Tracy Map
Tracy is the second most populated city in San Joaquin County, California, United States and an exurb of the San Francisco Bay Area. The population was 82,922 at the 2010 census.
The origins of Tracy are related to the mid-19th century construction of Central Pacific Railroad lines running from Sacramento through Stockton and to the San Francisco Bay Area. A number of small communities sprang up along these lines, including the one named for railroad director Lathrop J. Tracy. Incorporated in 1910, Tracy grew rapidly and prospered as an agricultural area even when railroad operations began to decline in the 1950s. Beginning in the 1980s, Tracy experienced a growth spurt as people migrated to the city looking for a more affordable alternative to Bay Area home prices and also for a less hectic lifestyle. A steady period of growth ensued, as many companies found Tracy an ideal location for their distribution facilities. The city today is home to several of these distribution facilities and is setting its sights on newer industries, including expansion of hi-tech companies from their existing Silicon Valley bases.
Located in the Central Valley, Tracy sits near some fertile agricultural lands and some not so fertile agricultural lands (because of the hilly region west of Tracy), some of which (in the east and mostly north of Tracy because of the moist Delta river system) has come under increasing development pressure as the San Francisco Bay Area's vigorous population growth has spilled over into the Tracy area as well as other locations such as new town of Mountain House (because of TRAQC's Measure A in 1990) near the Bay Area's edge.
Nearby cities include Manteca, French Camp, Byron, Discovery Bay, Ripon.