Editing Mill Valley, California

{{Short description|City in California, United States}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2024}}
{{Infobox settlement
 | name                     = Mill Valley, California
 | settlement_type          = [[List of municipalities in California|City]]
 | image_skyline            = Mill.Valley.jpg
 | image_caption            = Mill Valley, California
 | image_seal               = 
 | image_map                = Marin_County_California_Incorporated_and_Unincorporated_areas_Mill_Valley_Highlighted.svg
 | mapsize                  = 250x200px
 | map_caption              = Location in [[Marin County, California|Marin County]] and the state of [[California]]
 | pushpin_map              = San Francisco Bay Area#California#USA
 | pushpin_map_caption      = Location in the United States
 | pushpin_label            = Mill Valley
 | coordinates              = {{Coord|37|54|22|N|122|32|42|W|region:US-CA_type:city(14,000)|display=inline,title}}
 | subdivision_type         = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
 | subdivision_name         = United States
 | subdivision_type1        = [[U.S. state|State]]
 | subdivision_type2        = [[List of counties in California|County]]
 | subdivision_name1        = [[California]]
 | subdivision_name2        = [[Marin County, California|Marin]]
 | established_title        = [[Municipal corporation|Incorporated]]
 | established_date         = September 1, 1900<ref>{{cite web
 |url=https://calafco.org/sites/default/files/resources/Cities_by_incorp_date.doc
 |title=California Cities by Incorporation Date 
 |format=Word 
 |publisher=California Association of [[Local Agency Formation Commission]]s 
 |access-date=August 25, 2014 |url-status=dead
 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131017052413/http://www.calafco.org/docs/Cities_by_incorp_date.doc 
 |archive-date=October 17, 2013 }}</ref>
 | government_type          = 
 | leader_title             = [[Mayor]]
 | leader_name              = Urban Carmel<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cityofmillvalley.org/gov/citycouncil/mayorcitycouncil/default.htm|title=City Council|publisher=City of Mill Valley|access-date=February 18, 2021|archive-date=January 25, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190125163237/http://www.cityofmillvalley.org/gov/citycouncil/mayorcitycouncil/default.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref>
 | leader_title1            = [[California's 2nd State Senate district|State senator]]
 | leader_name1             = {{Representative|casd|2|fmt=sleader}}<ref name=swd/>
 | unit_pref                = Imperial
 | area_footnotes           = <ref name="CenPopGazetteer2019">{{cite web|title=2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files|url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2019_Gazetteer/2019_gaz_place_06.txt|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=July 1, 2020}}</ref>
 | area_total_km2           = 12.55
 | area_total_sq_mi         = 4.85
 | area_land_km2            = 12.34
 | area_land_sq_mi          = 4.76
 | area_water_km2           = 0.22
 | area_water_sq_mi         = 0.08
 | area_water_percent       = 1.74
 | elevation_footnotes      = <ref name=gnis>{{Cite GNIS|1659128|Mill Valley}}</ref>
 | elevation_ft             = 79
<!-- Population ----------->
 | population_total         = 14231
 | population_as_of         = [[2020 United States census|2020]]
 | population_footnotes     = <ref name=quif>{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/millvalleycitycalifornia |title=Mill Valley (city) QuickFacts |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]}}</ref>
 | population_density_sq_mi = auto
 | population_density_km2   = 1155.88
 | population_est           = 
 | pop_est_as_of            = 
 | pop_est_footnotes        = 
 | population_metro         = 
 | postal_code_type         = [[ZIP Code]]s
 | postal_code              = 94941, 94942
 | area_code                = [[Area codes 415 and 628|415/628]]
 | area_code_type           = [[North American Numbering Plan|Area codes]]
 | website                  = {{URL|www.cityofmillvalley.org}}
 | leader_title2            = [[California's 12th State Assembly district|Assemblymember]]
 | leader_name2             = {{Representative|caad|12|fmt=sleader}}<ref name=swd>{{cite web |url=http://statewidedatabase.org/gis/gis2011/index_2011.html |title=Statewide Database |publisher=UC Regents |access-date=November 21, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150201113744/http://statewidedatabase.org/gis/gis2011/index_2011.html |archive-date=February 1, 2015 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
 | leader_title3            = [[California's 2nd congressional district|U.S. Rep.]]
 | leader_name3             = {{Representative|cacd|2|fmt=usleader}}<ref>{{Cite GovTrack|CA|2|access-date=March 8, 2013}}</ref>
 | leader_title4            = [[Marin County Board of Supervisors|County Board]]
 | leader_name4             = District 3<br />Stephanie Moulton-Peters<ref name="marin-board">{{cite web |title=Current Board of Supervisors |url=https://www.marincounty.org/depts/bs/about-the-board-of-supervisors/current-board-of-supervisors |website=County of Marin |access-date=April 19, 2021}}</ref>
<!-- Area------------------>
 | timezone                 = [[Pacific Time Zone|Pacific]]
 | utc_offset               = −8
 | timezone_DST             = [[Pacific Daylight Time|PDT]]
 | utc_offset_DST           = −7
 | blank_name               = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS]] code
 | blank_info               = {{FIPS|06|47710}}
 | blank1_name              = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature IDs
 | blank1_info              = {{GNIS 4|1659128}}, {{GNIS 4|2411109}}
}}

'''Mill Valley''' is a city in [[Marin County, California]], United States, located about {{convert|14|mi|km}} north of [[San Francisco]] via the [[Golden Gate Bridge]] and {{convert|52|mi|km}} from [[Napa Valley]]. The population was 14,231 at the [[2020 United States census|2020 census]].

Mill Valley is located on the western and northern shores of [[Richardson Bay]], and the eastern slopes of [[Mount Tamalpais]]. Beyond the flat coastal area and marshlands, it occupies narrow wooded [[canyon]]s, mostly of second-growth [[Sequoia sempervirens|redwoods]], on the southeastern slopes of Mount Tamalpais. The Mill Valley 94941 [[ZIP Code]] also includes the following adjacent unincorporated communities: Almonte, [[Alto, California|Alto]], [[Tamalpais-Homestead Valley, California|Homestead Valley, Tamalpais Valley]], and [[Strawberry, Marin County, California|Strawberry]]. The [[Muir Woods National Monument]] is also located just outside the city limits.

==History==

===Coast Miwok===
The first people known to inhabit Marin County, the [[Coast Miwok]], arrived approximately 6,500 years ago. The territory of the Coast Miwok encompasses all of Marin County, north to [[Bodega Bay]] and southern [[Sonoma County]]. More than 600 village sites have been identified, including 14 sites in the Mill Valley area. Nearby archaeological discoveries include rock carvings and grain-grinding sites on [[Ring Mountain (California)|Ring Mountain]].<ref>C. Michael Hogan. 2008. [http://www.megalithic.co.uk/article.php?sid=19244  ''Ring Mountain'', The Megalithic Portal, ed. A. Burnham]
</ref> The pre-[[Spanish missions in California|Missionization]] population of the Coast Miwok is estimated to have been between 1,500 (Alfred L. Kroeber's estimate for the year 1770&nbsp;AD)<ref>Kroeber, Alfred L. 1925. Handbook of the Indians of California. Washington, D.C.: Bureau of American Ethnology Bulletin No. 78. (Chapter 30, The Miwok); available at Yosemite Online Library</ref> and 2,000 (Sherburne F. Cook's estimate for the same year<ref name="Cook, Sherburne 1976">Cook, Sherburne. 1976. The Conflict Between the California Indian and White Civilization. Berkeley and Los Angeles, CA: University of California Press. {{ISBN|0-520-03143-1}}.</ref>). The pre-Spanish era Coast Miwok population may have even been as high as 5,000. Cook speculated that by 1848, their population had decreased to merely 300, from foreign disease-exposure and Spanish violence, and was down to 60 by 1880. As of 2011, there are over 1,000 registered members of the [[Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria]], which includes both the Coast Miwok and the [[Southern Pomo]], all of whom can date their ancestry back to 14 survivors as original tribal ancestors.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gratonrancheria.com/ourpeople.htm |title=FIGR |publisher=Graton Rancheria |access-date=February 27, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180306224736/http://www.gratonrancheria.com/ourpeople.htm/ |archive-date=March 6, 2018 |url-status=dead  }}</ref><ref name="millvalleylibrary.org">{{cite web|url=http://www.millvalleylibrary.org/Index.aspx?page=532|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110721180602/http://www.millvalleylibrary.org/Index.aspx?page=532|url-status=dead|archive-date=July 21, 2011| publisher= Mill Valley Public Library |title= Oral Histories|date=July 21, 2011|access-date=December 30, 2019}}</ref>

In Mill Valley, on Locust Avenue (between Sycamore and Walnut avenues), there is now a metal plaque set in the sidewalk in the area believed to be the birthplace of [[Chief Marin]] in 1781; the plaque was dedicated on May 8, 2009.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.marinij.com/millvalley/ci_12329056 |title=Birth of Marin's namesake marked in Mill Valley neighborhood |website=Marinij.com |date=March 19, 2015 |access-date=February 27, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150201144106/http://www.marinij.com/millvalley/ci_12329056 |archive-date=February 1, 2015 |url-status=dead  }}</ref> The village site was first identified by Nels Nelson in 1907, and his excavation revealed tools, burials and food debris, among other things, just beyond the driveway of a residence on Locust Ave. At that time, the mound was {{convert|20|ft|m}} high. Shell mounds have been discovered in areas by streams and along Richardson Bay, including in the Strawberry and Almonte neighborhoods.

Another famous Mill Valley site was in the Manzanita area, underneath the Fireside Inn, previously known as the Manzanita Roadhouse (and the Manzanita Hotel, Emil Plasberg's Top Rail, and Top Rail Tavern); the bulk of such establishments were notoriously regarded during the time of United States [[Prohibition]]-era [[Speakeasy|gin joints]] and [[brothels]]. The Manzanita was located near the intersection of [[U.S. Route 101]] and [[California State Route 1]]. Built in 1916, the "[[Blind Pig]]" [[Roadhouse (facility)|roadhouse]] was located outside of the [[Dry county|dry]] 
laws that were enforced more strictly within the city itself.

In 1776, with the foundation of [[Mission San Francisco de Asís]] (commonly known as Mission Dolores), the Coast Miwok of southern Marin began to slowly enter the mission; first, those from Sausalito came, followed by those from areas now known as Mill Valley, Belvedere, Tiburón and Bolinas. They called themselves the "Huimen" people. At the mission, they were taught the Catholic faith, lost all of their known freedom, and over three-quarters died as a result of exposure to foreign diseases, to which the Native Americans lacked immunity. Nearly just as many people died from violent acts perpetrated by the Spaniards and Europeans. As a result of the high death rate at Mission Dolores, it was decided to build a new Mission San Rafael, built in 1817. Over 200 surviving Coast Miwok were taken there from Mission Dolores and Mission San Jose—including the 17 survivors of the Huimen Coast Miwok of the [[Richardson Bay]] area California Missions.<ref>Goerke, Betty. 2007. Chief Marin, Leader, Rebel, and Legend: A History of Marin County's Namesake and his People. Berkeley, CA: Heyday Books. {{ISBN|978-1-59714-053-9}}</ref>

===Early settlers===
By 1834, the Mission era had ended and California was under the control of the [[Mexico|Mexican]] government. They took Miwok ancestral lands, divided them and gave them to Mexican soldiers or relatives who had connections with the Mexican governor. The huge tracts of land, called [[Ranchos of California|ranchos]] by the Mexican settlers, or [[Californio]]s, soon covered the area. The Miwoks who had not died or fled were often employed under a state of [[indentured servitude]] to the [[Alta California|California land grant]] owners. That same year, the governor of Alta California, [[José Figueroa]], awarded to [[John Reed (Early Californian)|John T. Reed]] the first land grant in Marin, [[Rancho Corte Madera del Presidio]]. Just west of that, [[Rancho Saucelito]] was transferred to [[William A. Richardson]] in 1838 after being originally awarded to Nicolas Galindo in 1835. William Richardson also married a well-connected woman; both he and Reed were originally from Europe. Richardson's name was later applied to [[Richardson Bay]], an arm of the [[San Francisco Bay]] that brushes up against the eastern edge of Mill Valley. The Richardson rancho contained everything south and west of the [[Arroyo Corte Madera del Presidio|Corte Madera]] and [[Larkspur, California|Larkspur]] areas with the [[Pacific Ocean]], San Francisco Bay, and Richardson Bay as the other three borders. The former encompassed what is now southern Corte Madera, the [[Tiburon Peninsula]], and Strawberry Point.<ref>{{cite web |first= Jen |last= Robinson | url= http://www.co.marin.ca.us/depts/lb/main/crm/maps/MarinRanchosMap.swf |title= My choice for leisure, learning, living |publisher= Marin County Free Library | website= co.marin.ca.us |access-date=February 27, 2017 |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081114181514/http://www.co.marin.ca.us/depts/lb/main/crm/maps/MarinRanchosMap.swf |archive-date= November 14, 2008  }}</ref>

In 1836, John Reed married Hilaria Sanchez, the daughter of a commandante in the San Francisco [[Presidio]]. He built the first [[sawmill]] in the county on the Cascade Creek (now Old Mill Park) in the mid-1830s on Richardson's rancho and settled near what is now Locke Lane and LaGoma Avenue.<ref name= brief989>{{cite web|url=http://www.millvalleylibrary.org/Index.aspx?page=989 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110721180551/http://www.millvalleylibrary.org/Index.aspx?page=989| url-status= dead |archive-date= July 21, 2011| publisher= Mill Valley Public Library |title= A Brief History of Mill Valley|date=July 21, 2011|access-date=December 30, 2019}}</ref> The mill cut wood for the [[San Francisco Presidio]]. He raised cattle and horses and had a brickyard and stone quarry. Reed also did brisk businesses in hunting, skins, tallow, and other products until his death in 1843 at 38 years of age.<ref>{{cite web| first= Jen |last= Robinson |url= http://www.co.marin.ca.us/depts/lb/main/crm/maps/presidio.html |title= Corte Madera del Presidio (Corte de Madera del Presidio) Rancho | publisher= Marin County Free Library |work= My choice for leisure, learning, living | via= co.marin.ca.us |url-status= dead |access-date= June 23, 2020| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20091110011813/http://www.co.marin.ca.us/depts/lb/main/crm/maps/presidio.html| archive-date= November 10, 2009}}</ref> Richardson sold butter, milk and beef to San Francisco during the [[California gold rush|Gold Rush]]. Shortly thereafter, he made several poor investments and wound up massively in debt to many creditors. On top of losing his [[Mendocino County]] rancho, he was forced to deed the {{convert|640|acre|km2|adj=on}} Rancho Saucelito to his wife, Maria Antonia Martinez, daughter of the commandante of the Presidio, in order to protect her. The rest of the rancho, including the part of what is now Mill Valley that did not already belong to Reed's heirs, was given to his administrator [[Rancho Saucelito|Samuel Reading Throckmorton]]. At his death in 1856 at 61 years old, Richardson was almost destitute.<ref>{{cite web| first= Jen |last= Robinson |url= http://www.co.marin.ca.us/depts/lb/main/crm/maps/sausalito.html |title= Saucelito (Sausalito) Rancho| url-status= dead| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120211141102/http://www.co.marin.ca.us/depts/lb/main/crm/maps/sausalito.html| archive-date= February 11, 2012| publisher= Marin County Free Library |work= My choice for leisure, learning, living | via= co.marin.ca.us |access-date= June 23, 2020}}</ref>

Throckmorton came to San Francisco in 1850 as an agent for an eastern mining business before working for Richardson. As payment of a debt, Throckmorton acquired a large portion of Rancho Saucelito in 1853–54 and built his own rancho, "The Homestead," on what is now Linden Lane and Montford Avenue. The descendants of ranch superintendent Jacob Gardner continue to be active in Marin. Some of the rest of his land was leased out for dairy farming to [[Portuguese people|Portuguese]] settlers.<ref name= brief989 /> A majority of the immigrants came from the [[Azores]]. Those who were unsuccessful at gold mining came north to the [[Marin Headlands]] and later brought their families. In Mill Valley, Ranch "B" is one of the few remaining dairy farm buildings and is located near the parking lot at the Tennessee Valley trailhead.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.nps.gov/goga/historyculture/portuguese-dairy-farmers.htm |title= Portuguese Dairy Farmers |publisher= Golden Gate National Recreation Area (U.S. National Park Service) |access-date=February 26, 2017}}</ref> Throckmorton also suffered devastating financial problems before his death in 1887. His surname would later be applied to one of the major thoroughfares in Mill Valley. Richardson and Reed had never formalized the boundary lines separating their ranchos. Richardson's heirs successfully sued Reed's heirs in 1860 claiming the mill was built on their property. The border was officially marked as running along the [[Arroyo Corte Madera del Presidio]] along present-day Miller Avenue. Everything to the east of the creek was Reed property, and everything to the west was Richardson land. It was Richardson's territory that would soon become part of Mill Valley when Throckmorton's daughter Suzanna was forced to relinquish several thousand acres to the San Francisco Savings & Union Bank to satisfy a debt of $100,000 against the estate in 1889.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.millvalleyhistoricalsociety.org/history-of-early-mill-valley.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20011213052527/http://www.millvalleyhistoricalsociety.org/history-of-early-mill-valley.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=December 13, 2001|title=History of Early Mill Valley|date=December 13, 2001|access-date=December 30, 2019}}</ref>

In 1873, San Francisco physician Dr. John Cushing discovered 320 "lost" acres between the Reed and Richardson boundaries between present-day Corte Madera Avenue, across the creek, and into West Blithedale Canyon. Using the [[Homestead Act]] he petitioned the government and managed to acquire the land. Before his death in 1879 he had built a [[Sanatorium|sanitarium]] in the peaceful canyon.<ref name= brief989 /> In [[Sausalito]] the [[North Pacific Coast Railroad]] had laid down tracks to a station near present-day Highway 101 at Strawberry. Seeing the financial advantages of a railroad his descendants then turned the hospital into the Blithedale Hotel after the land title was finally granted in 1884. The sanitarium was enlarged, cottages were built up along the property, and horse-drawn carriages were purchased to pick up guests at the Alto station. Within a few years, several other summer resort hotels had cropped up in the canyon including the Abbey, the Eastland, and the Redwood Lodge.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.pacificsun.com/story.php?story_id=853|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070914014949/http://www.pacificsun.com/story.php?story_id=853|url-status=dead|archive-date=September 14, 2007| work= Pacific Sun |title= Into the canyon (May 4, 2007)|date=September 14, 2007|access-date=December 30, 2019}}</ref> Fishing, hunting, hiking, swimming, horseback riding, and other activities increased in popularity as people came to the area as vacationers or moved in and commuted to San Francisco for work. Meanwhile, Reed's mill deforested much of the surrounding redwoods, meaning that most of the redwoods growing today are second- or third-growth. The King family (King Street) owned property near the Cushing land. One of its buildings was a small adobe house which is believed to have predated the King farm.<ref name="millvalleylibrary.org"/> The Blithedale Hotel used it as a milk house. The adobe structure is still standing and connected to a house on West Blithedale Avenue; it is the oldest structure in Mill Valley.

The San Francisco Savings & Union Bank organized the Tamalpais Land & Water Company in 1889 as an agency for disposing of the Richardson land gained from the Throckmorton debt. The board of directors was President Joseph Eastland, Secretary Louis L. Janes (Janes Street), Thomas Magee (Magee Avenue), Albert Miller (Miller Avenue), and Lovell White (Lovell Avenue).<ref name="mill-valley.freemasonry.biz">{{cite web|url=http://mill-valley.freemasonry.biz/history/mill-valley-town.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060906142836/http://mill-valley.freemasonry.biz/history/mill-valley-town.htm|url-status= dead |website= mill-valley.freemasonry.biz |archive-date=September 6, 2006|title=Mill Valley |date=September 6, 2006 |access-date= December 30, 2019}}</ref> Eastland, who had been president of the North Pacific Coast Railroad in 1877 and retained an interest, pushed to extend the railroad into the area in 1889. Though Reed, Richardson, and the Cushings were crucial to bringing people to the Mill Valley area, it was Eastland who really propelled the area and set the foundation for the city today. He had founded power companies all around the San Francisco Bay area, was on the board of several banks, and had control of several commercial companies.<ref name= brief989 /> The Tamalpais Land & Water Co. hired [[Michael O'Shaughnessy|Michael M. O'Shaughnessy]], already a noted engineer to lay out roads, pedestrian paths, and step-systems for what the developers hoped would become a new city. He also built the Cascade Dam & Reservoir for water supply, and set aside land plots for churches, schools, and parks. [[File:general-MV-views-c1900.jpg|thumb|left|225px|alt=Mill Valley before 1900.|Mill Valley before 1900]] [[File:Gravity-car-on-Mt-Tam-Muir.jpg|thumb|right|225px|alt=Gravity car no. 21 on the Mt. Tam and Muir Woods Scenic Rwy c. 1915.|Gravity car no. 21 on the Mt. Tam and Muir Woods Scenic Rwy c. 1915]] 
[[File:PostcardMillValleyCAwithMountTamalpaisCirca1910.jpg|thumb|left|225px|alt=Mill Valley 1910 postcard|Similar view of Mill Valley, c. 1910, as pictured on a souvenir postcard with the caption 'Mill Valley and Mount Tamalpais, Showing Crookedest Railroad, California']]
On May 31, 1890, nearly 3,000 people attended The Tamalpais Land & Water Co. land auction near the now-crumbling sawmill. More than {{convert|200|acre|km2}} were sold that day in the areas of present-day Throckmorton, Cascade, Lovell, Summit, and Miller Avenues and extending to the west side of Corte Madera Avenue. By 1892, there were two schools in the area and a few churches.<ref name= brief989 /> The auction also brought into Mill Valley architects, builders, and craftsmen. Harvey A. Klyce was one of the most prominent of the architects and designed many private homes and public buildings in the area, including the Masonic Lodge in 1904.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mill-valley.freemasonry.biz/history/biographies.htm|title=Some of The Men who Built Masonry and the Lodge |date= August 10, 2004| website= mill-valley.freemasonry.biz |access-date=September 17, 2017|url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20040810082230/http://mill-valley.freemasonry.biz/history/biographies.htm|archive-date=August 10, 2004}}</ref> Before his death in 1894, Eastland built a large summer home, "Burlwood", constructed on Throckmorton Avenue in 1892 that still stands though much of the original land has been parceled off. Burlwood was the first home in the town to have electricity, and when telephones were installed only he and Mrs. Cushing, the owner of the Blithedale Hotel, had service.<ref name="mill-valley.freemasonry.biz"/> After the land auctions the area was known as both "Eastland" and "Mill Valley".<ref>{{cite book| last= Durham| first= David L.| year= 1998| title= California's Geographic Names: A Gazetteer of Historic and Modern Names of the State| publisher= Quill Driver Books| page= 664 | isbn= 978-1-884995-14-9}}</ref>

Janes, by then the resident director of Tamalpais Land & Water Co. (and eventually the city's first town clerk), and Sidney B. Cushing, president of the San Rafael Gas & Electric Co. set out to bring a railroad up Mt. Tamalpais. The Mt. Tamalpais Scenic Railway opened in 1896 (with Cushing as president) and ran from the town center (present-day Lytton Square) all the way to the summit. In 1907, the railroad added a branch line into "Redwood Canyon", and in 1908, the canyon became [[Muir Woods]], a [[National monument (United States)|national monument]]. The railroad built the Muir Inn (with a fine restaurant) and overnight cabins for visitors. The [[Mount Tamalpais and Muir Woods Railway|Mt. Tamalpais & Muir Woods Scenic Railway]], "The Crookedest Railroad in the World" and its unique [[Gravity railroad|Gravity Cars]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mttam.net/Default.aspx?tabid=828|title=Gravity Car Barn|date=May 6, 2009|access-date=September 17, 2017|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090506003425/http://www.mttam.net/Default.aspx?tabid=828|archive-date=May 6, 2009}}</ref> brought thousands of tourists to the Tavern of Tamalpais on the mountain summit (built in 1896, rebuilt after the 1923 fire, and razed in 1950 by the California State Parks),<ref>{{cite web |first= Jen |last= Robinson |url=http://www.co.marin.ca.us/depts/lb/main/crm/photoalbums/railroadalbum/railroad1.html |title= Railroad | publisher= Marin County Free Library |work= My choice for leisure, learning, living | via= co.marin.ca.us |date=June 24, 2016 |access-date=February 27, 2017 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120218223231/http://www.co.marin.ca.us/depts/lb/main/crm/photoalbums/railroadalbum/railroad1.html |archive-date=February 18, 2012 |url-status=dead  }}</ref> the West Point Inn (built in 1904, by the scenic railway, operated commercially until 1943, closed briefly and then run by volunteers to the present day),<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.westpointinn.com/about.htm| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20060721163654/http://www.westpointinn.com/about.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=July 21, 2006 |title= The West Point Inn - Marin, San Francisco, Mount Tamalpais, Hiking|date=July 21, 2006|access-date=December 30, 2019}}</ref> and the Muir Woods Inn (burned in 1913, rebuilt in 1914, destroyed in 1930).<ref>{{cite web |first= Jen |last= Robinson | publisher= Marin County Free Library |work= My choice for leisure, learning, living | via= co.marin.ca.us |url= http://www.co.marin.ca.us/depts/lb/main/crm/photoalbums/railroadalbum/muirinn.html |title= Muir Woods Inn |date=June 24, 2016 |access-date= February 27, 2017 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120218223241/http://www.co.marin.ca.us/depts/lb/main/crm/photoalbums/railroadalbum/muirinn.html |archive-date=February 18, 2012 |url-status=dead  }}</ref> The tracks were removed in 1930 after the 1929 fire. This occurred as a result of a drop in ridership due to increased usage of automobiles rather than trains for recreation and construction of the Panoramic Highway and connecting road to Ridgecrest in 1929. Rails connected Mill Valley with neighboring cities and commuters to San Francisco via ferries.{{citation needed|date=February 2017}}

===Incorporation through WWII===
[[File:great-mv-fire-1929.jpg|thumb|left|225px|alt=Firemen in action during 1913 fire on Mt. Tamalpais|Firemen in action during the 1913 fire on Mt. Tamalpais]]
By 1900, the population was nearing 900 and the locals pushed out the Tamalpais Land & Water Co. in favor of incorporation. Organizations and clubs cropped up including the Outdoor Art Club (1902) (organized by [[Laura Lyon White]]),<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.theoutdoorartclub.org/|title=The Outdoor Art Club|date=March 27, 2009|access-date=September 17, 2017|url-status=bot: unknown|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090327093617/http://www.theoutdoorartclub.org/|archive-date=March 27, 2009}}</ref><ref name="binkley">{{cite journal|last1=Binkley|first1=Cameron|title=A Cult of Beauty: The Public Life and Civic Work of Laura Lyon White|journal=California History|volume=82|number=2|date=2005|pages=40–61 |jstor= 25161804 |doi= 10.2307/25161804}}</ref> Masonic Lodge (1903)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mill-valley.freemasonry.biz/history.htm|title=Freemasonry: History of Mill Valley Lodge #356|date=August 7, 2004|access-date=September 17, 2017 |url-status= dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040807015825/http://mill-valley.freemasonry.biz/history.htm |archive-date=August 7, 2004}}</ref> which celebrated its centennial in 2003<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mill-valley.freemasonry.biz/centennial.htm|title=Centennial Celebration|date=April 9, 2004|access-date=September 17, 2017|url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20040409144710/http://mill-valley.freemasonry.biz/centennial.htm|archive-date=April 9, 2004}}</ref> and the [[Dipsea Race]] (1905), the latter marking its 100th anniversary in 2010.<ref>{{cite web| url= http://www.dipsea.org/ |title=The Dipsea Race |website=Dipsea.org |access-date=February 27, 2017}}</ref> The second big population boom came after the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|1906 Great earthquake]]. While much of San Francisco and Marin County was devastated, many fled to Mill Valley and most never left. In that year alone the population grew to over 1,000 permanent residents.<ref>{{cite web|author=Matthew Stafford |url=https://legacy.sfgenealogy.org/marin/ourtowns/ot_mv.htm |title=Marin County Genealogy - Marin County - Our Towns - Mill Valley |website=Sfgenealogy.org|access-date=April 18, 2022}}</ref> Creeks were bridged over or dammed, more roads laid down and oiled, and cement sidewalks poured. [[Tamalpais High School]] opened in 1908, the first city hall was erected in 1908, and Andrew Carnegie's library in 1910. The Post Office opened under the name "Eastland", however after many objections it was changed to "Mill Valley" in 1904.<ref name= brief989 /> The very first [[Mountain Play]] was performed at the Mountain Theater on Mt. Tam in 1913.<ref>{{cite web| url= http://mountainplay.org/about.html |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20070430194847/http://mountainplay.org/about.html |url-status= dead| archive-date= April 30, 2007 |title= Mountain Play |date=April 30, 2007| access-date =December 30, 2019}}</ref>

By the 1920s, most roads were paved over, mail delivery was in full swing, and the population was at its highest at more than 2,500 citizens. Mill Valley Italian settlers made wine during [[Prohibition in the United States|Prohibition]], while some local bar owners made bootleg whiskey under the dense foliage around the local creeks.<ref name= Spring2000>{{cite book| publisher= Mill Valley Historical Society |title= Spring 2000 Review| year= 2000 }}</ref> January 1922 saw the first of several years of snow in Marin County, coating Mt. Tam white. Two years later the Sulphur Springs, a natural hot spring where locals could revive their lagging spirits, was covered over and turned in the playground of the [[Old Mill School (Mill Valley, California)|Old Mill Elementary School]].<!-- Deleted image removed:   [[File:1937mtn-theater-const.jpg|thumb|right|225px|alt=The Mountain Theater under construction by the CCC c. 1937-1940. |The Mountain Theater under construction by the CCC c. 1937-1940.  ]]-->1929 was a year of great change for Mill Valley. The Great Fire raged for several days in early July and nearly destroyed the fledgling city. It ravaged much of Mt. Tam (including the Tavern and 117 homes) and the city itself was spared only by a change in wind direction.<ref name= brief989 /> In October of that year, the Mt. Tamalpais and Muir Woods Scenic Railway ran for the last time. The fire caused great devastation to tourism and tourist destinations, but the railroads were also crushed by the [[automobile]]. Panoramic Highway, running between Mill Valley and [[Stinson Beach, California|Stinson Beach]] was built in 1929–1930. The [[Wall Street Crash of 1929|stock market crash of 1929]] and the ensuing [[Great Depression]] crippled what little railroad tourism there was to the point where the tracks were eventually taken up in 1931.

During the Great Depression, many famous local landmarks were constructed with the help of the [[Works Progress Administration]] and the [[Civilian Conservation Corps]], including the Mead Theater at Tam High (named after school board Trustee Ernest Mead), the Mountain Theater rock seating, and the Golden Gate Bridge in 1934–1937.<ref name= Spring2000 /> The latter event suspended ferry commuting between Marin and the city from 1941 through 1970<ref>{{cite web |url= http://goldengateferry.org/researchlibrary/history.php |title=History of Golden Gate Ferry Service |website= Goldengateferry.org |access-date= February 27, 2017}}</ref> and helped increase the Marin population. With the demise of the railroads came the introduction of local bus service. [[Greyhound Lines|Greyhound]] moved into the former train depot in Lytton Square in October 1940. In Sausalito, [[Marinship]] brought over 75,000 people to Marin, many of whom moved to Mill Valley permanently. At the height of the War, nearly 400 locals were fighting, including many volunteer firemen and government officials. By 1950, 1 in 10 Mill Valleyans were living in a "Goheen Home". [[George C. Goheen]] built the so-called "defense homes" for defense workers throughout the 1940s and 1950s in the Alto neighborhood.<ref name= Spring2000 />

===1950s to present===
{{Original research section|date=October 2024}}
[[File:dwtnMillValley.jpg|thumb|left|225px|alt=The corner of Throckmorton Ave. and Corte Madera Ave. c. 1970.|The corner of Throckmorton Ave. and Corte Madera Ave. c. 1970]] With a population just over 7,000 by 1950,<ref name= Spring2000 /> Mill Valley was still relatively rural. Workers commuted to San Francisco on the Greyhound bus when the streets were not flooding in heavy rain,{{citation needed|date=October 2024}} and there still were not any traffic lights. The military built the [[Mill Valley Air Force Station]] to protect the area during the [[Korean War]]. In 1956, a group of Beat poets and writers lived briefly in the Perry house, most notably [[Jack Kerouac]] and [[San Francisco Renaissance]] [[Beat Generation|Beat poet]] [[Gary Snyder]]. The house and its land is now owned by the Marin County Open Space District. By the beginning of the 1960s, however, the population swelled. The Mill Valley Fall Arts Festival became a permanent annual event and the old Carnegie library was replaced with an award-winning library at 375 Throckmorton Ave. Designed by architect Donn Emmons, the new library was formally dedicated on September 18, 1966.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.millvalleylibrary.org/Index.aspx?page=624|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110721180620/http://www.millvalleylibrary.org/Index.aspx?page=624|url-status=dead|archive-date=July 21, 2011|publisher= Mill Valley Public Library |title= 1960s|date=July 21, 2011|access-date=December 30, 2019}}</ref>

The 1970s saw a change in attitude and population. Mill Valley became an area associated with great wealth, with many people making their millions{{citation needed|date=October 2024}} in San Francisco and moving north. New schools and neighborhoods cropped up, though the city maintained its defense of redwoods and protected open space. [[File:millerave1990s.jpg|thumb|right|225px|alt=Miller Ave. toward Mt. Tamalpais in the 1990s.|Miller Ave., looking toward Mt. Tamalpais, in the 1990s]]Cascade Dam, built in 1893, was closed in 1972 and drained four years later in an attempt to curb the "hordes"{{citation needed|date=October 2024}} of young people using the [[reservoir]] for nude sunbathing and swimming. Youth subculture would come under attack again in 1974 when the City Council banned live music, first at the Sweetwater and later at the Old Mill Tavern, both now defunct.<ref name= Spring2000 /> In 1977, the Lucretia Hanson Little History Room in the library opened and became the base of operations for the Mill Valley Historical Society. Marin County was hit with one of the worst [[drought]]s on record beginning in 1976 and peaking in 1977, brought on by a combination of several seasons of low rainfall and a refusal to import water from the [[Russian River (California)|Russian River]], instead relying solely on rain water from Mt. Tam and the West Marin watersheds to fill the then-six reservoirs. By June 1977, the County managed to pipe in water from the [[Sacramento River Delta]], staving off disaster. The rainfall during the winter of 1977-78 was one of the heaviest on record.<ref>{{cite web |last=Pyfer |first=Chip |url=http://www.marinmagazine.com/Marin-Magazine/March-2007/When-Marin-Went-Dry/ |title=When Marin Went Dry | date= March 2007 | place= Marin County, California |work= Marin Magazine |access-date=February 27, 2017 |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120216230220/http://www.marinmagazine.com/Marin-Magazine/March-2007/When-Marin-Went-Dry/ |archive-date=February 16, 2012  }}</ref> The [[Mill Valley Film Festival]], now part of the [[California Film Institute]], began in 1978 at the Sequoia Theatre.

The 1980s and 1990s saw the decline of small businesses in Mill Valley. Local establishments like Lockwood's Pharmacy closed in 1981 after running almost continuously for 86 years. Old Mill Tavern, O'Leary's, and the Unknown Museum shut their doors, as did Red Cart Market and Tamalpais Hardware. In their places came boutiques, upscale clothing stores, coffee shops, art galleries, and gourmet grocery stores. Downtown Plaza and Lytton Square were remodeled to fit the new attitude. The population in the city alone swelled over 13,000 and many of the old, narrow, winding streets grew clogged with traffic congestion.<ref name=  Spring2000 /> The Public Library expanded with a new Children's Room, a downstairs Fiction Room, and Internet computers.<ref>{{cite web| url= http://www.millvalleylibrary.org/Index.aspx?page=627| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110721180745/http://www.millvalleylibrary.org/Index.aspx?page=627|url-status=dead|archive-date= July 21, 2011| publisher= Mill Valley Public Library |title= 1990s|date=July 21, 2011|access-date=December 30, 2019}}</ref> It also joined MARINet, a consortium of all the public libraries in Marin, to allow patrons greater access to information. MARINet now has an online catalogue of all the materials, both physical and electronic, in the Marin public libraries, which patrons can order, pick up, and drop off materials at any of the participating libraries.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://marinet.lib.ca.us/ |title=MARINet Libraries Catalog |website=Marinet.lib.ca.us |access-date=February 27, 2017}}</ref> The Old Mill also got a facelift; it was rebuilt to the same specifications as the original in 1991. The 1990s also saw another influx of affluence. Many new homeowners gutted homes built in the 19th and early 20th centuries or tore them down altogether.

The dawn of the new millennium brought reflection on the past, as the city celebrated 100 years of incorporation. Soon after Mill Valley got its brand new Community Center at 180 Camino Alto,<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.cityofmillvalley.org/Index.aspx?page=69 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080224204951/http://www.cityofmillvalley.org/Index.aspx?page=69|url-status=dead|archive-date= February 24, 2008| publisher= City of Mill Valley |title= Parks and Recreation|date=February 24, 2008|access-date=December 30, 2019}}</ref> adjacent to [[Mill Valley Middle School]].

On January 31, 2008, Mill Valley's sewage treatment plant spilled 2.45&nbsp;million gallons of [[sewage]] into the San Francisco Bay.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.marinij.com/marin/ci_8182853 |title= Second massive sewage spill in bay revealed |website=Marinij.com |access-date=February 27, 2017 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150201134451/http://www.marinij.com/marin/ci_8182853 |archive-date=February 1, 2015 |url-status= dead  }}</ref> This marked the second such spill in Mill Valley within a week (the previous one spilled 2.7 million gallons), and the most recent of several that occurred in Marin County in early 2008.<ref name="marinij.com">{{cite web |url= http://www.marinij.com/ci_8364890?source=most_viewed |title=6,000-gallon sewage spill in San Rafael |website=Marinij.com |access-date= February 27, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150201131755/http://www.marinij.com/ci_8364890?source=most_viewed |archive-date=February 1, 2015 |url-status=dead  }}</ref> Mill Valley's treatment plant attributed the spills to "human error".<ref name="marinij.com"/> The spills caused distress in Mill Valley's administrative government, which remains outspoken about "dedicating itself to the protection of air quality, waste reduction, water and energy conservation, and the protection of wildlife and habitat" in Mill Valley.<ref>{{cite web| url= http://www.cityofmillvalley.org/Index.aspx?page=675| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080603070950/http://www.cityofmillvalley.org/Index.aspx?page=675|url-status=dead|archive-date=June 3, 2008|title=City of Mill Valley : Mill Valley's Commitment to the Environment|date=June 3, 2008|access-date=December 30, 2019}}</ref>

==Geography==
[[File:BlithedaleCanyon.JPG|thumb|right|250px|Blithedale Canyon]]
According to the [[United States Census Bureau]] the city has a total area of {{convert|4.8|sqmi|km2}}, of which {{convert|4.7|sqmi|km2}} is land and {{convert|0.1|sqmi|km2}} of (1.74%) water.{{Citation needed|date=July 2011}}

The Mill Valley 94941 area lies between Mt. Tamalpais on the west, the city of Tiburon on the east, the City of Corte Madera on the north, and the Golden Gate National Recreational Area (GGNRA) on the south. Two streams flow from the slopes of Mt. Tamalpais through Mill Valley to the bay: the Arroyo Corte Madera del Presidio; and Cascade Creek. Mill Valley is surrounded by hundreds of acres of [[Mount Tamalpais|state]], [[Muir Woods|federal]], and [[Marin Headlands|county]] park lands. In addition, there are many municipally maintained open-space reserves, parks, and coastal habitats which, when taken together, ensconce Mill Valley in a natural wilderness.

Mill Valley and the Homestead Valley Land Trust maintains many minimally disturbed wildland areas and preserves which are open to the public from sunrise to dusk every day. Several nature trails allow access as well as providing gateway access to neighboring state and federal park lands, and the Mt. Tamalpais Watershed<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.marinwater.org/controller?action=menuclick&id=242|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050527015134/http://www.marinwater.org/controller?action=menuclick&id=242|url-status=dead|archive-date=May 27, 2005|title=MMWD: Recreation|date=May 27, 2005|access-date=December 30, 2019}}</ref> wildland on the broad eastern face of Mt. Tamalpais that overlooks Mill Valley. These are undeveloped natural areas and contain many species of wild animals, including some large predators like the [[coyote]], the [[bobcat]], and the [[cougar]].

===Climate===
[[File:Mill Valley CA Depot.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Old Railroad Depot]]
Mill Valley has a mild [[Mediterranean climate]] which results in relatively wet winters and very dry summers. Winter lows rarely drop below freezing and summer highs rarely peak {{convert|90|°F}} with 90% of the annual rain falling in November through March. Wind speeds average lower than national averages in winter months and higher in summer, and often become quite gusty in the canyon regions of town. [[Fog|California coastal fog]] often affects Mill Valley, making relative humidity highly variable. The wetter winter months tend to make for a more consistent daily relative humidity around 70–90% (slightly higher than US averages). During the summer months, however, while the morning fog often keeps morning humidity normal, in a typical 70–80% range, by afternoon after the fog burns off, the humidity regularly plummets to around 30% as one would expect in this dry seasonal climate.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.city-data.com/city/Mill-Valley-California.html |title=Mill Valley, California (CA 94941) profile: population, maps, real estate, averages, homes, statistics, relocation, travel, jobs, hospitals, schools, crime, moving, houses, news, sex offenders |website=City-data.com |date=October 13, 2008 |access-date=February 27, 2017}}</ref> 
{{Weather box
|location = Mill Valley, California
|single line = Y
|Jan record high F = 79
|Feb record high F = 79
|Mar record high F = 87
|Apr record high F = 96
|May record high F = 102
|Jun record high F = 110
|Jul record high F = 111
|Aug record high F = 106
|Sep record high F = 106
|Oct record high F = 101
|Nov record high F = 87
|Dec record high F = 77
|year record high F = 111
|Jan high F = 56
|Feb high F = 61
|Mar high F = 65
|Apr high F = 71
|May high F = 76
|Jun high F = 82
|Jul high F = 85
|Aug high F = 84
|Sep high F = 82
|Oct high F = 75
|Nov high F = 63
|Dec high F = 56
|year high F = 71
|Jan low F = 41
|Feb low F = 43
|Mar low F = 44
|Apr low F = 46
|May low F = 49
|Jun low F = 52
|Jul low F = 53
|Aug low F = 54
|Sep low F = 53
|Oct low F = 50
|Nov low F = 45
|Dec low F = 41
|year low F = 48
|Jan record low F = 20
|Feb record low F = 21
|Mar record low F = 27
|Apr record low F = 31
|May record low F = 23
|Jun record low F = 39
|Jul record low F = 41
|Aug record low F = 40
|Sep record low F = 37
|Oct record low F = 30
|Nov record low F = 26
|Dec record low F = 18
|year record low F = 18
|Jan rain inch = 9.60
|Feb rain inch = 9.10
|Mar rain inch = 7.05
|Apr rain inch = 2.56
|May rain inch = 1.20
|Jun rain inch = 0.24
|Jul rain inch = 0.01
|Aug rain inch = 0.12
|Sep rain inch = 0.50
|Oct rain inch = 2.33
|Nov rain inch = 7.47
|Dec rain inch = 7.29
|year rain inch = 47.47
|rain colour = green
|source 1 = http://www.weather.com/weather/wxclimatology/monthly/graph/94941
|date=August 2010
}}

Mill Valley is also affected by [[microclimate]] conditions in the several box canyons with steep north-facing slopes and dense forests which span the southern and western city limits, which, along with the coastal fog, all conspire to make many of the dense forested regions of Mill Valley noticeably cooler and moister, on average, than other regions of town. This microclimate is what makes for the favorable ecology required by the [[Sequoia sempervirens|Coastal Redwood]] forests which still cover much of the town and surrounding area, and have played such a pivotal role throughout the history of Mill Valley.

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
|1910= 2551
|1920= 2554
|1930= 4164
|1940= 4847
|1950= 7331
|1960= 10411
|1970= 12942
|1980= 12967
|1990= 13038
|2000= 13600
|2010= 13903
|2020= 14231
|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<ref name="DecennialCensus">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|title=Census of Population and Housing|publisher=Census.gov|access-date=June 4, 2015}}</ref>
}}

===2010===
The [[2010 United States Census]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/2010census/popmap/ipmtext.php?fl=06:0647710|archive-url=https://archive.today/20140715031530/http://www.census.gov/2010census/popmap/ipmtext.php?fl=06:0647710|url-status=dead|archive-date=July 15, 2014|title=2010 Census Interactive Population Search: CA - Mill Valley city|publisher=U.S. Census Bureau|access-date=July 12, 2014}}</ref> reported that Mill Valley had a population of 13,903. The population density was {{convert|2,868.2|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. The racial makeup of Mill Valley was 12,341 (88.8%) [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 118 (0.8%) [[African American (U.S. Census)|African American]], 23 (0.2%) [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], 755 (5.4%) [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]], 14 (0.1%) [[Pacific Islander (U.S. Census)|Pacific Islander]], 152 (1.1%) from [[Race (United States Census)|other races]], and 500 (3.6%) from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]] of any race were 622 persons (4.5%).

The Census reported that 99.5% of the population lived in households and 0.5% were institutionalized.

There were 6,084 households, out of which 1,887 (31.0%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 2,984 (49.0%) were [[marriage|opposite-sex married couples]] living together, 465 (7.6%) had a female householder with no husband present, 178 (2.9%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 306 (5.0%) [[POSSLQ|unmarried opposite-sex partnerships]], and 55 (0.9%) [[same-sex partnerships|same-sex married couples or partnerships]]. 2,016 households (33.1%) were made up of individuals, and 888 (14.6%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27. There were 3,627 [[family (U.S. Census)|families]] (59.6% of all households); the average family size was 2.94.

The population was spread out, with 3,291 people (23.7%) under the age of 18, 459 people (3.3%) aged 18 to 24, 2,816 people (20.3%) aged 25 to 44, 4,714 people (33.9%) aged 45 to 64, and 2,623 people (18.9%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 46.6 years. For every 100 females, there were 85.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.8 males.

There were 6,534 housing units at an average density of {{convert|1,348.0|/mi2|/km2|disp=preunit|units&nbsp;|units|}}, of which 3,974 (65.3%) were owner-occupied, and 2,110 (34.7%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.2%; the rental vacancy rate was 4.5%. 9,861 people (70.9% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 3,966 people (28.5%) lived in rental housing units.

===2000===
At the 2000 [[census]],<ref name="GR2">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=January 31, 2008|title=U.S. Census website}}</ref> there were 13,600 people, 6,147 households and 3,417 families residing in the city, not including those living in unincorporated territories. The population density was {{convert|2,883.1|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. There were 6,286 housing units at an average density of {{convert|1,332.6|/mi2|/km2|disp=preunit|units&nbsp;|units|}}. The racial makeup of the city in 2010 was 85.8% non-Hispanic [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 0.8% non-Hispanic [[African American (U.S. Census)|African American]], 0.1% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], 5.3% [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]], 0.1% [[Pacific Islander (U.S. Census)|Pacific Islander]], 0.3% from [[Race (United States Census)|other races]], and 3.1% from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]] of any race were 4.5% of the population.

There were 6,147 households, of which 27.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.2% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 7.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 44.4% were non-families. 34.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.20 and the average family size was 2.85.

21.2% of the population was under the age of 18, 2.9% from 18 to 24, 28.1% from 25 to 44, 32.5% from 45 to 64, and 15.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females, there were 86.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.5 males.

The [[median household income]] was $90,794, and the median family income was $119,669. Males had a median income of $94,800 versus $52,088 for females. The [[per capita income]] for the city was $64,179. About 2.7% of families and 4.5% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 3.6% of those under age 18 and 5.7% of those age 65 or over.

==Government==

===Federal and state===

In the [[United States House of Representatives]], Mill Valley is in {{representative|cacd|2|fmt=district}}.<ref>{{Cite GovTrack|CA|2|access-date=March 1, 2013}}</ref> From 2008 to 2012, Huffman represented Marin County in the [[California State Assembly]].

In the [[California State Legislature]], Mill Valley is in:
*  {{representative|caad|12|fmt=adistrict}}<ref>{{cite web|url=http://assembly.ca.gov/assemblymembers |title=Members &#124; Assembly Internet |website=Assembly.ca.gov |access-date=February 27, 2017}}</ref>
*  {{representative|casd|2|fmt=sdistrict}}.

According to the [[Secretary of State of California|California Secretary of State]], as of February 10, 2019, Mill Valley has 10,189 registered voters. Of those, 6,270 (61.5%) are registered [[California Democratic Party|Democrats]], 965 (9.5%) are registered [[California Republican Party|Republicans]], and 2,605 (25.6%) have [[Decline to State|declined to state]] a political party.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://elections.cdn.sos.ca.gov/ror/ror-odd-year-2019/politicalsub.pdf|title=CA Secretary of State – Report of Registration – February 10, 2019|website=ca.gov|access-date=March 12, 2019}}</ref>

==Cityscape==
[[File:MtCarmelMV.JPG|thumb|right|220px|Mount Carmel Catholic Church]]

The combination of Mill Valley's idyllic location nestled beneath [[Mount Tamalpais]] coupled with its relative ease of access to nearby [[San Francisco]] has made it a popular home for many high-income [[commuting|commuters]]. Over the last 30 years, following a trend that is endemic throughout the [[Bay Area]], home prices have climbed in Mill Valley (the median price for a single-family home was in excess of $1.5 million as of 2005), which has had the effect of pushing out some residents who can no longer afford to live in the area.{{citation needed|date=February 2018}} This trend has also transformed Mill Valley's commercial activity, with nationally recognized music store [[Village Music]] having closed, then replaced in 2008 by more commercial establishments.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.marinij.com/fastsearchresults/ci_4910289|title=Swan song for Mill Valley music mecca|access-date=February 26, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150201143448/http://www.marinij.com/fastsearchresults/ci_4910289|archive-date=February 1, 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In July 2005, CNN/Money and ''Money'' magazine ranked Mill Valley tenth on its list of the 100 Best Places to Live in the United States.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/bplive/2005/ | work=CNN | access-date=May 12, 2010 | title=MONEY Magazine: Best places to live 2005}}</ref> In 2007, [[MSN]] and ''Forbes'' magazine ranked Mill Valley seventy-third on its "Most expensive zip codes in America" list.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://moneycentral.msn.com/content/invest/forbes/P62020.asp/ |title=Stock quotes, financial tools, news and analysis - MSN Money |website=Moneycentral.msn.com |date=January 31, 2017 |access-date=February 27, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070418073216/http://moneycentral.msn.com/content/invest/forbes/P62020.asp |archive-date=April 18, 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

While Mill Valley has retained elements of its earlier artistic culture through galleries, festivals, and performances, its stock of affordable housing has diminished,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.marinij.com/fastsearchresults/ci_4355908 |title=Anne Solem: Mill Valley's housing dilemma |website=Marinij.com |access-date=February 27, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150201130809/http://www.marinij.com/fastsearchresults/ci_4355908 |archive-date=February 1, 2015 |url-status=dead  }}</ref> forcing some residents to leave the area. This trend has also affected some of the city's well-known cultural centers like Village Music and the [[Sweetwater Saloon]]. As of April 2007, only one affordable housing project was underway: an initiative to renovate and expand a century old but now abandoned local landmark roadhouse and saloon called the Fireside Inn.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.marinij.com/fastsearchresults//ci_3981677|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929091611/http://www.marinij.com/fastsearchresults//ci_3981677|url-status=dead|archive-date=September 29, 2007|title=Marin Independent Journal - Housing project gets a boost|date=September 29, 2007|access-date=December 30, 2019}}</ref> This renovation was completed in the fall of 2008 and provided around 50 low-income apartments, with around 30 dedicated to low-income seniors and the remainder going to low-income families.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.marinij.com/ci_9599649 |title=Fireside Inn in Mill Valley transformation turns heads |website=Marinij.com |access-date=February 27, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141129023031/http://www.marinij.com/ci_9599649 |archive-date=November 29, 2014 |url-status=dead  }}</ref>

===Neighborhoods and unincorporated areas===
[[Strawberry, Marin County, California|Strawberry]] is an unincorporated [[census-designated place]] to the east of the City of Mill Valley. The other CDP with a Mill Valley mailing address is [[Tamalpais-Homestead Valley]]. Smaller unincorporated areas include [[Alto, Mill Valley, California|Alto]] and Almonte. [[Muir Beach, California|Muir Beach]] is in the [[Mill Valley School District]], but it is in the [[Sausalito, California|Sausalito]] mailing area.

Neighborhoods in the Mill Valley area:
{| class="wikitable"
|-
| Almonte
| "[[Alto, Mill Valley, California|Alto]]" Sutton Manor
| Blithedale Canyon
| Boyle Park
| Cascade Canyon
| Country Club
| Downtown
| East Blithedale Corridor
|-
| Edgewood Cypress
| Enchanted Knolls
| Eucalyptus Knolls
| [[Tamalpais-Homestead Valley|Homestead Valley]]
| Kite Hill
| Land of Peter Pan
| Marin Terrace
| Marin View
|-
| Middle Ridge
| Mill Valley Heights
| Mill Valley Meadows
| Miller Avenue
| Molino Edgewood
| Muir Woods
| Old Mill
| Panoramic Highway
|-
| Scott Highlands
| Scott Valley
| Sequoia Valley
| Shelter Bay
| Shelter Ridge
| [[Strawberry, Marin County, California|Strawberry]]
| Sycamore
| Sycamore Park
|-
| Tam Junction
| [[Tamalpais-Homestead Valley|Tamalpais Valley]]
| Tamalpais Park
| Tennessee Valley
| Vernal Heights
| Warner Canyon
|
|
|}

===City recreational parks===
[[File:House amongst redwood trees, Cascade Canyon.jpg|thumb|Close to Old Mill Park and Mill Valley Public Library, the setting of this house, built by notable landscape painter [[Tilden Daken]], is typical of the houses sprinkled amongst the redwoods of the Cascade Canyon area in Mill Valley.]]
Mill Valley maintains many recreational parks which often contain playgrounds, wooded trails and other designated areas specifically designed for playing various sports.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cityofmillvalley.org/Index.aspx?page=416|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080511060406/http://www.cityofmillvalley.org/Index.aspx?page=416|url-status=dead|archive-date=May 11, 2008|title=City of Mill Valley : Parks|date=May 11, 2008|access-date=December 30, 2019}}</ref>

==Education==
===Public schools===
[[File:Tam's Arch & Tower at Dusk, Summer 2006.jpg|thumb|[[Tamalpais High School]]]]
[[Public school (government funded)|Public schools]] are managed by the [[Mill Valley School District]]. There are five elementary schools and one middle school, [[Mill Valley Middle School]], a four-time winner of the [[California Distinguished School]] Award.<ref>[http://www.cde.ca.gov/ta/sr/cs/ap/distingcounty.asp?county=21&submit1=Submit California School Recognition Program distinguished school honorees], accessed January 26, 2008  {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081011051635/http://www.cde.ca.gov/ta/sr/cs/ap/distingcounty.asp?county=21&submit1=Submit |date=October 11, 2008 }}</ref> The local high school, [[Tamalpais High School]], is part of the [[Tamalpais Union High School District]], whose five campuses serve central and southern [[Marin County]]. North Bridge Academy, a [[private school]] located in downtown Mill Valley, serves 2nd - 8th grade students with dyslexia.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cde.ca.gov/SchoolDirectory/details?cdscode=21653916151344|title=California School Directory: North Bridge Academy|publisher=California Department of Education|date=2 October 2023|accessdate=9 August 2024}}</ref> Marin Horizon School is an [[independent school]] serving students in grades PK-8. Founded in 1977, the school enrolls 296 students.

===Mill Valley Public Library===
[[File:Mill Valley Public Library.jpg|left|thumb|The Mill Valley Public Library]]
The municipal library overlooks Old Mill Park and provides many picturesque reading locations, as well as free computer and Internet access. The Mill Valley library first digitized its vast holdings under the stewardship of Thelma Weber Percy, who was determined to see the Mill Valley Public Library come into the computer age. Recently they have begun offering Museum Passes to 94941 residents for free entry to Bay Area museums.<ref>[http://www.millvalleylibrary.org/Index.aspx?page=867]{{dead link|date=February 2017}}</ref> As part of the City of Mill Valley's decision to "go Green", the library has a Sustainability Collection with books and DVDs with information about how to become more environmentally friendly.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://marinet.lib.ca.us/search~S3?/dSustainability+Collection+--+Mill+Valley/dsustainability+collection+mill+valley/-3%2C-1%2C0%2CB/exact&FF=dsustainability+collection+mill+valley&1%2C80%2C |title=Marinet |publisher=Marinet.lib.ca.us |access-date=February 27, 2017}}</ref>

The Mill Valley Public Library is also home to the Lucretia Hanson Little History Room, which has thousands of books, photographs, newspapers, pamphlets, artifacts, and oral histories on the history of California, Marin County, and Mill Valley.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.millvalleylibrary.org/Index.aspx?page=712|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110721180657/http://www.millvalleylibrary.org/Index.aspx?page=712| url-status= dead| archive-date= July 21, 2011| publisher= Mill Valley Public Library |title= History Room|date=July 21, 2011|access-date=December 30, 2019}}</ref>

==Annual events==
Mill Valley is the home of several annual events, many of which attract national and international followings:
* [[Dipsea Race]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dipsea.org |title=The Dipsea Race |website=Dipsea.org |access-date=February 27, 2017}}</ref>
* [[Mountain Play|The Mountain Play]]
* [[Mill Valley Film Festival]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mvff.com |title=Mill Valley Film Festival &#124; |website=Mvff.com |access-date=February 27, 2017}}</ref>
* [[ Mill Valley Fall Arts Festival]]

==In media==
Mill Valley has also been home to many artists, actors, authors, musicians, and TV personalities, and it is the setting for or is mentioned in many artworks. For example:

* Actress and comedian [[Eve Arden]] was born there in 1908.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-11-13-mn-4578-story.html|title=Eve Arden, 82; Portrayed TV's Beloved 'Our Miss Brooks'|date=November 13, 1990|website=Los Angeles Times|language=en-US|access-date=October 16, 2019}}</ref>
* Actress and dancer [[Monica Barbaro]], nominated for an Academy Award in 2025, grew up there and graduated from Tamalpais High School.
* [[Rock music]] stars such as [[Mike Bloomfield|Michael Bloomfield]], [[John Cipollina|John]] and Mario Cipollina, [[Clarence Clemons]], [[Dan Hicks (singer)|Dan Hicks]], [[Sammy Hagar]], [[Janis Joplin]], [[Huey Lewis]], [[Lee Michaels]],<ref>{{cite news|title=Mr. Piano Power|newspaper=[[Sounds (magazine)|Sounds]]|publisher=Spotlight Publications|date=August 28, 1971|page=3}}</ref> [[Bonnie Raitt]], [[Pete Sears]], and [[Bob Weir]] have called Mill Valley home at some point.
* Famed music executive/producer and film director [[George Daly (music executive)|George Daly]] worked originally with [[Janis Joplin]] and [[Huey Lewis]], then both Mill Valley residents, along with Marin's [[Carlos Santana]], and Mill Valley singer-songwriter Tim Hockenberry (of TV's ''[[America's Got Talent (season 7)|America's Got Talent]]'' successes); Daly also co-directed and co-wrote the [[Gary Yost]] Mill Valley-focused movie ''[[The Invisible Peak]]'', concerning the razing of the [[Mount Tamalpais]] West Peak during the [[Cold War]]. The multiple award-winning film, narrated by [[Peter Coyote]], was featured in multiple US film festivals, including the [[Mill Valley Film Festival]].
* [[Jerry Garcia]]—who recorded music in a Mill Valley recording studio—also once called Mill Valley home.
* Author [[John Gray (U.S. author)|John Gray]], who writes the ''[[Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus]]'' books, is a long time Mill Valley resident. 
* Award-winning sports journalist [[Ann Killion]] was born and raised in Mill Valley.
*Printmaker and author [[Tom Killion (artist)|Tom Killion]] was born and raised in Mill Valley.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://inthemake.com/tom-killion/|title=Tom Killion|website=In The Make|language=en-US|access-date=June 18, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://santacruzmah.org/2017/tom-killion-jan-5-2018-april-22-2018/|title=California's Wild Edge; Prints by Tom Killion|date=January 12, 2018|website=Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History (SCMAH)|language=en|access-date=June 18, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180920120429/https://santacruzmah.org/2017/tom-killion-jan-5-2018-april-22-2018/|archive-date=September 20, 2018|url-status=dead}}</ref>
* Writer [[Ki Longfellow]] lived on Hillside Avenue.
* Composer [[John Anthony Lennon]] was raised in Mill Valley.
* [[John Lennon]] and [[Yoko Ono]] summered in Mill Valley in the early 1970s, having left some of his own graffiti on the wall of the residence "The Maya the Merrier."
* Music producer-songwriter [[Scott Mathews]]' home is up on [[Mount Tamalpais]], while his private recording studio and office is run out of his other Mill Valley house on the banks of [[Richardson Bay]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.marinscope.com/archives/article_3f33a94e-7dd4-5c90-b31e-ff208726d3a0.html |title=Marin producer behind hit single &#124; Archives |website=Marinscope.com |date=February 22, 2012 |access-date=February 27, 2017}}</ref>
* [[Jack Finney]] was a Mill Valley author whose best-known works include ''[[The Body Snatchers]]'', the basis for the influential and classic 1956 movie ''[[Invasion of the Body Snatchers]]'', and all its remakes. He moved with his young family from New York City to Mill Valley, where he wrote his most famous novel in the early 1950s.
* Artist and [[Marin County]]-native [[Zio Ziegler]] completed a mural titled "The Mysterious Thing" on side of the CineArts Sequoia theater in 2016.<ref>{{cite web |title=New Zio Ziegler Mural 'The Mysterious Thing" Debuts, Dazzles Above Playa Deck |url=https://www.enjoymillvalley.com/-blog/new-zio-ziegler-mural-the-mysterious-thing-debuts-dazzles-above-playa-deck |website=Enjoy Mill Valley |access-date=June 17, 2019}}</ref>

===In film===
*The film ''[[Serial (1980 film)|Serial]]'' (1980) starring [[Martin Mull]], [[Tuesday Weld]] and [[Sally Kellerman]] was shot almost entirely on location in Mill Valley and nearby [[Tiburon, California|Tiburon]].<ref>"'Serial' benefit premiere Friday in Marin". ''[[Argus-Courier]]''. March 26, 1980. p. 10A.</ref>
*The [[Tamalpais High School]] marching band appeared, as the ''Spring Street Settlement House'' marching band on [[Mission Street]] in San Francisco, in [[Woody Allen]]'s film ''[[Take the Money and Run (film)|Take the Money and Run]]'' ([[1969 in film|1969]]).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.dga.org/Craft/DGAQ/All-Articles/1401-Winter-2014/Screening-Room-Paul-Feig2.aspx|title=Screening Room: Paul Feig: The Rules of the Game BY STEVE POND|website=[[Directors Guild of America]]|access-date=May 8, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://cinapse.co/take-the-money-and-run-but-leave-this-woody-allen-title-behind-409f64115ccc|title=TAKE THE MONEY AND RUN…But Leave This Woody Allen Title Behind|first=Frank|last=Calvillo|date=January 23, 2018|website=Medium|access-date=May 8, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.woodyallenpages.com/films/take-the-money-and-run/|title=Take The Money And Run|date=June 2, 2012| access-date=May 8, 2020}}</ref>
*In [[Paul Verhoeven]]’s film ''[[Basic Instinct]]'' (1992) a subplot character, Hazel Dobkins, was a murderer fictionally visited by [[Sharon Stone]]’s character, [[Catherine Tramell]], at "26 Albion Road in Mill Valley", but actually located at 26 Liberty Street in Petaluma.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.movie-locations.com/movies/b/Basic-Instinct.php|title=Filming Locations for Basic Instinct (1992)|website=The Worldwide Guide to Movie Locations|access-date=May 8, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nortonsmoviemaps.com/1/post/2015/09/basic-instinct.html|title=Basic Instinct|website=Norton's Movie Maps|access-date=May 8, 2020}}{{dead link|date=May 2025|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.chillybin.com/movies/basic.html|title=Petaluma, California in the movies |website= chillybin.com|access-date=May 8, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.google.com/maps/place/26+Liberty+St,+Petaluma,+CA+94952/@38.2326436,-122.6446151,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x8085b6a704f6b98d:0x517fd819314387a3!8m2!3d38.2326436!4d-122.6424264?hl=en|title=26 Liberty St|website=google maps|access-date=May 8, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.themoviedistrict.com/basic-instinct/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150225020547/http://www.themoviedistrict.com/basic-instinct/|url-status=usurped|archive-date=February 25, 2015|title=Basic Instinct (1992) Filming Locations |work=The Movie District |access-date= May 8, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SBCrDgAAQBAJ&q=Hazel+Dobkin+Catherine+Tramell&pg=PT110|title=Paul Verhoeven: Interviews |first= Margaret |last= Barton-Fumo|date=December 26, 2016|publisher=Univ. Press of Mississippi|isbn=9781496810168 |access-date=May 8, 2020|via=Google Books}}</ref>
*In [[George Lucas]]' film ''[[American Graffiti]]'' ([[1973 in film|1973]]), the [[sock hop]] dance scenes were filmed in the high school's boys' gymnasium.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.marinij.com/general-news/20070919/tam-high-to-mark-its-100th-year-with-fanfare|title=Tam High to mark its 100th year with fanfare|date=September 19, 2007|website=Marin Independent Journal|language=en-US|access-date=October 16, 2019}}</ref>
*Naval aviator [[Dieter Dengler]] built a home on Mount Tamalpais, near the Mountain Home Inn, and lived there until his death in 2001; parts of the biographical documentary about him, ''[[Little Dieter Needs to Fly]]'' (1997) were filmed there.

===In literature===
*It is the setting for resident author [[Jack Finney|Jack Finney's]] novel ''[[The Body Snatchers]]'' (1954), although the film, ''[[Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956 film)|Invasion of the Body Snatchers]]'' (1956), and subsequent movie adaptations of the book have been set elsewhere.
*Writer [[Jack Kerouac]] and beat poet [[Gary Snyder]] shared a Mill Valley cabin in 1955-56<ref name="content.cdlib.org">{{cite web|url=http://content.cdlib.org/view?docId=tf1489n5dm&chunk.id=bioghist-1.8.3&brand=oac |title=Inventory of the Gary Snyder Papers |website=Content.cdlib.org |access-date=February 27, 2017}}</ref> around 370 Montford Ave. in Homestead Valley. The cabin's coincidental location in Marin County and its adjacent location to a meadow where horses grazed, combined with Snyder's expertise in Asian languages and cultures, inspired Snyder name the cabin "Marin-An" (Japanese translation: "Horse Grove Hermitage")<ref name="content.cdlib.org"/> It was during this stay in Mill Valley that Kerouac's recent budding interest in [[Zen Buddhism]] was greatly expanded by Snyder's expertise in the subject. Kerouac's novel ''[[The Dharma Bums]]'' (1958) was consequently composed while living here and contains many semi-fictionalized accounts of his and Snyder's lives while living at Marin-An.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.millvalleyhistoricalsociety.org/history-of-homestead-valley-2002.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030405050223/http://www.millvalleyhistoricalsociety.org/history-of-homestead-valley-2002.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=April 5, 2003|title=History of Homestead Valley, Part II|date=April 5, 2003|access-date=December 30, 2019}}</ref>
*The fictional character Charley Furuseth, in [[Jack London|Jack London's]] 1904 novel ''[[The Sea-Wolf]]'' (1904), had a summer cottage here.
*American writer [[Cyra McFadden]], while living in Mill Valley in the 1970s, wrote a column for the ''Pacific Sun'' newspaper entitled, ''The Serial'', which satirized the trendy lifestyles of the affluent residents of Marin County.<ref>{{cite news |url= http://www.pacificsun.com/morguepdf/2007/2007_06_29.pac.section1.pdf |work= Pacific Sun |page=9 |title= The Serial |last= McFadden| first= Cyra|access-date=June 29, 2007|url-status= dead| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071107031222/http://www.pacificsun.com/morguepdf/2007/2007_06_29.pac.section1.pdf|archive-date=November 7, 2007}}</ref> She later turned her column ideas into a novel, ''[[The Serial|The Serial: A Year in the Life of Marin County]]'' (1977), which focused on the fictional exploits of a Mill Valley couple, Kate and Harvey Holroyd, who never quite fit into the Marin "scene". The highly successful book was later adapted as a comedy film called ''[[Serial (1980 film)|Serial]]'' (1980), starring [[Tuesday Weld]] and [[Martin Mull]].

===In music===
* The song "[[Mill Valley (song)|Mill Valley]]", recorded in 1970 and released on the album ''[[Rita Abrams|Miss Abrams and the Strawberry Point 4th Grade Class]]'',<ref name="amazon.com">{{cite web|url=https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00004SGY5|title=Miss Abrams and The Strawberry Point 4th Grade Class|date=January 1, 2000|via=Amazon}}</ref> reached #90 on the U.S. [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]] and #5 [[Easy Listening]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.billboard.com/|title=Billboard Online - Now www.billboard.com|date=December 27, 1996|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19961227122903/http://www.billboard.com/|archive-date=December 27, 1996|url-status=bot: unknown|access-date=September 17, 2017}}</ref> While the school is in the Mill Valley School District, it is not within the city limits.
* The song “Sunday Sunny Mill Valley Groove Day” was written by Doug Sahm and recorded by the [[Sir Douglas Quintet]] in 1968.
* The instrumental "Girl from Mill Valley", composed by [[Nicky Hopkins]] and appearing on the [[Jeff Beck Group]] album ''[[Beck-Ola]]'' (1969).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/beck-ola-mw0000674402|title=Beck-Ola : Jeff Beck|work=AllMusic|accessdate=15 November 2024}}</ref>
*The cover art for ''[[Sports (Huey Lewis and the News album)|Sports]]'' (1983), the third album of [[Huey Lewis and the News]], features a photo of the band at the [[2 AM Club]], a bar located in Mill Valley, where the band had performed during its early days.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://rockandrollroadmap.com/places/album-cover-locations/san-francisco-area/the-2-a-m-club/|title=2 AM Club|website=Rockandrollroadmap.com|date=January 5, 2016}} {{verify source |date=September 2019 |reason=This ref was deleted Special:Diff/902497143 by a bug in VisualEditor and later restored by a bot from the original cite located at Special:Permalink/877591608 cite #11 - verify the cite is accurate and delete this template. [[User:GreenC bot/Job 18]]}}</ref>

===In television===
*The fictional character [[B.J. Hunnicutt]], from the TV show ''[[M*A*S*H (TV series)|M*A*S*H]]'', called Mill Valley home.
* The television show ''[[Quantum Leap (1989 TV series)|Quantum Leap]]''{{'}}s [[Quantum Leap (season 4)|Episode 406]] "Raped" is set in Mill Valley in 1980.
*In the ''[[Star Trek]]'' universe, it is home to the 602 Club.
*Fictional character Doris Martin from ''[[The Doris Day Show]]'' called Mill Valley home.
*In the syndicated version of the 1980 American sitcom ''[[Too Close for Comfort]]'', Henry Rush was owner and editor of the ''Marin Bugler'' newspaper in Mill Valley.
*On the Netflix-produced teen drama series ''[[13 Reasons Why]]'', shot around Marin and Sonoma counties, the protagonist visits the Fernwood Cemetery.
*The fictional characters Larry and Abby Finkelstein from the TV show ''[[Dharma and Greg]]'' lived at 1421 Bank Lane in Mill Valley.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QY3mDwAAQBAJ&dq=larry+and+abby+finkelstein+mill+valley&pg=PA6|isbn = 9781476640327|title = The Television Treasury: Onscreen Details from Sitcoms, Dramas and Other Scripted Series, 1947-2019|date = May 21, 2020|publisher = McFarland}}</ref>

==Notable residents==
* [[Vera Allison]] (1902–1993), jeweler, painter<ref name="Hughes">{{Cite book |last=Hughes |first=Edan Milton |url=http://archive.org/details/artistsincalifor0000hugh |title=Artists in California, 1786-1940 |date=1986 |publisher=Hughes Publishing Company |isbn=978-0-9616112-0-0 |location=San Francisco, CA |pages=18, 168 |via=[[Internet Archive]]}}</ref>
* [[Eve Arden]], actress 
* [[Milly Bennett]], journalist
* [[Mike Bloomfield|Michael Bloomfield]], blues guitarist
* [[Dana Carvey]], actor and comedian
* [[David Crosby]], singer-songwriter
* [[Tilden Daken]], landscape painter
* [[George Michael Gaethke]] (1898–1982), printmaker, painter<ref name="Hughes" />
* [[Anagarika Govinda]], author and teacher<ref name="Mumbai Mirror1">{{cite web|last1=Gehi|first1=Reema|title=Painting a portrait|url=http://mumbaimirror.indiatimes.com/others/sunday-read/Painting-a-portrait/articleshow/52058627.cms|website=Mumbai Mirror|accessdate=18 December 2016}}</ref>
* [[Sammy Hagar]], singer-songwriter and guitarist<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mueller |first=Christina |date=2022-11-10 |title=Sammy Hagar: The Red Rocker on His Cocktail Book With Guy Fieri, Cabo Wabo Cantina and More |url=https://marinmagazine.com/community/sammy-hagar-the-red-rocker-on-his-cocktail-book-with-guy-fieri-cabo-wabo-cantina-and-more/ |access-date=2025-01-11 |website=Marin Magazine |language=en-US}}</ref>
* [[David Harris (activist)]], journalist and activist
* [[Mariel Hemingway]], actress
* [[Margaux Hemingway]]
* [[Jon Hendricks]], jazz lyricist and singer 
* [[Lane Ryo Hirabayashi]], historian
* [[Salem Ilese]], singer-songwriter
* [[Snatam Kaur]], singer, songwriter and author
* [[Bridgit Mendler]], singer-songwriter
* [[Van Morrison]], singer-songwriter
* [[Kathleen Quinlan]], Emmy & Academy nominated actress
* [[Howard Rheingold]], critic, writer, and teacher
* [[Kenny Rosenberg]] (born 1995), baseball pitcher for the Los Angeles Angels 
* [[Grace Slick]], singer-songwriter
* [[Jim Sugar]], photographer
* [[Monty Tipton]], racing driver
* [[John L. Wasserman]], [[critic]] and columnist (''[[San Francisco Chronicle]]'')
* [[Bob Weir]], musician

==See also==
{{Portal|San Francisco Bay Area}}
* [[List of people from Marin County, California]]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Mill Valley, California|<br/>Mill Valley, California}}
{{Wikivoyage|Mill Valley}}
* {{Official website}}
* [https://www.mvhistory.org Mill Valley Historical Society]
* [http://www.millvalley.org/ Mill Valley Chamber of Commerce]

{{Marin County, California}}
{{SF Bay Area}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Mill Valley, California| ]]
[[Category:1900 establishments in California]]
[[Category:Cities in Marin County, California]]
[[Category:Cities in the San Francisco Bay Area]]
[[Category:Incorporated cities and towns in California]]
[[Category:Mount Tamalpais]]
[[Category:Populated coastal places in California]]
[[Category:Populated places established in 1900]]