Hopeton, California

Hopeton
Unincorporated community
Hopeton Location in California Show map of California Hopeton Hopeton (the United States) Show map of the United States
Coordinates: 37°29′30″N 120°31′52″W
Country	United States
State	California
County	Merced County
Elevation [1]	184 ft (56 m)

Hopeton (formerly Forlorn Hope and, later, Hopetown) is an unincorporated community in Merced County, California.^[1] It is located 10.5 miles (17 km) north-northeast of Atwater,^[2] at an elevation of 184 feet (56 m).^[1]

Hopeton is located in the Merced River bottom west of Snelling. A church was present at the townsite as early as 1852, and by 1881 the town had a population of over 1000. The Hopeton School District survived until 1973.^[3]

The first name of the place was Forlorn Hope, after a battle term.^[2] The Forlorn post office operated from 1854 to 1859, and from 1860 to 1861.^[2] The Hopeton post office operated from 1866 to 1894 and from 1911 to 1914.^[2]

References

1. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Hopeton, California
2. Durham, David L. (1998). California's Geographic Names: A Gazetteer of Historic and Modern Names of the State. Clovis, Calif.: Word Dancer Press. p. 783. ISBN 1-884995-14-4.
3. Lewis, Leona (June 26, 1982). "Students of yesteryear remember Forlorn Hope". Merced Sun-Star. Merced, CA. Retrieved December 3, 2023.