Fairfax

CITY DESCRIPTION

The Town of Fairfax is situated in the heart of central Marin County and is considered the most progressive of Marin’s 11 incorporated cities.
Fairfax was incorporated in 1931 and has a current population of approximately 7500. The population is quite diverse including a large “green” political base, the largest in the San Francisco Bay Area. Fairfax is a mountain biking and hiking Mecca because it is surrounded by committed open space and a nature preserve. The Town’s sylvan setting in the forested hills and its Mediterranean climate encourage outdoor activities year-round. Within a 30-minute drive of San Francisco to the South or the Pt. Reyes National Seashore to the West, the community is home to many local artists and musicians.

CITY HISTORY

The area now called Fairfax was originally part of the Mexican Land Grant, Canada de Herrera, consisting of 6,658 acres, conferred to Domingo Sais on August 10, 1839, in return for his military service under the government of Mexico.

One of the first Europeans to settle in the area was a Virginian, Dr. Alfred W. Taliaferro, Marin’s first and most beloved physician, who was given the park-like glen, the Marin Town and Country Club property, by Domingo Sais. A fellow Virginian, Charles S. Fairfax, also fell in love with the property when he paid the good doctor a visit. Taliaferro transferred the property to Fairfax and in 1855 Fairfax and his wife, Ada, made it their home.