The city's population was , at the census. Antioch is one of the oldest towns in the region. The town has been variously named East Antioch , Smith's Landing , [ 15 ] and Marsh's Landing , [ 16 ] prior to its current name. It became known as Marsh's Landing, and was the shipping point for the 17,acre 69 km 2 rancho.
It included a pier extending well out into the river, enabling vessels drawing 15 feet 4. In , twin brothers Rev. William Wiggins Smith and Rev. Around , coal was discovered in several places in the hills south of Antioch, and coal mining formed the first substantial business apart from farming and dairying for the inhabitants of this community. This new industry resulted in the founding of the towns of Nortonville, Somersville, Stewartville, and Black Diamond now Pittsburg , and added greatly to the economic activity of the Antioch area.
Rouse and George Hawxhurst in , which built a railroad that passed from Antioch toward the mines over what is now "F Street" formerly Kimball Street. However, later on, both the mine and the railroad passed into the hands of the Belshaw brothers. The mines have long since ceased operation, and the railroad tracks have been dug up, though the building that served as the Antioch terminus of the railroad still stands on the corner of F Street and Fourth Street, and the grading and trestles still remain much as they were in those early days.
In , a great excitement arose over the discovery of copper ore near Antioch. The copper bubble eventually burst, to the dismay of the citizens, and petroleum was first drilled for near Antioch in , but not enough oil was found to make a decent profit. The Antioch Post Office was opened in , closed in , reopened in , closed again in , and has operated continuously since reopening in The city's historic Chinese community, which was forcibly segregated, [ 22 ] was estimated to number in the hundreds in the late s.
The census showed that only 12 residents were Chinese. Antioch is mainly a bedroom community, with most adults working in larger cities toward Oakland and San Francisco. The town has grown in the last 30 years, as the population of the Bay Area continues to grow, and real estate prices force families to move towards the outskirts of the Bay Area.
