Sanger is a city of about 26,600 people in Fresno County, at the base of the Sierra Nevada in California's San Joaquin Valley, roughly 15 miles east of Fresno. The community traces its roots to the late nineteenth century, when it grew up around a railroad stop serving the surrounding orchards, and it incorporated in 1911. In 1949 the U.S. Postal Service designated Sanger the "Nation's Christmas Tree City," a title tied to its proximity to the General Grant Tree in Kings Canyon National Park, which had been named the Nation's Christmas Tree two decades earlier. Agriculture remains the backbone of the city's identity. Citrus groves were planted in the area as early as the 1860s, and today orchards of stone fruit, nuts, and citrus ring the city, supporting packing, shipping, and farm-related businesses. The Fresno County Blossom Trail, a self-guided driving and cycling route through the valley's blooming orchards, runs through Sanger each spring, drawing visitors for the Blossom Days festival, runs, and car shows, along with several local wineries. The city's historic downtown serves as its gathering place, with local restaurants and small shops, and the Sanger Depot Museum, housed in the city's oldest building, tells the story of the railroad, the Sierra logging flume, and the region's Native American heritage. To the north, the Kings River offers boating access and a chain of riverfront parks known as the "Ribbon of Gems." Sanger's population is predominantly Hispanic and relatively young, and the city functions as both a farm town and a growing residential community for the Fresno metropolitan area, with State Route 180 linking it directly to downtown Fresno and the Sierra foothills. Public education is anchored by Sanger Unified School District. The city pairs an agricultural, small-town pace with ready access to Fresno's larger job market and the recreational lands of the Sierra and Kings Canyon beyond.