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Petaluma is a city located in Sonoma County, California. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 54,548.

Petaluma Adobe State Historic Park contains the Petaluma Adobe, a National Historic Landmark. It was built beginning in 1836 by General Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo, then Commandant of the San Francisco Presidio. It was the center of a vast 66,000 acre (270 km²) ranch stretching from Petaluma Creek to Sonoma Creek. The adobe is considered one of the best preserved buildings of its era in Northern California.

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According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 36.0 km² (13.9 mi²). 35.7 km² (13.8 mi²) of it is land and 0.3 km² (0.1 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 0.72% water.

table of 2000, there are 54,548 people, 19,932 households, and 14,012 families residing in the city. The population density is 1,526.2mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 84.16% White, 1.16% African American, 0.54% Native American, 3.91% Asian, 0.17% Pacific Islander, 6.08% from other races, and 3.98% from two or more races. 14.64% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 19,932 households out of which 36.6% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.3% are married couples living together, 10.6% have a female householder with no husband present, and 29.7% are non-families. 22.6% of all households are made up of individuals and 9.1% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.70 and the average family size is 3.16.

In the city the population is spread out with 26.2% under the age of 18, 7.2% from 18 to 24, 31.5% from 25 to 44, 24.1% from 45 to 64, and 11.0% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 37 years. For every 100 females there are 95.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 91.9 males.

The median income for a household in the city is $61,679, and the median income for a family is $71,158. Males have a median income of $50,232 versus $36,413 for females. The per capita income for the city is $27,087. 6.0% of the population and 3.3% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 6.2% of those under the age of 18 and 7.1% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.

Petaluma has served as a location for several major films, including (courtesy of oldmovies.com):

(1973) Sonoma shooting was at Old Adobe Road, Petaluma Blvd., (also San Rafael and Tamalpais High School in Marin).On October 1, 1993, Polly Klaas was kidnapped from her Petaluma home and later murdered. Her disappearance gained national attention.Location of the last performace of the band Sublime performance before the death of lead singer Brad Nowell.

The mayor of Petaluma is David Glass who is a former San Francisco Giants broadcaster. The vice mayor is businessman Mike Harris. The other five councilmembers are Karen Nau, Keith Canevero, Mike Healy, Mike O'Brien, and Pamela Torliatt. Councilman Canevero served in Iraq, thus former mayor Clark Thompson served part of his term while Canevero was overseas.