ZIP Code 95613 in Coloma, CA

Regional Mail Hub Character

Coloma's post office maintains 207 PO Boxes for a community of just 59 occupied households. That's an adoption rate of 3.51, meaning more than three times as many boxes exist as local homes. This isn't a clerical error. It's a snapshot of a regional mail hub serving people from well beyond the immediate ZIP code boundary.

Geography and Demographics

The ZIP covers just 0.23 square miles in El Dorado County, California. Population totals 135 residents, with a median age of 41.8 years. Housing includes 65 total units, of which 59 are occupied year-round. Six units sit vacant. The tight geographic footprint means this isn't about vast rural distances requiring PO Box service. Instead, the high adoption rate signals that Coloma's post office draws customers from surrounding areas that lack their own carrier delivery infrastructure.

Mail Delivery Infrastructure

Mail arrives through a mix of delivery types: one city carrier route, one rural route, and general delivery. State Highway 49 is the primary thoroughfare with documented mail delivery points. The post office itself operates under facility code P, meaning this ZIP only contains PO Boxes. But the presence of carrier routes indicates that some delivery happens via alternative ZIPs, even if those addresses technically fall within 95613's boundaries. Two city route segments and one rural route serve actual street addresses, while 11 ZIP+4 codes designate PO Box ranges.

Economic and Historical Context

The demographics don't suggest any single institutional driver. There's no university campus, no prison population, and group quarters housing is minimal. The 2.29 population-to-household ratio aligns with standard family structures. What makes Coloma distinctive is its historical significance. The town sits at the site of California's 1848 gold discovery, and today functions more as a gateway to regional history than as a residential center. With just 26 businesses employing 85 people, the local economy leans toward tourism and heritage rather than large-scale commerce.

Why the High PO Box Adoption Rate

The PO Box count reflects a service area that extends beyond the ZIP's legal boundary. Nearby communities without their own post offices, or with less convenient access, adopt Coloma boxes for reliability. This is common in California's Gold Country, where settlement patterns from the 1800s created a patchwork of small towns and wide gaps between postal facilities. The post office doesn't just serve Coloma. It serves the broader region that still identifies with this historic location.

Street Name Patterns

State Highway 49 is the sole documented street for mail delivery, reflecting Coloma's identity as a small historic site along a major regional corridor through California's Gold Country. The absence of a traditional street grid indicates that most residents and businesses access mail through the post office rather than through residential carrier routes.

Nearby Areas