Clayton, California

Clayton is a small city in Contra Costa County, California, in the United States, at the foot of Mount Diablo. It was once known as Clayton's and Claytonville, and it takes its name from Joel Henry Clayton, who laid out and founded the town in 1857 with his two younger brothers; the name was settled, according to local tradition recounted in the source, by the flip of a coin. The town grew during the coal mining boom in eastern Contra Costa County, and its post office opened in 1861. Clayton incorporated as a city in 1964, partly to stave off an annexation attempt by neighboring Concord, and it more than doubled its land area in 1987 through annexations. The 2020 census counted 11,585 residents.