%	0.86%	0.67%
Asian alone (NH)	3,250	6,143	9,024	2.08%	3.39%	4.72%
Pacific Islander alone (NH)	169	261	276	0.11%	0.14%	0.14%
Other Race alone (NH)	237	318	1,215	0.15%	0.18%	0.64%
Mixed Race or Multi-Racial (NH)	3,335	4,923	11,361	2.13%	2.72%	5.94%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	14,566	21,875	26,459	9.32%	12.08%	13.84%
Total	156,299	181,058	191,185	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%

Population, race, and income
Total population	179,878
White	157,853	87.8%
Black or African American	1,367	0.8%
American Indian or Alaska Native	1,802	1.0%
Asian	6,260	3.5%
Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander	167	0.1%
Some other race	6,323	3.5%
Two or more races	6,106	3.4%
Hispanic or Latino (of any race)	21,222	11.8%
Per capita income	$34,385
Median household income	$68,815
Median family income	$82,930

Places by population and race
Place	Type	Population	White	Other	Asian	Black or African American	Native American	Hispanic or Latino (of any race)
Auburn Lake Trails	CDP	3,741	97.0%	1.5%	0.2%	1.0%	0.3%	2.3%
Cameron Park	CDP	16,697	90.8%	6.1%	2.2%	0.6%	0.4%	15.4%
Camino	CDP	1,933	98.7%	0.7%	0.3%	0.4%	0.0%	3.5%
Cold Springs	CDP	569	90.9%	9.1%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	3.3%
Coloma	CDP	353	82.4%	17.3%	0.3%	0.0%	0.0%	20.1%
Diamond Springs	CDP	11,367	93.6%	2.3%	1.3%	0.7%	2.1%	9.4%
El Dorado Hills	CDP	43,563	84.0%	5.4%	8.9%	1.7%	0.1%	7.3%
Georgetown	CDP	2,338	89.9%	8.2%	0.0%	0.1%	1.8%	10.7%
Grizzly Flats	CDP	923	97.4%	0.0%	0.9%	0.0%	1.7%	6.7%
Placerville	City	10,394	82.5%	12.0%	2.0%	0.7%	2.9%	19.4%
Pollock Pines	CDP	6,953	95.2%	3.6%	0.8%	0.0%	0.4%	9.8%
Shingle Springs	CDP	4,797	92.7%	2.0%	0.0%	0.7%	4.6%	16.7%
South Lake Tahoe	City	21,814	76.8%	16.8%	4.5%	0.6%	1.3%	31.3%
Tahoma ‡	CDP	563	82.8%	17.2%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	8.5%
‡ Data for El Dorado County area of this CDP

Places by population and income
Place	Type	Population	Per capita income	Median household income	Median family income
Auburn Lake Trails	CDP	3,741	$35,522	$79,573	$92,308
Cameron Park	CDP	16,697	$34,839	$72,562	$84,361
Camino	CDP	1,933	$26,015	$51,742	$63,412
Cold Springs (El Dorado County)	CDP	569	$30,925	$97,576	$99,286
Coloma	CDP	353	$22,462	$44,844	$44,844
Diamond Springs	CDP	11,367	$28,786	$52,911	$62,150
El Dorado Hills	CDP	43,563	$44,920	$115,121	$123,816
Georgetown	CDP	2,338	$24,117	$52,169	$62,614
Grizzly Flats	CDP	923	$20,902	$32,365	$56,813
Placerville	City	10,394	$26,109	$53,385	$66,890
Pollock Pines	CDP	6,953	$30,826	$54,478	$62,760
Shingle Springs	CDP	4,797	$34,055	$86,786	$89,778
South Lake Tahoe	City	21,814	$22,958	$41,685	$51,538
Tahoma ‡	CDP	563	$32,105	$54,286	$63,646
‡ Data for El Dorado County area of this CDP

The 2010 United States Census reported that El Dorado County had a population of 181,058. The racial makeup of El Dorado County was 156,793 (86.6%) White, 1,409 (0.8%) African American, 2,070 (1.1%) Native American, 6,297 (3.5%) Asian, 294 (0.2%) Pacific Islander, 7,278 (4.0%) from other races, and 6,917 (3.8%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 21,875 persons (12.1%). The largest growth in the county has come in El Dorado Hills where the population grew by 24,092 residents to a total of 42,108 since 2000.

Population reported at 2010 United States Census
The County	Total Population	White	African American	Native American	Asian	Pacific Islander	other races	two or more races	Hispanic or Latino (of any race)
El Dorado County	181,058	156,793	1,409	2,070	6,297	294	7,278	6,917	21,875
Incorporated cities	Total Population	White	African American	Native American	Asian	Pacific Islander	other races	two or more races	Hispanic or Latino (of any race)
Placerville	10,389	8,716	80	162	98	13	867	453	1,863
South Lake Tahoe	21,403	15,733	182	232	1,186	39	3,230	801	6,665
Census-designated places	Total Population	White	African American	Native American	Asian	Pacific Islander	other races	two or more races	Hispanic or Latino (of any race)
Auburn Lake Trails	3,426	3,190	6	28	36	5	45	116	208
Cameron Park	18,228	16,242	143	194	425	36	461	727	2,056
Camino	1,750	1,604	7	14	18	4	55	48	197
Cold Springs	446	413	4	5	3	0	15	6	43
Coloma	529	462	4	3	8	0	15	37	63
Diamond Springs	11,037	9,743	39	176	110	6	518	445	1,377
El Dorado Hills	42,108	35,089	615	196	3,563	71	681	1,893	3,802
Georgetown	2,367	2,128	47	59	18	2	45	68	177
Grizzly Flats	1,066	954	6	14	7	2	19	64	96
Pollock Pines	6,871	6,195	18	128	56	3	251	220	713
Shingle Springs	4,432	3,919	14	108	50	3	132	206	469
Tahoma‡	780	736	2	7	7	0	11	17	35
Other unincorporated areas	Total Population	White	African American	Native American	Asian	Pacific Islander	other races	two or more races	Hispanic or Latino (of any race)
All others not CDPs (combined)	56,226	51,669	242	744	712	110	933	1,816	4,111
‡ Note: these numbers reflect only the portion of this CDP in El Dorado County

As of the census of 2000, there were 156,299 people, 58,939 households, and 43,025 families residing in the county. The population density was 91 inhabitants per square mile (35/km). There were 71,278 housing units at an average density of 42 per square mile (16/km). The racial makeup of the county was 89.7% White, 0.5% Black or African American, 1.0% Native American, 2.1% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 3.6% from other races, and 3.0% from two or more races. 9.3% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 14.9% were of German, 13.4% English, 10.3% Irish, 6.6% Italian and 6.6% American ancestry according to Census 2000. 90.5% spoke English and 6.5% Spanish as their first language.

There were 58,939 households, out of which 34.2% had youngsters under the age of 18 living with them, 60.1% were married couples living together, 8.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.0% were non-families. 20.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 3.04.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.1% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 27.8% from 25 to 44, 26.9% from 45 to 64, and 12.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.3 males.

The 2000 census also states that the median income for a household in the county was $51,484, and the median income for a family was $60,250. Males had a median income of $46,373 versus $31,537 for females. The per capita income for the county was $25,560. About 5.0% of families and 7.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.6% of those under age 18 and 5.0% of those age 65 or over.

Population and registered voters
Total population	179,878
Registered voters	110,206	61.3%
Democratic	32,176	29.2%
Republican	48,362	43.9%
Democratic–Republican spread	-16,186	-14.7%
American Independent	4,214	3.8%
Green	887	0.8%
Libertarian	1,010	0.9%
Peace and Freedom	293	0.3%
Americans Elect	5	0.0%
Other	883	0.8%
No party preference	22,376	20.3%

Cities by population and voter registration
City	Population	Registered voters	Democratic	Republican	D–R spread	Other	No party preference
Placerville	10,394	52.9%	34.0%	37.4%	-3.4%	11.5%	21.3%
South Lake Tahoe	21,814	42.4%	38.6%	22.8%	+15.8%	14.0%	29.0%

El Dorado is a predominantly Republican county in presidential and congressional elections. However, from 1880 until 1952, the county was a Democratic stronghold, with Theodore Roosevelt and Warren Harding being the only two Republicans to carry the county. Since 1952, however, El Dorado has gone Democratic only three times: in 1960 narrowly for John F. Kennedy, in 1964 in a landslide for Lyndon Johnson, and in 1976 narrowly for Jimmy Carter.

United States presidential election results for El Dorado County, California

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2024	61,109	54.61%	47,703	42.63%	3,096	2.77%
2020	61,838	53.24%	51,621	44.44%	2,700	2.32%
2016	49,247	51.76%	36,404	38.26%	9,498	9.98%
2012	50,973	57.27%	35,166	39.51%	2,859	3.21%
2008	50,314	53.92%	40,529	43.44%	2,466	2.64%
2004	52,878	61.23%	32,242	37.33%	1,244	1.44%
2000	42,045	58.29%	26,220	36.35%	3,871	5.37%
1996	32,759	51.84%	22,957	36.33%	7,480	11.84%
1992	25,906	39.92%	21,012	32.38%	17,969	27.69%
1988	30,021	59.33%	19,801	39.13%	781	1.54%
1984	27,583	64.93%	14,312	33.69%	583	1.37%
1980	21,238	58.27%	10,765	29.53%	4,446	12.20%
1976	12,472	47.69%	12,763	48.80%	919	3.51%
1972	11,330	54.20%	8,654	41.40%	921	4.41%
1968	7,468	49.00%	6,054	39.72%	1,719	11.28%
1964	5,775	39.53%	8,810	60.30%	25	0.17%
1960	6,065	49.16%	6,175	50.05%	97	0.79%
1956	4,613	53.60%	3,957	45.97%	37	0.43%
1952	5,203	60.51%	3,297	38.35%	98	1.14%
1948	2,894	43.04%	3,493	51.95%	337	5.01%
1944	1,990	39.55%	3,016	59.95%	25	0.50%
1940	2,019	32.37%	4,144	66.44%	74	1.19%
1936	1,228	23.12%	4,019	75.66%	65	1.22%
1932	956	23.12%	3,034	73.37%	145	3.51%
1928	1,228	44.25%	1,516	54.63%	31	1.12%
1924	852	28.49%	361	12.07%	1,778	59.45%
1920	1,636	64.36%	726	28.56%	180	7.08%
1916	1,068	35.10%	1,755	57.67%	220	7.23%
1912	16	0.59%	1,613	59.04%	1,103	40.37%
1908	986	44.74%	1,019	46.23%	199	9.03%
1904	1,248	54.10%	865	37.49%	194	8.41%
1900	1,193	45.14%	1,406	53.20%	44	1.66%
1896	1,130	39.54%	1,674	58.57%	54	1.89%
1892	1,159	43.80%	1,270	48.00%	217	8.20%
1888	1,350	47.02%	1,456	50.71%	65	2.26%
1884	1,289	45.47%	1,469	51.82%	77	2.72%
1880	1,419	47.89%	1,520	51.30%	24	0.81%

Election results from statewide races
Year	Office	Results
2010	Governor	Whitman 56.2 - 38.6%
	Lieutenant Governor	Maldonado 55.6 - 32.8%
	Secretary of State	Dunn 53.5 - 37.4%
	Controller	Chiang 46.1 - 45.7%
	Treasurer	Walters 51.3 - 41.0%
	Attorney General	Cooley 60.4 - 29.4%
	Insurance Commissioner	Villines 53.6 - 33.8%

The county is noted as a center of political concern with the United Nations non-binding sustainable development plan Agenda 21, which was on the County Board of Supervisors meeting Agenda on May 15, 2012. Concerns included the threat of U.S. Forest Service road closures and traffic roundabouts. On February 19, 2013, 14 members of the El Dorado County Grand Jury resigned, forcing Supervising Judge Steven Bailey to dissolve it.

El Dorado County has a secessionist movement, calling for the county of less than 200,000 residents to become a new state of the union. Wyoming, the least populous current state, has approximately three times the number of residents. Sharon Durst, one of the leaders of the movement, was previously a supporter of the State of Jefferson movement, that advocates for Northern California counties and Southern Oregon counties to form a new state. El Dorado County's seat, Placerville, is located 45 miles from Sacramento, the state's capital. The leadership of the movement acknowledges that it is unlikely that the California legislature would approve their separation from the state, as required by the United States Constitution. They promote an unproven theory that the county "is technically not a legitimate piece of California and is instead 'other property' of Congress".

El Dorado County is split between two Congressional districts, with the western third of the County in the 5th Congressional District, represented by Tom McClintock, and the eastern two-thirds in the 3rd Congressional District, represented by Kevin Kiley. In the State Assembly, the county is split between the 5th Assembly District, represented by Republican Joe Patterson and the 6th Assembly District, represented by Democrat Maggy Krell. In the State Senate, it is in the 1st Senate District, represented by Republican Megan Dahle.

The following table includes the number of incidents reported and the rate per 1,000 persons for each type of offense.

Population and crime rates
Population	179,878
Violent crime	520	2.89
Homicide	3	0.02
Forcible rape	50	0.28
Robbery	71	0.39
Aggravated assault	396	2.20
Property crime	1,736	9.65
Burglary	932	5.18
Larceny-theft	1,540	8.56
Motor vehicle theft	178	0.99
Arson	17	0.09

Cities by population and crime rates

City	Population	Violent crimes	Violent crime rate per 1,000 persons	Property crimes	Property crime rate per 1,000 persons
Placerville	10,479	55	5.25	194	18.51
South Lake Tahoe	21,586	148	6.86	544	25.20

• U.S. Route 50
• State Route 49
• State Route 89
• State Route 193
• Luther Pass

• El Dorado Transit runs local service in Placerville and surrounding areas (as far east as Pollock Pines). Commuter service into Sacramento and Folsom is also provided.
• Tahoe Transportation District is the transit operator for the South Lake Tahoe area. Service also runs into the state of Nevada.

General aviation airports include Placerville Airport, Georgetown Airport, Cameron Park airport and Lake Tahoe Airport.

Portions of El Dorado County are known to contain natural asbestos formations near the surface. The USGS studied amphiboles in rock and soil in the area in response to an EPA sampling study and subsequent criticism of the EPA study. The study found that many amphibole particles in the area meet the counting rule criteria used by the EPA for chemical and morphological limits, but do not meet morphological requirements for commercial-grade-asbestos. The executive summary pointed out that even particles that do not meet requirements for commercial-grade-asbestos may be a health threat and suggested a collaborative research effort to assess health risks associated with naturally occurring asbestos.

In 2003, after construction of the Oak Ridge High School (El Dorado Hills) soccer field, the federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry found that some student athletes, coaches and school workers had received substantial exposures. The inside of the school needed to be cleaned of dust.

• Warabi, Saitama Prefecture, Japan is a sister city to El Dorado County, California on March 26, 1975.

• Placerville (county seat)
• South Lake Tahoe

The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2020 census of El Dorado County.

† county seat

Rank	City/town/etc.	Municipal type	Population (2020 Census)
1	El Dorado Hills	CDP	50,547
2	South Lake Tahoe	City	21,330
3	Cameron Park	CDP	18,881
4	Diamond Springs	CDP	11,345
5	† Placerville	City	10,747
6	Pollock Pines	CDP	7,112
7	Shingle Springs	CDP	4,660
8	Auburn Lake Trails	CDP	3,388
9	Georgetown	CDP	2,255
10	Camino	CDP	1,871
11	Grizzly Flats	CDP	1,093
12	Tahoma (partially in Placer County)	CDP	1,034
13	Cold Springs	CDP	556
14	Coloma	CDP	521
15	Shingle Springs Rancheria	AIAN	108

School districts include:

K-12:

Secondary:

• El Dorado Union High School District

Elementary:

• Community Observatory
• James W. Marshall
• National Register of Historic Places listings in El Dorado County, California

• Official website
• El Dorado County Deeds, 1873-1930.
• official El Dorado County Historical Museum website
• El Dorado Environmental air quality management - naturally occurring asbestos information
• El Dorado County Weather
• El Dorado County Visitors Authority
• Sierra Community Access Television
• El Dorado Western Railway Foundation blog - The railway is restoring the Diamond & Caldor No. 4 Shay locomotive at the El Dorado County Historical Museum.

38°47′N 120°32′W / 38.78°N 120.53°W / 38.78; -120.53