Fairhaven, California

40°47′06″N 124°12′10″W / 40.78500°N 124.20278°W / 40.78500; -124.20278

Fairhaven, California
Census-designated place
Fairhaven is located in California
Fairhaven
Fairhaven
Location in California
Fairhaven is located in the United States
Fairhaven
Fairhaven
Fairhaven (the United States)
Coordinates: 40°47′06″N 124°12′10″W / 40.78500°N 124.20278°W / 40.78500; -124.20278
CountryUnited States
StateCalifornia
CountyHumboldt County
Elevation
[1]
10 ft (3 m)
Population
 (2020)[2]
 • Total165
Time zoneUTC-8 (Pacific)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-7 (PDT)
ZIP code
95564[3]
Area code707
FIPS code06-23196
GNIS feature ID2628729

Fairhaven (formerly Rolph) is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) adjacent to Humboldt Bay in Humboldt County, California, United States. It is located 2.25 miles (3.6 km) west-southwest of downtown Eureka,[4] at an elevation of 10 feet (3.0 m) above sea level.[1]

In 1867, Hans Ditlev Bendixsen opened a ship building yard in Fairhaven. Bendixsen built many vessels for the lumber trade.[5] Bendixsen constructed 92 sailing vessels between 1869 and 1901, including 35 three-masters. These included the C.A. Thayer which is now preserved at the San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park.[6]

The Rolph post office operated from 1918 to 1921. That name was for Governor James Rolph of California. The name "Fairhaven" was taken from Fair Haven, a neighborhood in New Haven, Connecticut.[4]

  1. ^ a b U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Fairhaven, California
  2. ^ "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved May 5, 2023.
  3. ^ "Fairhaven CA ZIP Code". zipdatamaps.com. 2023. Retrieved February 17, 2023.
  4. ^ a b Durham, David L. (1998). California's Geographic Names: A Gazetteer of Historic and Modern Names of the State. Clovis, Calif.: Word Dancer Press. p. 58. ISBN 1-884995-14-4.
  5. ^ Turner, Dennis W. & Gloria H. (2010). Place Names of Humboldt County, California: A Compendium 1542-2009. Oangeval, CA: Dennis W. & Gloria H. Turner. p. 89. ISBN 978-0-9629617-2-4.
  6. ^ Leigh H. Irvine, History of Humboldt County California (Historic Record Company, Los Angeles, California, 1915) [1]