Insider's Guide - Locals share their favorite places & activities in Humboldt County

Trinidad

The smallest incorporated city in Humboldt County, Trinidad is a seaport town with sweeping ocean views. While it has less than 400 residents, Trinidad’s long history stretches back more than 350 years.

The Tsurai Indians had built up to a dozen homes and facilities for ceremonial brush dances and burial grounds. Many of their descendants are still living in Trinidad. In 1775, Spanish captains Heceta and Bodega found Trinidad’s natural harbor on Trinity Sunday. They dropped anchor, planted a cross and dubbed the town Trinidad.

In 1849, Trinidad became a boomtown and supplied gold seekers headed for mines on the Klamath, Salmon and Trinity rivers.

Goods and gear were sent to the port of Trinidad, and North Coast lumber used to build the city of San Francisco was loaded up for the return trip. The Tsurai Village, a historical site that includes a traditional burial ground, sits on the bluff above the harbor, below the Memorial Lighthouse. The Tsurai Ancestral Society maintains an ongoing effort to preserve the integrity of the site. It is not available to the public.

Trinidad Head is a huge rock outcropping that shelters the harbor on its east side and is home to a small U.S. Coast Guard Station and the Humboldt State University marine biology laboratory, which has displays open to the public.

A surfer’s haven and kayaking haven, Trinidad offers coastal visitors everything from fine dining to hiking along Trinidad Head and beachcombing. Several small tourist shops can also be found along Trinity Street.




Trinidad

STATISTICS
Population: 320
Settled: Named 1775, incorporated 1870

CITY GOVERNMENT
Mayor: Stan Binnie
Mayor Pro-tem: Kathy Bhardwaj
City Council: Stan Binnie, Julie Fulkerson, Kathy Bhardwaj, Don Ratzlaff, Mike Morgan
The council meets at 7 p.m. on the second and fourth Wednesday of the month at City Hall.

CITY CONTACTS
City Hall
409 Trinity St.
Trinidad, CA 95570
677-0223
www.trinidad.ca.gov

Chamber of Commerce
P.O. Box 356
Trinidad CA 95570
677-1610
www.trinidadcalif.com

Library
300 Trinity St., Room 10
677-0227

Police
463 Trinity St.
677-0133