Inyo County, California

{{short description|County in California, United States}} {{Use American English|date=June 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=April 2024}} {{Infobox settlement | name = Inyo County | native_name = | other_name = | settlement_type = County | image_skyline = {{multiple image | total_width = 280 | border = infobox | perrow = 1/2/2/1 | caption_align = center | image1 = Mount_Whitney_2003-03-25.jpg | caption1 = Mount Whitney in the Sierra Nevada | image2 = Badwater Basin from Dante's View Overlook.JPG | caption2 = Death Valley | image3 = Inyo_County_courthouse,_Independence_(cropped).jpg | caption3 = Independence | image4 = Aerial view - Bishop, C.jpg | caption4 = Bishop | image5 = Lake_Sabrina_before_Sunrise.jpg | caption5 = Lake Sabrina | image6 = SierraEscarpmentCA.jpg | caption6 = Owens Valley in the Mojave Desert }} | image_flag = | flag_size = | image_seal = Seal of Inyo County, California.png | mapframe = yes | mapframe-point = none | image_map1 = Map of California highlighting Inyo County.svg | mapsize1 = 200px | map_caption1 = Location in the state of California | coordinates = {{coord|36|35|N|117|25|W|display=inline,title}} | subdivision_type = Country | subdivision_name = {{US}} | subdivision_type1 = State | subdivision_name1 = {{flag|California}} | subdivision_type2 = Region | subdivision_name2 = Californian Deserts | established_title = Established | established_date = March 22, 1866<ref>{{Cite GNIS|1804637|Inyo County|access-date=April 8, 2015}}</ref> | named_for = ɨnnɨyun 'it's dangerous' in Timbisha<ref name="William Bright 2000">William Bright & John McLaughlin, "Inyo Redux", ''Names'' 48:147-150 (2000)</ref> | seat_type = County seat | seat = Independence | parts_type = Largest city | parts = Bishop | government_type = Council–CAO | governing_body = Board of Supervisors | leader_title = Chair<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.inyocounty.us/government/board-supervisors/district-1 | title=District 1 | Inyo County California }}</ref> | leader_name = Trina Orrill | leader_title1 = Vice Chair<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.inyocounty.us/government/board-supervisors/district-2 | title=District 2 | Inyo County California }}</ref> | leader_name1 = Jeff Griffiths | leader_title2 = Board of Supervisors | leader_name2 = {{Collapsible list |title = Supervisors<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.inyocounty.us/government/board-supervisors | title=Board of Supervisors | Inyo County California }}</ref> |1 = Trina Orrill |2 = Jeff Griffiths |3 = Scott Marcellin |4 = Jennifer Roeser |5 = Will Wadelton }} | leader_title3 = County Administrator<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.inyocounty.us/services/county-administrators-office/county-administrative-officer | title=County Administrative Officer | Inyo County California }}</ref> | leader_name3 = Nate Greenburg | unit_pref = US | area_total_sq_mi = 10227 | area_land_sq_mi = 10181 | area_water_sq_mi = 46 | elevation_max_footnotes = <ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.peakbagger.com/peak.aspx?pid=2829|title=Mount Whitney|publisher=Peakbagger.com|access-date=April 9, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150410084117/http://www.peakbagger.com/peak.aspx?pid=2829|archive-date=April 10, 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> | elevation_max_ft = 14505 | elevation_min_footnotes = <ref name=USGSHighLow>{{cite web |title=Highest and Lowest Elevations |publisher=United States Geological Survey |url=https://www.usgs.gov/science-support/osqi/yes/resources-teachers/highest-and-lowest-elevations |access-date=April 29, 2021}}</ref> | elevation_min_ft = -282 | population_as_of = 2020 | population_total = 19016 | pop_est_as_of = 2025 | population_est = 18158 {{loss}} | population_density_sq_mi = auto | demographics_type2 = GDP | demographics2_footnotes = <ref>{{Cite web|title= Gross Domestic Product: All Industries in Inyo County, CA|url= https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/GDPALL06027 |work=Federal Reserve Economic Data |publisher=Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis}}</ref> | demographics2_title1 = Total | demographics2_info1 = $1.355 billion (2022) | timezone = Pacific Time Zone | utc_offset = −8 | timezone_DST = Pacific Daylight Time | utc_offset_DST = −7 | postal_code_type =  | postal_code = | area_code_type = Area codes | area_code = 442/760 | blank_name_sec1 = FIPS code | blank_info_sec1 = 06-027 | blank1_name_sec1 = GNIS feature ID | blank1_info_sec1 = {{GNIS 4|1804637}} | blank_name_sec2 = Congressional district | blank_info_sec2 = 3rd | website = {{URL|www.inyocounty.us}} }}

'''Inyo County''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|ɪ|n|j|oʊ|audio=En-us-inyo.ogg}}) is a county in the eastern central part of the U.S. state of California, located between the Sierra Nevada and the state of Nevada. In the 2020 census, the population was 19,016.<ref name=census2020>{{Cite web|title=Inyo County, California|url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/profile?g=0500000US06027|website=United States Census Bureau|accessdate=January 30, 2022}}</ref> The county seat is Independence.<ref name="GR6">{{cite web|url=http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx |access-date=June 7, 2011 |title=Find a County |publisher=National Association of Counties |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110531210815/http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx |archive-date=May 31, 2011 }}</ref> Inyo County is on the east side of the Sierra Nevada and southeast of Yosemite National Park in Central California. It contains the Owens River Valley; it is flanked to the west by the Sierra Nevada and to the east by the White Mountains and the Inyo Mountains. Mono County is to the north. With an area of {{convert|10,192|mi2|km2}}, Inyo is the second-largest county by area in California, after San Bernardino County which is directly south of Inyo County. Almost half of Inyo County's area is within Death Valley National Park. However, with a population density of 1.8 people per square mile, it also has the second-lowest population density in California, after Alpine County.

==History== {{category see also|Native American history of California}} Present-day Inyo county has been the historic homeland for thousands of years of the Mono, Timbisha, Kawaiisu, and Northern Paiute Native Americans. The descendants of these ancestors continue to live in their traditional homelands in the Owens River Valley and in Death Valley National Park.

{{further|History of California through 1899}} Inyo County was formed in 1866 out of the territory of the unorganized Coso County, which had been created on April 4, 1864, from parts of Mono County and Tulare County.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=99Y3AAAAIAAJ&q=unorganized+%22Coso+%22&pg=PA190 |title=California, Theodore Henry Hittell, '''The general laws of the State of California, from 1850 to 1864''', H.H. Bancroft, San Francisco, 1865. p.190 |access-date=November 5, 2011|year=1865 |author1=California |last2=Hittell |first2=Theodore Henry }}</ref> It acquired more territory from Mono County in 1870 and Kern County and San Bernardino County in 1872.

For many years it has been commonly believed that the county derived its name from the Mono tribe's name for the mountains in its former homeland. Actually the name came to be thought of, mistakenly, as the name of the mountains to the east of the Owens Valley when the first whites there asked the local Owens Valley Paiutes for the name of the mountains to the east. They responded that that was the land of Inyo. They meant by this that those lands belonged to the Timbisha tribe headed by a man whose name was Inyo.{{citation needed|date=December 2021}} Inyo was the name of the headman of one of the Timbisha bands at the time of contact when the first whites, the Bennett-Arcane Party of 1849, wandered, lost, into Death Valley on their expedition to the gold fields of western California. The Owens Valley whites misunderstood the reference and thought that Inyo was the name of the mountains when actually it was the name of the chief, or headman, of the tribe that had those mountains as part of their homeland.{{citation needed|date=December 2021}} In Timbisha, ''ɨnnɨyun'' means "it's (or he's) dangerous".<ref name="William Bright 2000">William Bright & John McLaughlin, "Inyo Redux", ''Names'' 48:147-150 (2000)</ref>

To supply the growing City of Los Angeles, water was diverted from the Owens River into the Los Angeles Aqueduct in 1913. The Owens River Valley cultures and environments changed substantially. From the 1910s to 1930s the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power purchased much of the valley for water rights and control. In 1941 the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power extended the Los Angeles Aqueduct system farther upriver into the Mono Basin.

The county was home to the Manzanar War Relocation Center, where Japanese Americans were interned during World War II.

{{wide image|SierraEscarpmentCA.jpg|800px|Owens Valley and the Sierra Escarpment}}

==Natural history== {{multiple image | align = right | direction = vertical | width = 200 | image1 = Mount Whitney 2003-03-25.jpg | image2 = Badwater elevation sign.jpg | footer = Mount Whitney (top) is less than {{convert|90|mi|km}} away from Badwater Basin in Death Valley (bottom). }}

Inyo County is host to a number of natural superlatives. Among them are: * Mount Whitney, with an elevation of {{convert|14,505|ft|m}}, the highest point in the contiguous United States, the 12th highest peak in the U.S., and the 24th highest peak in North America. * Badwater Basin, in Death Valley, the lowest point in North America * Methuselah, an ancient Bristlecone pine tree and one of the oldest living trees on Earth * Owens Valley, the deepest valley on the American continents * Two mountain ranges exceeding {{convert|14000|ft|m}} in elevation: The Sierra Nevada and the White Mountains * Ten of California's twelve peaks which exceed 14,000 feet (a Fourteener) in elevation; the isolated Mount Shasta in northern California, and White Mountain Peak in neighboring Mono County, are the only California 14ers not (at least partly) in Inyo County * The largest escarpment in the United States, rising from the floor of Death Valley to the top of Telescope Peak in the Panamint Range

==Geography== [[File:Mojave Desert map.svg|thumb|right|250px|Approximate area of the Mojave Desert ecoregion.]]

Mount Whitney, the highest peak in the contiguous United States, is on Inyo County's western border (with Tulare County). The Badwater Basin in Death Valley National Park, the lowest place in North America, is in eastern Inyo County. The difference between the two points is about {{convert|14700|ft|m}}. They are not visible from each other, but both can be observed from the Panamint Range on the west side of Death Valley, above the Panamint Valley. Thus, Inyo County has the greatest elevation difference among all of the counties and county-equivalents in the contiguous United States.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of {{convert|10227|sqmi}}, of which {{convert|10181|sqmi}} is land and {{convert|46|sqmi}} (0.5%) is water.<ref name="GR1">{{cite web|url=http://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/counties_list_06.txt|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=September 26, 2015|date=August 22, 2012|title=2010 Census Gazetteer Files|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150925144550/http://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/counties_list_06.txt|archive-date=September 25, 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> It is the second-largest county by area in California and the ninth-largest in the United States (excluding boroughs and census areas in Alaska).

===Lakes=== {{div col|colwidth=33em}} * Camp Lake * Cottonwood Lakes * Diaz Lake * Dingleberry Lake * Granite Lake * Inconsolable Lake * Loch Leven * Mills Lake * Pee Wee Lake * Robinson Lake * Rock Creek Lake * Lake Sabrina * Weir Lake * Wishbone Lake {{div col end}}

===National protected areas=== * Death Valley National Park (part) * Inyo National Forest (part) * Manzanar National Historic Site

There are 22 official wilderness areas in Inyo County that are part of the National Wilderness Preservation System. This is the second-largest number of any county, exceeded only by San Bernardino County's 35 wilderness areas. Most of these are managed solely by the Bureau of Land Management, but four are integral components of Death Valley National Park or Inyo National Forest and are thus managed by either the National Park Service or the Forest Service. Some of these wilderness areas also extend into neighboring counties.

Except as noted, the wilderness areas are managed solely by the Bureau of Land Management and lie entirely within Inyo County:

===Death Valley National Park=== {{Main|Death Valley National Park}}

'''Death Valley National Park''' is a mostly arid United States National Park east of the Sierra Nevada mountain range in southern Inyo County and northern San Bernardino County in California, with a small extension into southwestern Nye County and extreme southern Esmeralda County in Nevada. In addition, there is an exclave (Devil's Hole) in southern Nye County. The park covers {{convert|5262|sqmi|km2}}, encompassing Saline Valley, a large part of Panamint Valley, almost all of Death Valley, and parts of several mountain ranges.<ref name="NPSindex">National Park Index (2001–2003), p. 26</ref> Death Valley National Monument was proclaimed in 1933, placing the area under federal protection. In 1994, the monument was redesignated a national park, as well as being substantially expanded to include Saline and Eureka Valleys.<ref name="NPSindex"/>

It is the hottest and driest of the national parks in the United States. It also features the second-lowest point in the Western Hemisphere and the lowest point in North America at the Badwater Basin, which is {{convert|282|ft|m}} below sea level.<ref name=USGSHighLow/> It is home to many species of plants and animals that have adapted to this harsh desert environment. Some examples include Creosote Bush, Bighorn Sheep, Coyote, and the Death Valley Pupfish, a survivor of much wetter times. Approximately 95% of the park is designated as wilderness.<ref>NPS website, "Backcountry Roads"</ref> Death Valley National Park is visited annually by more than 770,000 visitors who come to enjoy its diverse geologic features, desert wildlife, historic sites, scenery, clear night skies, and the solitude of the extreme desert environment.

===Other parks=== * Alabama Hills Recreation Area * Last Chance Meadow Research Natural Area * California Bighorn Sheep Zoological Area

==Demographics== {{US Census population |1870= 1956 |1880= 2928 |1890= 3544 |1900= 4377 |1910= 6974 |1920= 7031 |1930= 6555 |1940= 7625 |1950= 11658 |1960= 11684 |1970= 15571 |1980= 17895 |1990= 18281 |2000= 17945 |2010= 18546 |2020= 19016 |estyear=2025 |estimate=18158 |estref=<ref name="USCensusEst2025">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/data/tables.html|title=Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2025|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=April 10, 2026}}</ref> {{decrease}} |align-fn=center |footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<ref name="DecennialCensus">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/prod/www/decennial.html|title=Census of Population and Housing from 1790-2000|publisher=US Census Bureau|access-date=January 24, 2022}}</ref> 1790–1960<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu|title=Historical Census Browser|publisher=University of Virginia Library|access-date=September 26, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190530033223/https://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu/|archive-date=May 30, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> 1900–1990<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/ca190090.txt|title=Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990|publisher=United States Census Bureau|editor-last=Forstall|editor-first=Richard L.|date=March 27, 1995|access-date=September 26, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924115745/http://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/ca190090.txt|archive-date=September 24, 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> 1990–2000<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf|title=Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000|publisher=United States Census Bureau|date=April 2, 2001|access-date=September 26, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141218203824/http://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf|archive-date=December 18, 2014|url-status=live}}</ref> 2010<ref name=2010CensusP2/> 2020<ref name=2020CensusP2/> | align = right }}

===2020 census===

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 19,016 and a median age of 44.8 years. 20.2% of residents were under the age of 18 and 23.7% were 65 years of age or older, and there were 102.3 males for every 100 females overall and 102.6 males for every 100 females age 18 and over.<ref name="Census2020DP">{{cite web|title=2020 Decennial Census Demographic Profile (DP1)|url=https://api.census.gov/data/2020/dec/dp?get=NAME,DP1_0021P,DP1_0024P,DP1_0025C,DP1_0049C,DP1_0045C,DP1_0069C,DP1_0073C,DP1_0125P,DP1_0126P,DP1_0129P,DP1_0138P,DP1_0139P,DP1_0141P,DP1_0142P,DP1_0143P,DP1_0145P,DP1_0146P,DP1_0147C,DP1_0148C,DP1_0149C,DP1_0156C,DP1_0157C,DP1_0158C,DP1_0159P,DP1_0160P&for=county%3A027&in=state%3A06|website=United States Census Bureau|year=2021|access-date=December 21, 2025|df=mdy}}</ref>

The racial makeup of the county was 61.8% White, 0.5% Black or African American, 13.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.5% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 11.9% from some other race, and 11.2% from two or more races, while Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 23.1% of the population.<ref name="Census2020PL">{{cite web|title=2020 Decennial Census Redistricting Data (Public Law 94-171)|url=https://api.census.gov/data/2020/dec/pl?get=NAME,P1_001N,P1_003N,P1_004N,P1_005N,P1_006N,P1_007N,P1_008N,P1_009N,P2_001N,P2_002N,H1_001N,H1_002N&for=county%3A027&in=state%3A06|website=United States Census Bureau|year=2021|access-date=December 21, 2025|df=mdy}}</ref>

57.9% of residents lived in urban areas, while 42.1% lived in rural areas.<ref name="Census2020DHC">{{cite web|title=2020 Decennial Census Demographic and Housing Characteristics (DHC)|url=https://api.census.gov/data/2020/dec/dhc?get=NAME,P2_002N,P2_003N&for=county%3A027&in=state%3A06|website=United States Census Bureau|year=2023|access-date=December 21, 2025|df=mdy}}</ref>

There were 8,046 households in the county, of which 25.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 26.4% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present; about 33.2% of households were made up of individuals and 16.9% had someone 65 years of age or older living alone.<ref name="Census2020DP"/>

There were 9,469 housing units, of which 15.0% were vacant, and among occupied units 64.3% were owner-occupied while 35.7% were renter-occupied; the homeowner vacancy rate stood at 0.8% and the rental vacancy rate at 6.5%.<ref name="Census2020DP"/>

===Racial and ethnic composition===

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;" |+'''Inyo County, California – Racial and ethnic composition''' {{nobold|''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 1980<ref>{{Cite web |title=California: 1980, General Social and Economic Characteristics, Part 1 - Table 59: Persons by Race, Hispanic Origin, and Sex|website=United States Census Bureau|url=https://www2.census.gov/prod2/decennial/documents/1980a_caCs1-01.pdf|access-date=}}</ref> !Pop 1990<ref>{{Cite web |title=California: 1990, Part 1 - Table 5: Race and Hispanic Origin|website=United States Census Bureau|url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1990/cp-1/cp-1-6-1.pdf |access-date=July 14, 2024}}</ref> !Pop 2000<ref name=2000CensusP004>{{Cite web|title=P004: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Inyo County, California|url=https://data.census.gov/table?g=050XX00US06027&tid=DECENNIALSF12000.P004|website=United States Census Bureau |access-date= }}</ref> !Pop 2010<ref name=2010CensusP2>{{Cite web|title=P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Inyo County, California|url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?q=p2&g=050XX00US06027&tid=DECENNIALPL2010.P2|website=United States Census Bureau |access-date= }}</ref> !style="background-color: #ffffb3;" | Pop 2020<ref name=2020CensusP2>{{Cite web|title=P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Inyo County, California|url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?q=p2&g=050XX00US06027&tid=DECENNIALPL2020.P2|website=United States Census Bureau |access-date= }}</ref> !% 1980 !% 1990 !% 2000 !% 2010 !style="background-color: #ffffb3;" |% 2020 |- |White alone (NH) |15,194 |14,819 |13,352 |12,296 |style='background: #ffffe6; |11,035 |84.91% |81.06% |74.41% |66.30% |style='background: #ffffe6; |58.03% |- |Black or African American alone (NH) |22 |71 |20 |102 |style='background: #ffffe6; |85 |0.12% |0.39% |0.11% |0.55% |style='background: #ffffe6; |0.45% |- |Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) |1,523 |1,665 |1,678 |1,895 |style='background: #ffffe6; |2,189 |8.51% |9.11% |9.35% |10.22% |style='background: #ffffe6; |11.51% |- |Asian alone (NH) |72 |172 |158 |229 |style='background: #ffffe6; |273 |0.40% |0.94% |0.88% |1.23% |style='background: #ffffe6; |1.44% |- |Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH) |x <ref>included in the Asian category in the 1980 Census</ref> |x <ref>included in the Asian category in the 1990 Census</ref> |15 |15 |style='background: #ffffe6; |13 |0.08% |0.08% |0.08% |0.08% |style='background: #ffffe6; |0.07% |- |Other race alone (NH) |0 |18 |23 |21 |style='background: #ffffe6; |87 |0.00% |0.10% |0.13% |0.11% |style='background: #ffffe6; |0.46% |- |Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) |x <ref>not an option in the 1980 Census</ref> |x <ref>not an option in the 1990 Census</ref> |442 |391 |style='background: #ffffe6; |935 |x |x |2.46% |2.11% |style='background: #ffffe6; |4.92% |- |Hispanic or Latino (any race) |1,084 |1,536 |2,257 |3,597 |style='background: #ffffe6; |4,399 |6.06% |8.40% |12.58% |19.40% |style='background: #ffffe6; |23.13% |- |'''Total''' |'''17,895''' |'''18,281''' |'''17,945''' |'''18,546''' |style='background: #ffffe6; |'''19,016 ''' |'''100.00%''' |'''100.00%''' |'''100.00%''' |'''100.00%''' |style='background: #ffffe6; |'''100.00%''' |}

===2010 Census=== The 2010 United States census reported that Inyo County had a population of 18,546. The racial makeup of Inyo County was 13,741 (74.1%) White, 109 (0.6%) African American, 2,121 (11.4%) Native American, 243 (1.3%) Asian, 16 (0.1%) Pacific Islander, 1,676 (9.0%) from other races, and 640 (3.5%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3,597 persons (19.4%).<ref>{{USCensus2010CA}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |- !colspan="10"|Population reported at 2010 United States census |- |{{center|'''The County'''}} ||{{center|'''Total Population'''}}||{{center|'''White'''}} ||{{center|'''African American'''}} || {{center|'''Native American'''}} || {{center|'''Asian'''}} || {{center|'''Pacific Islander'''}} || {{center|'''other races'''}} || {{center|'''two or more races'''}} ||{{center|'''Hispanic or Latino (of any race)'''}} |- |''' Inyo County''' |align="right"|18,546||align="right"|13,741||align="right"|109||align="right"|2,121||align="right"|243||align="right"|16||align="right"|1,676||align="right"|640||align="right"|3,597 |- |{{center|'''Incorporated city'''}} ||{{center|'''Total Population'''}}||{{center|'''White'''}} ||{{center|'''African American'''}} || {{center|'''Native American'''}} || {{center|'''Asian'''}} || {{center|'''Pacific Islander'''}} || {{center|'''other races'''}} || {{center|'''two or more races'''}} ||{{center|'''Hispanic or Latino (of any race)'''}} |- |'''Bishop''' |align="right"|3,879||align="right"|2,867||align="right"|22||align="right"|91||align="right"|61||align="right"|1||align="right"|723||align="right"|114||align="right"|1,200 |- |{{center|'''Census-designated place'''}} ||{{center|'''Total Population'''}}||{{center|'''White'''}} ||{{center|'''African American'''}} || {{center|'''Native American'''}} || {{center|'''Asian'''}} || {{center|'''Pacific Islander'''}} || {{center|'''other races'''}} || {{center|'''two or more races'''}} ||{{center|'''Hispanic or Latino (of any race)'''}} |- |'''Big Pine''' |align="right"|1,756||align="right"|1,192||align="right"|3||align="right"|438||align="right"|13||align="right"|1||align="right"|52||align="right"|57||align="right"|182 |- |'''Cartago''' |align="right"|92||align="right"|63||align="right"|0||align="right"|7||align="right"|0||align="right"|0||align="right"|11||align="right"|11||align="right"|16 |- |'''Darwin''' |align="right"|43||align="right"|38||align="right"|0||align="right"|2||align="right"|1||align="right"|1||align="right"|0||align="right"|1||align="right"|2 |- |'''Dixon Lane-Meadow Creek''' |align="right"|2,645||align="right"|2,287||align="right"|6||align="right"|32||align="right"|47||align="right"|3||align="right"|215||align="right"|55||align="right"|493 |- |'''Furnace Creek''' |align="right"|24||align="right"|6||align="right"|0||align="right"|16||align="right"|0||align="right"|0||align="right"|0||align="right"|2||align="right"|0 |- |'''Homewood Canyon''' |align="right"|44||align="right"|37||align="right"|0||align="right"|0||align="right"|0||align="right"|0||align="right"|5||align="right"|2||align="right"|6 |- |'''Independence''' |align="right"|669||align="right"|493||align="right"|6||align="right"|98||align="right"|8||align="right"|1||align="right"|28||align="right"|35||align="right"|93 |- |'''Keeler''' |align="right"|66||align="right"|63||align="right"|0||align="right"|0||align="right"|2||align="right"|0||align="right"|0||align="right"|1||align="right"|6 |- |'''Lone Pine''' |align="right"|2,035||align="right"|1,334||align="right"|6||align="right"|205||align="right"|17||align="right"|1||align="right"|376||align="right"|96||align="right"|694 |- |'''Mesa''' |align="right"|251||align="right"|220||align="right"|0||align="right"|10||align="right"|3||align="right"|0||align="right"|14||align="right"|4||align="right"|26 |- |'''Olancha''' |align="right"|192||align="right"|133||align="right"|0||align="right"|4||align="right"|8||align="right"|0||align="right"|38||align="right"|9||align="right"|47 |- |'''Pearsonville''' |align="right"|17||align="right"|16||align="right"|0||align="right"|0||align="right"|0||align="right"|0||align="right"|1||align="right"|0||align="right"|1 |- |'''Round Valley''' |align="right"|435||align="right"|333||align="right"|38||align="right"|21||align="right"|3||align="right"|0||align="right"|27||align="right"|13||align="right"|69 |- |'''Shoshone''' |align="right"|31||align="right"|28||align="right"|1||align="right"|1||align="right"|0||align="right"|0||align="right"|0||align="right"|1||align="right"|0 |- |'''Tecopa''' |align="right"|150||align="right"|119||align="right"|1||align="right"|8||align="right"|2||align="right"|0||align="right"|1||align="right"|19||align="right"|8 |- |'''Trona''' |align="right"|18||align="right"|18||align="right"|0||align="right"|0||align="right"|0||align="right"|0||align="right"|0||align="right"|0||align="right"|0 |- |'''Valley Wells''' |align="right"|0||align="right"|0||align="right"|0||align="right"|0||align="right"|0||align="right"|0||align="right"|0||align="right"|0||align="right"|0 |- |'''West Bishop''' |align="right"|2,607||align="right"|2,373||align="right"|10||align="right"|28||align="right"|45||align="right"|1||align="right"|72||align="right"|78||align="right"|261 |- |'''Wilkerson''' |align="right"|563||align="right"|524||align="right"|0||align="right"|13||align="right"|5||align="right"|1||align="right"|5||align="right"|15||align="right"|53 |- |{{center|'''Other unincorporated areas'''}} ||{{center|'''Total Population'''}}||{{center|'''White'''}} ||{{center|'''African American'''}} || {{center|'''Native American'''}} || {{center|'''Asian'''}} || {{center|'''Pacific Islander'''}} || {{center|'''other races'''}} || {{center|'''two or more races'''}} ||{{center|'''Hispanic or Latino (of any race)'''}} |- |All others not CDPs (combined) |align="right"|3,029||align="right"|1,597||align="right"|16||align="right"|1,147||align="right"|28||align="right"|6||align="right"|108||align="right"|127||align="right"|440 |}

==Politics==

===Voter registration===

{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |- ! colspan="3" | Population and registered voters |- ! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" | Total population<ref name="US-CB-B02001">U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Table B02001. [https://www.census.gov U.S. Census website] . Retrieved October 26, 2013.</ref> | colspan="2" | 18,457 |- ! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" |   Registered voters<ref name="CA-SS">California Secretary of State. [http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/ror/ror-pages/ror-odd-year-2013/political-sub.pdf February 10, 2013 – Report of Registration] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130727173649/http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/ror/ror-pages/ror-odd-year-2013/political-sub.pdf |date=July 27, 2013 }}. Retrieved October 31, 2013.</ref><ref name="PCT-RV" group=note>Percentage of registered voters with respect to total population. Percentages of party members with respect to registered voters follow.</ref> | 9,922 | 53.8% |- ! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" |     Democratic<ref name="CA-SS"/> | 3,066 | 30.9% |- ! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" |     Republican<ref name="CA-SS"/> | 4,271 | 43.0% |- ! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" |     Democratic–Republican spread<ref name="CA-SS"/> | '''-1,205''' | '''-12.1%''' |- ! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" |     American Independent<ref name="CA-SS"/> | 414 | 4.2% |- ! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" |     Green<ref name="CA-SS"/> | 88 | 0.9% |- ! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" |     Libertarian<ref name="CA-SS"/> | 79 | 0.8% |- ! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" |     Peace and Freedom<ref name="CA-SS"/> | 29 | 0.3% |- ! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" |     Americans Elect<ref name="CA-SS"/> | 0 | 0.0% |- ! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" |     Other<ref name="CA-SS"/> | 46 | 0.5% |- ! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" |     No party preference<ref name="CA-SS"/> | 1,929 | 19.4% |}

====Cities by population and voter registration====

{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed sortable" style="width: 100%;" |- ! colspan="8" | Cities by population and voter registration |- ! City ! data-sort-type="number" | Population<ref name="US-CB-B02001"/> ! data-sort-type="number" | Registered voters<ref name="CA-SS"/> <ref name="PCT-RV" group=note/> ! data-sort-type="number" | Democratic<ref name="CA-SS"/> ! data-sort-type="number" | Republican<ref name="CA-SS"/> ! data-sort-type="number" | D–R spread<ref name="CA-SS"/> ! data-sort-type="number" | Other<ref name="CA-SS"/> ! data-sort-type="number" | No party preference<ref name="CA-SS"/> |- | Bishop || 3,839 || 42.9% || 31.4% || 40.3% || '''-8.9%''' || 10.4% || 21.7% |}

===Overview=== thumb|212x212px|2022 California Gubernatorial General Election in Inyo County by Consolidated Precinct Inyo has historically been a strongly Republican county in Presidential and congressional elections. From 1944 to 2016, the only Democrat to win the county (and the last to win a majority of its vote) was Lyndon Johnson in 1964.

However, the county shifted significantly leftward in 2020, narrowly supporting Joe Biden over Donald Trump. As a result, it became one of only two counties that previously voted for Trump by double digits in 2016 to flip to the Democrats, the other being Talbot County, Maryland.

Inyo still leans Republican. It voted Republican in all statewide races held in 2022. It flipped back to voting for Donald Trump in 2024, though by a much smaller margin than Trump had won the county in 2016.

{{PresHead|place=Inyo County, California|source=<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/|title=Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections|last=Leip|first=David|website=uselectionatlas.org|access-date=August 31, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180709214827/https://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/|archive-date=July 9, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://elections.cdn.sos.ca.gov/sov/2008-general/17_22_pres_by_county.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250425081311/https://elections.cdn.sos.ca.gov/sov/2008-general/17_22_pres_by_county.pdf |archive-date=2025-04-25 |url-status=live|title=United States President by County|last=Bowen|first=Debra|author-link=Debra Bowen|date=December 13, 2008|work=Secretary of State of California|access-date=October 3, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://elections.cdn.sos.ca.gov/sov/2016-general/sov/17-presidential-formatted.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250831051712/https://elections.cdn.sos.ca.gov/sov/2016-general/sov/17-presidential-formatted.pdf |archive-date=2025-08-31 |url-status=live|title=President by County|last=Padilla|first=Alex|author-link=Alex Padilla|date=December 16, 2016|work=Secretary of State of California|access-date=October 3, 2025}}</ref>}}  {{PresRow|1880|Republican|321|274|0|California}} {{PresRow|1884|Republican|345|283|18|California}} {{PresRow|1888|Republican|437|273|35|California}} {{PresRow|1892|Republican|409|266|125|California}} {{PresRow|1896|Democratic|286|532|23|California}} {{PresRow|1900|Democratic|396|505|34|California}} {{PresRow|1904|Republican|452|231|128|California}} {{PresRow|1908|Democratic|583|618|223|California}} {{PresRow|1912|Democratic|8|806|813|California}} {{PresRow|1916|Democratic|846|966|204|California}} {{PresRow|1920|Republican|1,195|682|212|California}} {{PresRow|1924|Republican|950|256|793|California}} {{PresRow|1928|Republican|1,206|861|35|California}} {{PresRow|1932|Democratic|698|1,459|101|California}} {{PresRow|1936|Democratic|912|1,560|29|California}} {{PresRow|1940|Democratic|1,483|1,820|27|California}} {{PresRow|1944|Republican|1,699|1,647|9|California}} {{PresRow|1948|Republican|2,135|1,539|153|California}} {{PresRow|1952|Republican|3,819|1,698|28|California}} {{PresRow|1956|Republican|3,524|1,782|18|California}} {{PresRow|1960|Republican|2,962|2,443|15|California}} {{PresRow|1964|Democratic|2,751|3,161|3|California}} {{PresRow|1968|Republican|3,641|2,314|732|California}} {{PresRow|1972|Republican|4,873|2,006|280|California}} {{PresRow|1976|Republican|3,905|2,635|166|California}} {{PresRow|1980|Republican|5,201|2,080|746|California}} {{PresRow|1984|Republican|5,863|2,360|115|California}} {{PresRow|1988|Republican|5,042|2,653|142|California}} {{PresRow|1992|Republican|3,689|2,695|2,080|California}} {{PresRow|1996|Republican|3,924|2,601|1,044|California}} {{PresRow|2000|Republican|4,713|2,652|450|California}} {{PresRow|2004|Republican|5,091|3,350|175|California}} {{PresRow|2008|Republican|4,523|3,743|267|California}} {{PresRow|2012|Republican|4,340|3,422|274|California}} {{PresRow|2016|Republican|4,248|3,155|683|California}} {{PresRow|2020|Democratic|4,620|4,634|230|California}} {{PresRow|2024|Republican|4,468|4,201|284|California}} {{PresFoot}}

In the California State Legislature, Inyo County is in {{Representative|casd|4|fmt=sdistrict}},<ref name=sd_splits> {{Cite web | url = http://wedrawthelines.ca.gov/downloads/meeting_handouts_072011/handouts_20110729_q2_sd_finaldraft_splits.zip | title = Communities of Interest — County | publisher = California Citizens Redistricting Commission | access-date = April 8, 2015 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151023054153/http://wedrawthelines.ca.gov/downloads/meeting_handouts_072011/handouts_20110729_q2_sd_finaldraft_splits.zip | archive-date = October 23, 2015 | url-status = dead }} </ref> and {{Representative|caad|8|fmt=adistrict}}.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://assembly.ca.gov/assemblymembers |title=Members Assembly |access-date=April 11, 2013 |publisher=State of California |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130424192545/http://assembly.ca.gov/assemblymembers |archive-date=April 24, 2013 |url-status=live }}</ref>

The county is in {{Representative|cacd|3|fmt=district}}.<ref>{{Cite GovTrack|CA|8|access-date=March 9, 2013}}</ref>

On November 4, 2008, Inyo County voted 60.6% for Proposition 8 which amended the California Constitution to ban same-sex marriages.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/sov/2008-general/sov_complete.pdf|publisher=California Secretary of State|title = Statement of Vote, November 4, 2008, General election|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130506165548/http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/sov/2008-general/sov_complete.pdf|access-date=May 6, 2021|archive-date=May 6, 2013}}</ref>

The county was typically Democratic before World War II. Since World War II, the county has been solidly Republican, only voting for Democratic presidential nominees Lyndon Johnson and Joe Biden.

==Crime==

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

{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |- ! colspan="3" | Population and crime rates |- ! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" | Population<ref name="US-CB-B02001"/> | colspan="2" | 18,457 |- ! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" | Violent crime<ref name="CA-DOJ-T11">Office of the Attorney General, Department of Justice, State of California. [http://stats.doj.ca.gov/cjsc_stats/prof09/00/11.pdf Table 11: Crimes – 2009] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131202222315/http://stats.doj.ca.gov/cjsc_stats/prof09/00/11.pdf |date=December 2, 2013 }}. Retrieved November 14, 2013.</ref> | 80 || 4.33 |- ! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" | Homicide<ref name="CA-DOJ-T11"/> | 2 || 0.11 |- ! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" | Forcible rape<ref name="CA-DOJ-T11"/> | 11 || 0.60 |- ! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" | Robbery<ref name="CA-DOJ-T11"/> | 7 || 0.38 |- ! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" | Aggravated assault<ref name="CA-DOJ-T11"/> | 60 || 3.25 |- ! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" | Property crime<ref name="CA-DOJ-T11"/> | 154 || 8.34 |- ! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" | Burglary<ref name="CA-DOJ-T11"/> | 75 || 4.06 |- ! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" | Larceny-theft<ref name="CA-DOJ-T11"/><ref name="LT-note" group="note">Only larceny-theft cases involving property over $400 in value are reported as property crimes.</ref> | 177 || 9.59 |- ! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" | Motor vehicle theft<ref name="CA-DOJ-T11"/> | 18 || 0.98 |- ! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" | Arson<ref name="CA-DOJ-T11"/> | 1 || 0.05 |}

===Cities by population and crime rates===

{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed sortable" style="width: 100%;" |- ! colspan="9" | Cities by population and crime rates |- ! City ! data-sort-type="number" | Population<ref name="FBI-UCR-T8">United States Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation. [https://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-in-the-u.s/2012/crime-in-the-u.s.-2012/tables/8tabledatadecpdf/table-8-state-cuts/table_8_offenses_known_to_law_enforcement_by_california_by_city_2012.xls Crime in the United States, 2012, Table 8 (California)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160628123757/https://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-in-the-u.s/2012/crime-in-the-u.s.-2012/tables/8tabledatadecpdf/table-8-state-cuts/table_8_offenses_known_to_law_enforcement_by_california_by_city_2012.xls |date=June 28, 2016 }}. Retrieved November 14, 2013.</ref> ! data-sort-type="number" | Violent crimes<ref name="FBI-UCR-T8"/> ! data-sort-type="number" | Violent crime rate per 1,000 persons ! data-sort-type="number" | Property crimes<ref name="FBI-UCR-T8"/> ! data-sort-type="number" | Property crime rate per 1,000 persons |- | Bishop || 3,900 || 16 || 4.10 || 137 || 35.13 |}

==Education== PK-12 school districts in Inyo County are:<ref name=InyoCoSDMap2020>{{cite map|author=Geography Division|url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st06_ca/schooldistrict_maps/c06027_inyo/DC20SD_C06027.pdf|title=2020 Census - School District Reference Map: Inyo County, CA|publisher=U.S. Census Bureau|place=Suitland, Maryland|date=December 18, 2020|access-date=2026-04-21}} - [https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st06_ca/schooldistrict_maps/c06027_inyo/DC20SD_C06027_SD2MS.txt Text list]</ref> {{div col}} * Big Pine Unified School District * Bishop Unified School District - Some areas cover grades PK-12 while others cover grades 9-12 only. * Death Valley Unified School District * Lone Pine Unified School District * Owens Valley Unified School District * Trona Joint Unified School District {{div col end}}

There is also one elementary school district: Round Valley Joint Elementary School District.<ref name=InyoCoSDMap2020/>

Previously Bishop Union Elementary School District and Bishop Union High School District existed.<ref>{{cite map|author=Geography Division|url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/dc10map/sch_dist/st06_ca/c06027_inyo/DC10SD_C06027_001.pdf|title=2010 Census - School District Reference Map: Inyo County, CA|publisher=U.S. Census Bureau|place=Suitland, Maryland|date=December 4, 2010|access-date=2026-04-21}} - [https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/dc10map/sch_dist/st06_ca/c06027_inyo/DC10SD_C06027_SD2MS.txt Text list]</ref>

Deep Springs College is a two-year alternative education college in Deep Springs Valley.

Higher education in Inyo County is provided by the Kern Community College District.

==Notable locations== * Mushroom Rock *Mount Whitney *Death Valley National Park *Badwater Basin *Lake Manly *Furnace Creek, California (Hottest air temperature ever recorded here in 1913 at {{convert|134.6|°F}}. In July 1972, a ground temperature of {{convert|201|°F}} was measured in Furnace Creek. This may be the highest natural ground surface temperature ever recorded.)

==Transportation== [[File:Road sign welcome to Inyo County California United States 01.jpg|thumb|"Welcome to Inyo County" sign along U.S. Route 395 ]]

In the 1920s, automobile clubs and nearby towns started to lobby for trans-Sierra highways over Piute Pass<ref name=usfsRoad>{{cite web|url=https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fseprd499744.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170302051855/https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fseprd499744.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=March 2, 2017|title=The High Sierra Piute Highway|first=Steve|last=Marsh|publisher=US Forest Service|year=2015}}</ref> and other locations. However, by end of the 1920s, the Forest Service and the Sierra Club decided that roadless wilderness in the Sierra was valuable, and fought the proposal. The Piute Pass proposal faded out by the early 1930s, with the Forest Service proposing a route over Minaret Summit in 1933.<ref name=usfsRoad/> The Minaret Summit route was lobbied against by California's Governor Ronald Reagan in 1972. The expansion of the John Muir and Ansel Adams Wildernesses in the 1980s sealed off the Minaret Summit route.<ref name=usfsRoad/>

A trans-Sierra route between Porterville and Lone Pine was proposed by local businessmen in 1923.<ref>{{cite news|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|title=Trail Over Mountains Supported|date=June 15, 1923|page=II10}}</ref> Eventually, a circuitous route across the Sierra was built across the only trans-Sierra route south of Yosemite: Sherman Pass by 1976.<ref>{{cite news|newspaper=The Fresno Bee|title=See It All in the Sierra|date=October 24, 1976}}</ref> That route is Forest Route 22S05 to the west, and Kennedy Meadow Road (County Route J41) and 9-Mile Canyon Road to the east.

===Major highways=== * 20px U.S. Route 6 * 25px U.S. Route 395 * 25px State Route 127 * 25px State Route 136 * 25px State Route 168 * 25px State Route 178 * 25px State Route 190

===Public transportation=== Eastern Sierra Transit Authority operates intercity bus service along US 395, as well as local services in Bishop. Service extends south to Lancaster (Los Angeles County) and north to Reno, Nevada.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.estransit.com/routes-schedule/395-routes/|title = Reno| work=Eastern Sierra Transit Authority }}</ref>

===Airports=== Bishop Airport, Independence Airport, Lone Pine Airport and Shoshone Airport are general aviation airports located near their respective cities. Stovepipe Wells Airport and Furnace Creek Airport are located in Death Valley National Park.

==Communities== thumb|alt=photo of Inyo County Court House|right|The Inyo County Court House in Independence

===Cities=== * Bishop

===Census-designated places=== {{div col|colwidth=18em}} * Big Pine * Cartago *Charleston View * Darwin * Dixon Lane-Meadow Creek * Furnace Creek * Homewood Canyon * Independence (county seat) * Keeler * Lone Pine * Mesa * Olancha * Pearsonville * Round Valley * Shoshone * Tecopa * Trona * Valley Wells * West Bishop * Wilkerson {{div col end}}

===Other unincorporated communities===

Source:<ref>{{cite web |title=General Plan = Goals and Policy Report 2001 |url=https://www.inyocounty.us/sites/default/files/2020-02/GP%20Goals%20and%20Policy%20Report%2012.2001.pdf |website=Inyo county general plan |publisher=Inyo county |access-date=August 22, 2022}}</ref>

* Alabama Hills * Chicago Valley * Coso Junction * Death Valley Junction * Deep Springs * Dunmovin * Haiwee * Laws *Panamint Springs * Sandy Valley * Stewart Valley

===Population ranking=== The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2010 census of Inyo County.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/decade.2010.html |title=US Census Bureau 2010 Census |first=Center for New Media and |last=Promotions |work=census.gov |access-date=January 18, 2017 }}</ref>

'''†''' ''county seat''

{| class="wikitable sortable" |- !Rank !City/Town/etc. !Municipal type !Population (2010 Census)

|- style="background-color:#FFFACD;" | 1 |'''Bishop''' | City | 3,879 |- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;" | 2 |'''Dixon Lane-Meadow Creek''' | CDP | 2,645 |- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;" | 3 |'''West Bishop''' | CDP | 2,607 |- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;" | 4 |'''Lone Pine''' | CDP | 2,035 |- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;" | 5 |'''Big Pine''' | CDP | 1,756 |- style="background-color:#FFFF99;" | 6 |'''Bishop Reservation'''<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/2010census/popmap/ipmtext.php?fl=0290|title=US Census Bureau 2010 Census Interactive Population Map|first=Website Services & Coordination|last=Staff|work=census.gov|access-date=January 18, 2017}}{{Dead link|date=August 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> | AIAN | 1,588 |- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;" | 7 |'''†''' '''Independence''' | CDP | 669 |- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;" | 8 |'''Wilkerson''' | CDP | 563 |- style="background-color:#FFFF99;" | 9 |'''Big Pine Reservation'''<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/2010census/popmap/ipmtext.php?fl=0250|title=US Census Bureau 2010 Census Interactive Population Map|first=Website Services & Coordination|last=Staff|work=census.gov|access-date=January 18, 2017}}{{Dead link|date=May 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> | AIAN | 499 |- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;" | 10 |'''Round Valley''' | CDP | 435 |- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;" | 11 |'''Mesa''' | CDP | 251 |- style="background-color:#FFFF99;" | 12 |'''Lone Pine Reservation'''<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/2010census/popmap/ipmtext.php?fl=1970|title=US Census Bureau 2010 Census Interactive Population Map|first=Website Services & Coordination|last=Staff|work=census.gov|access-date=January 18, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170207012958/http://www.census.gov/2010census/popmap/ipmtext.php?fl=1970|archive-date=February 7, 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref> | AIAN | 212 |- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;" | 13 |'''Olancha''' | CDP | 192 |- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;" | 14 |'''Tecopa''' | CDP | 150 |- style="background-color:#FFFF99;" | 15 |'''Fort Independence Reservation'''<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/2010census/popmap/ipmtext.php?fl=1195|title=US Census Bureau 2010 Census Interactive Population Map|first=Website Services & Coordination|last=Staff|work=census.gov|access-date=January 18, 2017}}{{Dead link|date=August 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> | AIAN | 93 |- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;" | 16 |'''Cartago''' | CDP | 92 |- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;" | 17 |'''Keeler''' | CDP | 66 |- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;" | 18 |'''Homewood Canyon''' | CDP | 44 |- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;" | 19 |'''Darwin''' | CDP | 43 |- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;" | 20 |'''Shoshone''' | CDP | 31 |- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;" | t-21 |'''Furnace Creek''' | CDP | 24 |- style="background-color:#FFFF99;" | t-21 |'''Timbi-Sha Shoshone Reservation'''<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/2010census/popmap/ipmtext.php?fl=4180|title=US Census Bureau 2010 Census Interactive Population Map|first=Website Services & Coordination|last=Staff|work=census.gov|access-date=January 18, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170207013004/http://www.census.gov/2010census/popmap/ipmtext.php?fl=4180|archive-date=February 7, 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref> | AIAN | 24 |- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;" | 22 |'''Trona''' | CDP | 18 |- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;" | 23 |'''Pearsonville''' | CDP | 17 |- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;" | 24 |'''Valley Wells''' | CDP | 0 (permanent) |}

==See also== {{portal|California}} * National Register of Historic Places listings in Inyo County, California

==Notes== {{reflist|group=note}}

==References== {{reflist|30em}}

==External links== {{sister project links|auto=1}} * {{Official website|https://www.inyocounty.us/}}  * [https://inyocountyvisitor.com Inyo County Tourism website] * [http://www.inyocounty.us/ecmsite Eastern California Museum]

{{Geographic location |Centre = Inyo County, California |North = Mono County |Northeast = Esmeralda County, Nevada |East = Nye County, Nevada |Southeast = Clark County, Nevada |South = San Bernardino County |Southwest = Kern County |West = Tulare County and Fresno County |Northwest = }}

Category:Inyo County, California Category:California counties Category:California placenames of Native American origin Category:1866 establishments in California Category:Populated places in the United States established in 1865