cypress

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cypress

[sahy-pruhs]

cypress, common name for members of the Cupressaceae, a widely distributed family of coniferous shrubs and trees, several yielding valuable timber. The major genera are Juniperus (juniper), Thuja (arborvitae), and Cupressus (the true cypresses). Species of the latter, found in S Europe, East Asia, and W North America, are resinous evergreens with a fragrant, durable wood and scalelike leaves. The Monterey cypress (C. macrocarpa) is native to a limited region around the Bay of Monterey, Calif., but is cultivated in many parts of the world. It is sometimes planted as a hedge. The cypress of classical literature is the European C. sempervirens or Italian cypress. It has since early times been symbolic of mourning and, more recently, of immortality. The gates of St. Peter's at Rome, which stood for 1,100 years, were made of its wood. The funereal, or mourning, cypress (C. funebris) of China, with "weeping" branches, is a popular ornamental elsewhere. American trees of the genus Chamaecyparis of the same family are also called cypresses. Important as timber trees are the Lawson cypress, or Port Orford cedar (C. lawsoniana), and the Nootka, Sitka, or Alaska yellow cypress (C. nootkatensis), both of NW North America. C. thyoides, called white cedar in E North America, is a smaller tree also used for lumber. The lumber called cypress in the S United States is chiefly from trees of the family Taxodiaceae (bald cypress family). The true cypress family is classified in the division Pinophyta, class Pinopsida, order Coniferales.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia Copyright © 2004.
Licensed from Columbia University Press

bald cypress

Either of two large swamp trees (Taxodium distichum and T. ascendens; family Taxodiaceae) of the southern U.S. that are related to the sequoias. The hard red wood of cypress is often used for roofing shingles. The so-called deciduous cypress family (see deciduous tree) comprises 10 genera with 15 species of ornamental and timber evergreen trees, native to eastern Asia, Tasmania, and North America. The leaves on a single tree may be scalelike, needlelike, or a mixture of both. Both male and female cones are borne on the same tree. The Tasmanian cedar (Athrotaxis), Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica), China fir (Cunninghamia lanceolata), umbrella pine (Sciadopitys verticillata), big tree, redwood, dawn redwood, and bald cypress are economically important timber trees in this family.

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.

cypress

Italian cypress (Cupressus sempervirens).

Any of about 20 species of ornamental and timber evergreen conifers constituting the genus Cupressus of the family Cupressaceae, which includes more than 130 species found throughout the world. The leaves are usually paired or in threes and are small and scalelike. A few of the many economically important genera in the cypress family are Cupressus, Thuja (arborvitae), Calocedrus (incense cedar), and Juniperus (juniper). Arborvitae, cypress, and juniper are especially important as timber sources or ornamentals. They also contain useful oils, resins, and tannins.

Learn more about cypress with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.

Cypress, California

Cypress is a city located in southern California near the northern border of Orange County. Though it is a suburb of Los Angeles, it has many resident industries.

History

The first people living in the area now known as Cypress were the Gabrieleno, a Native American tribe of the Tongva people. They were displaced soon after the arrival of the Europeans. The government of Spain then possessed the land until Mexico gained its independence in 1821. Mexico then lost Alta California to the United States during the period following the Bear Flag Rebellion and then the Mexican-American War.

The original Spanish dons held immense tracts of land throughout California, which were given in lieu of pay to Spanish soldiers. Manuel Nieto was one of the early Spanish dons or landowners in the area. After his death in 1804, his sons retained title to his holdings, but these lands were eventually broken up and distributed among them in 1833 by a grant from the Mexican governor José Figueroa. Manuel's son, Juan José Nieto, retained the title to a large portion of his father's original properties in southern California that included the present-day area of Cypress. That land and other Rancho properties were finally sold to the American Abel Stearns, then acquired by the Robinson Trust, a group of investors, which eventually parlayed their holdings into a vast land speculation business.

Cypress was originally nicknamed "Waterville" due to the preponderance of artesian wells in the area, but was incorporated under the name Dairy City in 1956 by local dairy farmers as a way to stave off developers and to preserve their dairies, much like the then-neighboring cities of Dairy Valley in Cerritos and Dairyland in La Palma. However, after World War II the land became too valuable for farming or ranching, and one-by-one, the dairies sold out to housing developers during the 1960s. By the 1970s, no dairies remained. (Many of the dairymen moved their operations to Chino, California, where development is once again pushing them out of the area.

In 1957, local residents voted to change the name of Dairy City to "Cypress". The name was taken from Cypress Elementary School, originally built in 1895, which took its name from the Cypress trees planted to protect the schoolhouse from the seasonal Santa Ana winds. Cypress Elementary School also provided the name for new Pacific Electric Railroad station on Walker Street at Lincoln Avenue when the Santa Ana Line was completed in 1906, as "Waterville" had already been used elsewhere in the system.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 17.1 square kilometers (6.6 square miles). 17.1 square kilometers (6.6 square miles) of it is land and 0.15% is water. Its Geographical coordinates are .

Cypress is approximately north of Bolsa Chica. The closest beach to Cypress is Seal Beach, which is roughly away from the center of Cypress. Cypress is less than a 20 minute drive from Long Beach Airport.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 46,229 people, 15,654 households, and 12,241 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,700.3/km² (6,991.1/mi²). There were 16,028 housing units at an average density of 936.2/km² (2,423.9/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 65.61% White, 20.81% Asian, 0.40% Pacific Islander, 2.77% Black or African American, 0.59% Native American, 5.44% from other races, and 4.38% from two or more races. 15.65% of the population were Hispanic or Latino.

There were 15,654 households out of which 38.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.0% were married couples living together, 13.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.8% were non-families. 17.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.93 and the average family size was 3.31.

In the city the population was spread out with 27.0% under the age of 18, 7.9% from 18 to 24, 30.2% from 25 to 44, 24.4% from 45 to 64, and 10.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 94.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.5 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $64,377, and the median income for a family was $70,060. Males had a median income of $50,781 versus $36,337 for females. The per capita income for the city was $25,798. About 4.6% of families and 6.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.2% of those under age 18 and 5.1% of those age 65 or over.

The 2008 population estimated by the California Department of Finance was 49,541.

Government

In the state legislature Cypress is located in the 35th Senate District, represented by Republican Tom Harman, and in the 67th Assembly District, represented by Republican Jim Silva. Federally, Cypress is located in California's 40th congressional district, which has a Cook PVI of R +8 and is represented by Republican Ed Royce.