- published: 02 Apr 2015
- views: 4996
Marin County ( /məˈrɪn/) is a county located in the North San Francisco Bay Area of the US state of California, across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco. As of 2010, the population was 252,409. The county seat is San Rafael and the largest employer is the county government. Marin County is well known for its natural beauty, liberal politics, and affluence. In May 2009, the county had the fifth highest income per capita in the United States at $91,483. The county is governed by local cities and the Marin County Board of Supervisors.
San Quentin Prison is located in the county, as is Skywalker Ranch. Autodesk, the publisher of AutoCAD, is also located there, as well as numerous other high-tech companies. The headquarters of film and media company Lucasfilm Ltd., previously based in San Rafael, have moved to the Presidio of San Francisco.
The Marin County Civic Center was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and draws thousands of visitors a year to guided tours of its arch and atrium design. In 1994, a new county jail facility was embedded into the hillside nearby.
Arthel Lane "Doc" Watson (March 3, 1923 – May 29, 2012) was an American guitarist, songwriter and singer of bluegrass, folk, country, blues and gospel music. Watson won seven Grammy awards as well as a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Watson's flatpicking skills and knowledge of traditional American music are highly regarded. He performed with his son Merle for over 15 years until Merle's death in 1985, in an accident on the family farm.
Watson was born in Deep Gap, North Carolina. According to Watson on his three-CD biographical recording Legacy, he got the nickname "Doc" during a live radio broadcast when the announcer remarked that his given name Arthel was odd and he needed an easy nickname. A fan in the crowd shouted "Call him Doc!" presumably in reference to the literary character Sherlock Holmes's sidekick Doctor Watson. The name stuck ever since.
An eye infection caused Doc Watson to lose his vision before his first birthday. Despite this, he was taught by his parents to work hard and care for himself. He attended North Carolina's school for the visually impaired, The Governor Morehead School, in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Daily Life in Marin County, California
I Want it All Now! Documentary on Marin County (1978)
Taste of California - Marin County
Gangs in Marin County
About Mill Valley, California (Marin County Town Profile Video)
PBS Travel Impact Series - Marin County MP4
Aerial view Sonoma Marin SMART Train entering Marin County at Black Point Bridge
About San Rafael, California (Marin County Town Profile Video)
1974/04/27-28 Marin County Bluegrass Festival (w/ Doc Watson, Norman Blake, Jerry Garcia and others)
About Sausalito, California (Marin County Town Profile Video)
January 3 5 1982 Marin County Flood
1970 Marin County Courthouse Shootout Massacre Site