Inyo County, California

Inyo County is a county in California, United States, on the east side of the Sierra Nevada
between Yosemite National Park and the Nevada state line. It had a population of 19,016 at the
2020 census, an estimated 18,739 by 2024, and covers 10,181 square miles (26,370 km2) of land
centred near 36°35′N 117°25′W.

Independence is the county seat, though it is unincorporated; Bishop, 41 miles to the north, is
the county’s only incorporated city and its largest community. Its postal code is 93526. Inyo
holds 1 incorporated city and about 20 census-recognized communities with no city government of
their own, and it runs on Pacific Time. Its FIPS code is 06027.

Towns & Villages in Inyo County

Inyo County has 21 named places tracked by the Census Bureau: 1 incorporated city and 20
census-designated places (CDPs), including Independence, the unincorporated county seat. CDP
stands for census designated place, an unincorporated community the Census Bureau delineates for
statistical purposes; it has no local government of its own.

Two of these communities have almost no residents left. Valley Wells, a Historical Landmark
site where 1849 emigrants dug for water, counted zero people at the 2020 census. Death Valley
Junction, home to the Amargosa Opera House, has fewer than four year-round residents and no gas
station. Beyond this list, Inyo County has dozens of named localities the Census Bureau does not
track as populated places — mining camps such as Cerro Gordo and Ballarat, ranger stations
like Panamint Springs, and trailheads such as Whitney Portal — which have no Census
population or ZIP code of their own.

ZIP Codes

• 93514 — Bishop (also covers Dixon Lane-Meadow Creek, West Bishop, Wilkerson and Mesa)
• 93526 — Independence
• 93545 — Lone Pine
• 93513 — Big Pine
• 93549 — Olancha and Cartago
• 93530 — Keeler
• 93522 — Darwin
• 92328 — Furnace Creek and Death Valley Junction
• 92389 — Tecopa and Charleston View
• 92384 — Shoshone
• 93527 — Pearsonville

Homewood Canyon and Valley Wells have no ZIP code of their own; mail there is handled under a
neighbouring town’s code.

Geography

Inyo County is California’s second-largest county by area, after San Bernardino, and its
terrain runs from the floor of Death Valley to the summit of Mount Whitney — the biggest
elevation range of any county in the United States. Nearly half the county lies inside Death
Valley National Park. Between the Sierra Nevada and the Inyo and White Mountains runs the Owens
Valley, a trough roughly 4,000 feet above sea level and, measured against the surrounding peaks,
the deepest valley in the country. Owens Lake, on the valley floor south of Lone Pine, has been a
dry alkali flat since the Los Angeles Aqueduct diverted the Owens River in 1913; dust-control work
on the lakebed continues today.

Mono County borders Inyo to the north, Tulare County to the west across the Sierra crest, Kern
County to the southwest, San Bernardino County to the south, and the Nevada state line runs along
the entire eastern edge. Mono County, Tulare County, Kern County and San Bernardino County all border
Inyo directly.

Demographics

Inyo County had a population of 19,016 at the 2020 census, and the latest estimate puts the
county near 18,739 residents, a slight decline. Bishop and the adjoining Dixon Lane-Meadow Creek
and West Bishop CDPs together hold well over a third of the county’s population, concentrated in
the northern Owens Valley. Median household income runs about $73,991, close to California’s
statewide figure of $95,521. Population density works out to roughly 1.9 people per square mile
of land — the second-lowest density of any California county, after neighbouring Alpine
County.

Economy & Local Life

Public administration is the county’s largest employment sector, with about 1,375 workers,
followed by health care and social assistance at roughly 1,337 and educational services at about
842 — a reflection of how much of the county is government-owned or government-managed land,
from Death Valley National Park to Inyo National Forest. Tourism drives much of the rest of the
local economy: Lone Pine serves as the gateway to Mount Whitney, the Alabama Hills and Sequoia
National Park, while Furnace Creek is the administrative and lodging center for Death Valley
National Park. Bishop’s biggest annual event is Bishop Mule Days, a rodeo and mule-packing
festival held over Memorial Day weekend each year since 1969, celebrating the pack mules that once
worked the Sierra’s mining trails.

History

California’s legislature organised Inyo County on 22 March 1866, carving it from Mono, Tulare
and San Bernardino counties. The name comes from a Timbisha Shoshone word roughly meaning
“dangerous place.” Silver, lead and zinc mining built early towns such as Cerro Gordo, Darwin and
Keeler, whose ore once moved out by narrow-gauge rail to Owens Lake.

In 1913 the Los Angeles Aqueduct began diverting the Owens River south to Los Angeles, a project
that dried up Owens Lake and set off decades of conflict between the valley’s ranchers and the Los
Angeles Department of Water and Power, remembered locally as the California Water Wars. During
World War II the federal government built the Manzanar War Relocation Center between Independence
and Lone Pine, where more than 11,000 Japanese Americans were incarcerated from 1942 to 1945. The
site became Manzanar National Historic Site in 1992.

Getting There

U.S. Route 395 runs the length of the county north to south along the Owens Valley; U.S. Route 6
branches north from Bishop, and State Routes 127, 136, 168, 178 and 190 connect the smaller towns
and Death Valley. No interstate highway crosses Inyo County.

• Reno, Nevada — about 265 miles north via US-395
• Los Angeles — about 230 miles south via US-395
• Las Vegas, Nevada — about 165 miles southeast via SR-190 and US-95
• Fresno — about 200 miles west, over the Sierra via SR-168 or a longer southern route

Bishop Airport, on the north edge of town, is the county’s main commercial airfield, with
seasonal passenger service; the Eastern Sierra Transit Authority runs intercity bus service the
length of the valley. There is no Amtrak service in Inyo County; the nearest station is in
Bakersfield.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Inyo County located?
It sits on the east side of the Sierra Nevada in eastern California, bordered by Mono, Tulare,
Kern and San Bernardino counties, with Nevada along its entire eastern edge.

What is the population of Inyo County?
19,016 at the 2020 census, with a 2024 estimate near 18,739.

How big is Inyo County?
10,181 square miles (26,370 km2) of land, California’s second-largest county by area.

What is the county seat of Inyo County?
Independence is the county seat, though it is an unincorporated community rather than a city;
Bishop is the county’s only incorporated city and its largest town.

How many towns and communities are in Inyo County?
One incorporated city, Bishop, plus 20 census-designated places including Independence, Lone
Pine, Big Pine and the small Death Valley communities of Furnace Creek, Tecopa and Shoshone.

What ZIP codes does Inyo County use?
93514 for Bishop and its neighbouring CDPs, 93526 for Independence, 93545 for Lone Pine, 93513
for Big Pine, and separate codes for the smaller southern and Death Valley communities.

What is Inyo County known for?
Death Valley National Park, which covers nearly half the county, Mount Whitney, the tallest peak
in the contiguous United States, and the Manzanar National Historic Site.

More counties in this state: Towns and villages in California.