Clayton

Nestled in the majestic foothills of Mount Diablo, scenic Clayton is rich in history. Founded in 1857, Clayton has retained its historic town center with its award winning City Hall housed in the renovated DeMartini Winery. Yet, Clayton has built a new Community Library and Middle School. The City incorporated in 1964 and is approximately 4.2 square miles in size. Clayton is famed for its friendly ambiance and sweeping mountain views.

Clayton had the honor of receiving Walking Magazine's 1998 award as one of the five most walkable small cities in America. Clayton has approximately 400 acres of open space and affords a variety of recreational activities in the area including horseback riding, water skiing, swimming, tennis, and championship golf.

  In addition, Clayton is adjacent to Mt. Diablo State Park. There are 17 miles of walking and hiking trails within the Clayton Trail System. The Trail System connects to East Bay Regional Park District's Black Diamond, Bruce Lee and Back Canyon Trails. 

The only drawback to Clayton is the long commute for some residents. Commuters have to brave Ygnacio Valley or Clayton roads, sometimes 20-25 minutes, to reach freeways or the BART stations in Pleasant Hill and Concord.

This is a white-collar town that attracts professionals who like and can afford the country life. This is also a family town. About 30 percent of its residents are under 18. And there are lots of activities for kids. Clayton has a total of 3,924 households with 83% being family households and 95% are owner-occupied.

Clayton school children are served by the Mount Diablo Unified School District . Achievement test scores rank in the top percentiles among California schools.

Area: 4.2 square miles
Distance to San Francisco: 35 miles