| California (Kern County), Arvin — 371 — Francisco Garces O.F.M |
| | Padre Garcés, first recorded non-Indian to visit this locality, came in April of 1776, seeking a new route from Mexico to California. His epic journey covered more than two thousand miles of uncharted wilderness, opening trails that later became highways and railroads. — Map (db m11932) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Adobe House |
| |
Adobe was a common material used to construct buildings from the Spanish mission period of California history through the 1930s.
Adobe is a sun-dried brick made from soil or clay. This structure was built to resemble an adobe dwelling in Kern County during the mid 1800s.
The adobe bricks used to construct this building were salvaged from a 1930s Bakersfield residence. The adobe house, located near Fairfax Road and Brundage Lane, belonged to William and Flora Deuel Combs. . . . — Map (db m25062) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Assay Office |
| | Kern County experienced a mining boom just like other parts of California. Prospectors arriving from near and far found gold, silver and other valuable ore in Kern County’s mountains beginning in the 1850s.
An assayer tests the purity of gold and other precious metals in a sample of rock and minerals.
This exhibit resembles the assay office at the Yellow Aster Mine in Randsburg, a mining town in eastern Kern County, around 1900. The Yellow Aster Mine is one of the most famous . . . — Map (db m26080) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Bandstand |
| | Public parks sprang up as a response to the increasingly polluted urban environments created by the industrial revolution in the 1800s.
Urbanization and industrialization began to change American life by the 1840s. Large, open, green areas were planned to offer city dwellers a place to reconnect with nature.
With the inclusion of bandstands, amphitheatres, and playgrounds, parks became a community gathering place for concerts, recreation, and other activities.
Truxtun . . . — Map (db m25447) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Barnes Log Cabin |
| | After being injured while fighting for the Confederacy during the Civil War, Thomas Barnes came to Kern County looking for opportunity.
In 1868, a tremendous flood washed trees from the Sierra Nevada Mountains down the Kern River depositing them on the valley floor. Thomas Barnes built this cabin from logs he retrieved after the flood. Thomas and his wife Jane with seven of their children lived in this house.
Thomas and Jane settled on 160 acres southwest of Bakersfield near . . . — Map (db m25076) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Beale Memorial Clock Tower |
| | The Beale Memorial Clock Tower was a gift to the City of Bakersfield from Truxtun Beale in memory of his mother, Mary Edwards Beale.
Dedicated on April 2, 1904, the clock tower originally stood in the center of the intersection at Chester Avenue and 17th Street in downtown Bakersfield.
In the summer of 1952, a series of earthquakes shook Kern County causing extensive damage to the clock tower. The clock tower was demolished in the quake’s aftermath. Only the original clock works, . . . — Map (db m25001) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Bena Depot |
| | Situated at the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley, Kern County was part of a natural corridor for a railroad running between San Francisco and Los Angeles.
The Southern Pacific Railroad began laying track southward from San Francisco through the San Joaquin Valley in the 1870s. The Tehachapi Mountains were the last obstacle to finishing the railroad. The steep climb from the valley floor up the mountains was overcome with an engineering marvel known as the Tehachapi Loop, . . . — Map (db m25117) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Blacksmith Shop |
| |
Many large farms and ranches throughout Kern County operated a blacksmith shop to make and repair tools.
This blacksmith shop was built at the Calloway Ranch around 1890. The Calloway Ranch was located near the Kern County Land Company’s Rosedale Colony northwest of Bakersfield.
Many trades were practiced in a ranch’s blacksmith shop. Blacksmiths shaped metal using various tools including a forge, hammer, anvil, tongs and a vise. Farriers affixed metal shoes to the bottom of . . . — Map (db m26972) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Cable Tool Drilling Rig |
| | Kern County is one of the top oil producing areas in the United States. Four oil fields in Kern County have each produced over one billion barrels of oil.
In 1899, the discovery of oil on land near the Kern River started an oil boom. The oil boom resulted in the construction of hundreds of wooden derricks north of Bakersfield over the next few years.
A cable tool drilling rig uses a cable or rope to raise and lower a large metal drill bit. The drill bit pounds on the ground . . . — Map (db m25692) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — 382 — Colonel Thomas Baker |
| | California Historical Landmark
Colonel Thomas Baker
Civil Engineer – Lawyer
Farmer – Soldier
1810 – 1872
In 1863 Colonel Baker came to this location. A friend to all travelers. His settlement became known at “Baker’s Field.” This civic center is his dream come true. His motto —
“Time will justify a man
who means to do right”
Dedicated
October 18, 1942
Kern County Historical Society, Bakersfield City Council, El Tejon . . . — Map (db m24900) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Cook Wagon |
| | During the 1880s, this wagon was used by a cook as a portable kitchen to prepare meals for field hands employed by the Kern County Land Company.
The wagon is equipped with a pantry for storing vegetables and bread, a sink, a work space with bins for flour and sugar and a room to hang meat.
The Kern County Land Company, founded by Lloyd Tevis and James Ben Ali Haggin, once owned vast expanses of land in Kern County.
The Kern County Land Company donated this cook wagon, . . . — Map (db m26973) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Court House and Jail |
| |
From the 1850s to the 1890s, the lure of gold brought people to the mountains and deserts of Kern County. Mining towns such as Claraville, Havilah and Randsburg sprang up almost overnight.
Although most of the residents of these towns were law abiding citizens, some unsavory characters came to the bustling towns of Kern’s mining districts.
In 1866, Havilah became Kern County’s first center of government due to the city’s growing population.
This building, representing . . . — Map (db m25994) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Dentist's Office |
| | Tooth decay was a common and greatly feared ailment in earlier days.
People either had to make do with a painful tooth or find someone to pull it. If a trained dentist could not be found or afforded, a blacksmith or another person who was adept at tongs was often called upon to extract the tooth.
Al Kruger donated this residence in 1957. It was originally located on farmland about four miles west of downtown Bakersfield.
One room homes, such as this one, were a common . . . — Map (db m25929) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — 290 — Discovery Well — Kern River Field — California Historical Landmark |
| | Oil was discovered at 70 feet in 1899, when Tom Means persuaded Roe Elwood and Frank Wiseman, aided by Jonathan, Bert, Jed, and Ken Elwood, George Wiseman, and John Marlowe, to dig here for oil. On June 1, 1899, 400 feet to the north, Horace and Milton McWhorter drilled this region's first commercial well.
Dedicated
April 7, 1940
Bakersfield Parlor No.43 N.S.G.W.
El Tejon Parlor No.239 N.D.G.W.
Kern County Historical Society
Kern County Chamber of Commerce — Map (db m25294) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Doctor's Office |
| | Until modern medicine, contagious diseases afflicted both young and old and many died at a young age.
In 1875, there were fifteen physicians in Kern County, which had a widely scattered population of approximately 2,700 people. These fifteen doctors and the many that followed could be summoned day or night, during floods and storms, to the bedside of those in need.
There were many times when all a doctor could do for the suffering patient was to relieve pain, bind up wounds, . . . — Map (db m25921) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Drug Store |
| | Treatment for illness and the maintenance of good health were important for the success of a new community.
Early pharmacists compounded prescription medicine with mortars and pestles, made their own pills, and sold popular patent medicines, which promised to cure a variety of ills.
Francis M. Carlock operated his dray and transfer business out of this building, which originally stood on 18th Street in downtown Bakersfield. A dray is a two- or four-wheeled wagon used for . . . — Map (db m25308) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Fairhaven Pump House |
| | Access to adequate water supplies was crucial to the settlement of Kern County.
Water from the Kern River was diverted to irrigate farmlands, but most towns relied on wells for drinking water.
The Fairhaven Water Company built this structure in 1921 to house a well and pump located in the middle of the intersection of Fairhaven Drive and East Drive northwest of Bakersfield.
The Fairhaven Water Company provided water to residential and commercial customers until 1981 when . . . — Map (db m25493) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Fraternal Hall |
| |
To entertain men seeking their fortunes in mining boom towns, social clubs and fraternal organizations held meetings and offered other diversions in Kern County’s mining communities.
The exhibits on display in this building contain artifacts from various fraternal organizations in Kern County. The upstairs portion of this building is refurbished as a Masonic Lodge Hall with the cooperation of local organizations. The cubicles on the lower floor house exhibit regalia from Elks, . . . — Map (db m26006) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Gazebo |
| |
A gazebo is a common garden structure often found in warm climates to provide shade.
Dairy owner Christian Mattly built this gazebo next to a dormitory for students enrolled in courses at the Kern County High School farm around 1905.
Students were instructed in growing alfalfa, corn, cotton, fruit, vegetables and flowers to build their knowledge of agricultural practices. Instructors also taught students how to care for chickens, cows, horses, and turkeys.The high school farm . . . — Map (db m25369) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — 137 — Gordons Ferry — California Historic Landmark |
| | Gordon’s Ferry was an overhead cable type of ferry operated during the 1850’s by Major Gordon. An adobe station house was located on the south bank of Kern River, just a few yards to the west of this marker. It was also a station on the Butterfield Overland mail stage route from 1858 to 1860. — Map (db m25149) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Havilah Courier |
| |
Newspapers brought news of wars, politics, local happenings and other important information to the residents of Kern County.
This exhibit displays artifacts reminiscent of Kern County’s first newspaper office, the Weekly Courier. George Tiffany first published the Weekly Courier beginning on August 18, 1866 in the county seat of Havilah.
The remnants of the mining boom town, Havilah, is located in the Sierra Nevada Mountains between the Kern River Valley and Walker Basin . . . — Map (db m26087) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Hospital |
| | Only the most impoverished people sought treatment at a hospital.
The first county hospital in Bakersfield opened its doors to the public in January 1875. The hospital was constructed at 13th and G Streets for $1,400.00. It was a plain one-story frame building with the “most primitive facilities for the treatment of patients.”
During the late 1800s, the right to feed, nurse, and even bury patients was awarded to the lowest bidder. As a result, care was often . . . — Map (db m27061) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Hotel Fellows |
| |
The discovery of oil on the west side of Kern County in the late 1800s brought an influx of people to the area and created oil boom towns such as Fellows, Reward, and Taft.
In 1910, L. R. Buchanan built the Hotel Fellows for Martha Derminghem Buress in the once thriving town of Fellows. Martha, an immigrant from France, provided room and board for oil field workers and their families. Martha married Joe Randall in 1913. An industrious businesswoman, she was affectionately known as . . . — Map (db m25992) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Howell House |
| | In 1891, William Howell hired local carpenter John Singleton to construct this Queen Anne style Victorian home on the northeast corner of 17th and H Streets in Bakersfield.
William Howell moved with his parents and sisters from Nebraska to Kern County in 1877. William became a court reporter for the Kern County Superior Court after his father died of pneumonia. William later became the County Auditor and a successful businessman.
William married Elizabeth Dugan, the daughter . . . — Map (db m25034) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — 14 — Jewett Family – Kern County Pioneers |
| | This area was originally a portion of the Jewett Brothers’ Ranches. In 1859 Solomon and Philo Jewett walked 2000 miles to present day Kern County. They built the first store in Bakersfield in 1865 and the same year raised the first commercial cotton in Kern. In 1874 they organized the Kern Valley Bank in Bakersfield, first in the county. They were also leaders in raising Blooded Merino Sheep, in producing the first oil well in Kern and in construction of Sunset Railroad to Westside oil fields. . . . — Map (db m24989) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Joss House |
| | The Chinese community was an early and significant element of the population of Kern County.
Chinese immigrants contributed to the social, economic and industrial growth of Kern County by mining, farming, building railroads, and owning businesses. The first Chinese immigrants to Kern County came to work in the mines around Keyesville.
A small building was constructed in the 1870s in Bakersfield to serve the religious needs of the Chinese residents of the area. Such a Chinese . . . — Map (db m25318) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Kern City French Bakery |
| | East Bakersfield, originally named Sumner, was founded by the Southern Pacific Railroad in 1874. The name of the town was changed to Kern in 1893 and shortly thereafter was called Kern City.
This building, constructed in 1910, was originally the Kern City French Bakery. The bakery was located at 717 East 21st Street in Kern.
Around 1920, the Kern City French Bakery produced over 1,000 loaves of bread and rolls daily. Most of the bread was delivered to homes and hotels with a . . . — Map (db m25063) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Kern County Chamber of Commerce |
| | The Kern County Chamber of Commerce building was completed in 1928, Chester Avenue was part of State Highway 99, the main north-south route through California.
Architect Charles H. Biggar designed this Spanish-style building on land adjacent to the Kern County Fair Grounds. Inside this building, visitors were treated to exhibits of Kern County’s produce and products.
Soon after the building opened, a letter to the editor suggested historical materials be collected at the Chamber. . . . — Map (db m25008) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Kern County Korean War Memorial |
| |
[Center Panel:]
Korea
The Forgotten War
June 25, 1950 – July 27, 1953
33,741 – Americans Killed in Action
2,835 – Non-Hostile Deaths
103,283 – Americans Wounded
───────────────────────
Kern County Killed in Action
[Left Column:]
Adams, Robert W. ∙ Blackmon, Thomas W. Jr. . . . — Map (db m25041) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Kern County Vietnam War Memorial |
| |
To The More Than 14,000
Men and Women
From Kern County
Who Served In Vietnam…
And To Those Who Gave
The Ultimate Sacrifice…
You Are Not Forgotten
Wind Beneath My Wings
1963
Clayton A. Fannin
1965
Larry S. Pierce ∙ Harry E. Thomas M.I.A. ∙ Edward Jourjon-Roche ∙ Paul E. Rytter
1966
Ernesto Dominguez ∙ Larry J. Cox ∙ Lantham O. Broyles ∙ Michael T. Faust ∙ Billy G. Fry ∙ Ronald J. Kinkeade . . . — Map (db m25130) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — 588 — Kern River Slough |
| |
Just south of this point stood the Butterfield Overland Stage site known as Kern River Slough. Operating through present Kern County during 1858 – 1861. This famous line ran from St. Louis, Missouri to San Francisco until the outbreak of the Civil War.
Dedicated June 30, 1957
Marker placed by
Kern County Historical Society
El Tejon Parlor No. 239 N.D.G.W.
Kern County Museum
State Registered Historical Landmark No. 588
Re-dedicated Oct. 6, 1996 — Map (db m24946) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Kern Valley Bank |
| | The Kern Valley Bank, established on February 24, 1874, was the first bank incorporated in Kern County.
Established soon after the economic depression known as the Panic of 1873, the Kern Valley Bank managed to weather the nationwide economic turmoil and survive for 37 years - an admirable record for a small community bank.
Solomon Jewett cofounded the bank, which opened on the corner of 18th Street and Chester Avenue in downtown Bakersfield. Jewett served as the president of . . . — Map (db m25978) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Lόpez-Hill House |
| | José and Mary Lόpez belonged to the first generation of Americans born in California after statehood was granted on September 9, 1850.
José Lόpez came to Kern County to raise sheep in 1873. The following year Edward Beale, owner of the Tejon Ranch, hired José to manage the sheep on his ranch. In 1885, Lόpez became the manager of the Tejon Ranch overseeing ranch operations for the next twenty-four years.
Mary Winter came to Kern County with her Scottish . . . — Map (db m25013) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Metcalf House |
| | Thomas Metcalf built this charming Eastlake-style Victorian house on the southwest corner of Dracena and C Streets near downtown Bakersfield in 1885.
Thomas Metcalf, born in St. Clairsville, Ohio, enlisted to fight for the Union Army as a private during the Civil War. In 1867, two years after the war ended, he married Elizabeth Wible. Thomas and Elizabeth had two children, Simon and Modena (Maude). The Metcalf family came to Kern County in 1883. They initially settled on a ranch . . . — Map (db m25983) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Miller and Lux Survey Office |
| | Large scale farming and ranching was needed to supply the restaurants and grocery stores in fast-growing cities like San Francisco and Los Angeles in the late 1800s.
Henry Miller and Charles Lux purchased large areas of land throughout the western states to control the supply of cattle for their San Francisco butchering operation. By the late 1880s, Miller & Lux had acquired more than one million acres in California, Nevada, and Oregon. Most of their land was located in the San . . . — Map (db m25309) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Norris School |
| | One-room school houses dotted the rural Western landscape to serve sparse populations before the automobile made transportation to towns faster and easier.
This one-room school was built in 1882 north of the town of Rosedale on land donated by local farmer Robert T. Norris. Cora Petty was the first teacher employed to educate students ranging from the first to eighth grade.
A new, larger school was built for students residing in the growing Norris district, and in 1914 this . . . — Map (db m25075) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Photographer’s Studio |
| | The invention of photography and mass production of photographic prints brought images of never before seen people, places and events into American homes.
By the 1850s, people could obtain a photograph depicting their exact likeness at an affordable price. Traveling photographers earned money moving from town to town setting up portable studios to take portrait photographs of residents.
This exhibit displays artifacts utilized in a photographer’s studio during the 1890s. . . . — Map (db m25115) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Pinkney House |
| | During their childhood, William Pinkney and Amanda Boydston took part in a migration of Americans heading west to seek land, gold and other opportunities in the western states shortly after the end of the Civil War.
In 1898, William married Amanda, a widow with two young daughters. Two years later, the young couple bought this house, which was originally located at 812 H Street.
William, born in South Carolina, came to Bakersfield in 1884 with his parents to pick cotton on a . . . — Map (db m25114) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — 539 — Posey Station of Butterfield Overland Mail Lines |
| | Two and one-half miles east of this point stood the Posey Station on the Butterfield Overland Stage route that ran from St. Louis, Missouri through present-day Kern County to San Francisco during 1858-61, until the outbreak of the Civil War. — Map (db m25444) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Railroad Scale House and Telephone Booth |
| | Railroad yards are highly specialized facilities consisting of engine maintenance buildings, fueling areas, track and switching areas and material storage yards.
This scale house was used in the Santa Fe Railroad switchyard in Bakersfield. A scale located adjacent to the building weighed train cars to determine the amount of freight and total weight of a train. Railroads charged a fee to haul freight based on weight. Knowing the total weight of a train was necessary to ensure a . . . — Map (db m25636) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — 278 — Rio de San Felipe — California Historical Landmark |
| | One mile north of here on May 1, 1776, Francisco Garces of the Franciscan Order, crossed Kern River in his search for a shorter route from Sonora, Mexico to Monterey, California. He was the first known explorer to describe this river, which he named Rio de San Felipe.
Dedicated
May 1, 1938
Bakersfield Parlor No.42 N.S.G.W., El Tejon Parlor No.239 N.D.G.W., Kern County Historical Society, Kern County Chamber of Commerce
Department of Natural Resources Reg. No.278
State of . . . — Map (db m24984) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Saint John's Episcopal Mission |
| | People living in small towns built churches to provide services within walking distance from their homes.
Saint John’s Episcopal Mission opened to parishioners in Rosedale in 1892. In the early days, a pastor from Saint Paul’s Episcopal Church in Bakersfield rode on horseback to conduct services in this rural church. Eventually, the automobile made the trip to Bakersfield more practical, and in 1920 the church closed.
The original clear glass windows in the church were removed . . . — Map (db m25457) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Santa Fe Caboose #1323 |
| |
The caboose was an office, a lookout, and a home away from home for a train crew.
In the days before automatic air brakes, the engineer signaled the caboose with his whistle when he wanted to slow down or stop. A brakeman would then climb out of the caboose and make his way forward, twisting the brake wheels atop the cars with a stout club. Another brakeman riding in the engine would work his way toward the rear. Once the train stopped, the flagman would walk back to a safe . . . — Map (db m25598) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Sheepherder's Cabin |
| | Spanish missionaries brought the first domesticated sheep to California. During the Gold Rush, sheep provided food and textiles to people seeking their fortune in California.
In 1906, Thomas Quinn built this cabin to provide housing for shepherds tending flocks of sheep on the Quinn Ranch. Named for his father, Harry, the Quinn Ranch once spanned 20,000 acres of grassland with 10,000 sheep roaming Kern’s foothills northeast of Delano.
Designed to be pulled by horses, this . . . — Map (db m25081) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Sonora Service Station |
| | The popularity of the automobile created an increasing demand for petroleum products, like gasoline, in the early 1900s.
Americans were suddenly able to travel to new destinations faster and easier than ever before, thus requiring new services along the way.
In 1936, this gas station was built on the corner of East 18th and Sonora Streets in Bakersfield. Gasoline cost around 15 cents a gallon when this service station first opened for business.
Hans and Virginia Nielsen . . . — Map (db m25187) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Southern Pacific Engine #2914 |
| |
This locomotive, among the largest and most powerful on the Southern Pacific Railroad system, supported the growth and development of the San Joaquin Valley and the West.
Engine #2914, called a 4-8-0 because of its wheel configuration, is characteristic of the type of locomotive used in freight service by railroads in the early 1900s. Built by the Schenectady Locomotive Works, 4-8-0 locomotives pulled well for their size, yet were easy to operate.
As the years passed they . . . — Map (db m25600) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Southern Pacific Railroad Jail |
| | Approximately 3,000 men labored on railroad construction up and over the Tehachapi Mountains in the 1870s.
It took over three years for the line to be completed through Kern County. As the railroad slowly progressed through the county, settlements sprang up along the track to supply the hungry and thirsty railroad workers. In the fall of 1875, Caliente, a rowdy temporary railhead, was described as “infested with a numerous horde of thieves and robbers, comprising the worst . . . — Map (db m25606) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Standard End Pumping Unit |
| | This standard end pumping unit was salvaged and erected by the Production Department, Chevron U.S.A., Inc., La Habra to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Standard Oil Company of California
The unit is composed of original parts from the San Joaquin Valley and the Los Angeles Basin. It is one of the few remaining handmade solid redwood units used during the early 1920’s. — Map (db m26118) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — The Barn |
| |
This barn, used to feed and harness teams of horses, was originally located at 1606 “R” Street in Bakersfield.
Four horses could be fed and harnessed inside this barn. Chopped hay, stored in the barn’s loft, was lowered through a door into a trough located along the wall. Horses were fitted with a leather harness and bridle while they ate. Once harnessed, the horses were hitched to a buggy or wagon to transport people or goods.
The slatted structure adjacent to . . . — Map (db m25642) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Undertaker's Office |
| |
Life in the mid 1800s was difficult. The average age of death in the United States of America was around 40 years old. Disease, accidents and hard work took its toll on people lives.
This exhibit displays artifacts, dating from the 1890s to the 1920s, utilized in an undertaker’s office to prepare a body for burial.
This building, constructed at Kern River Park, now known as Hart Memorial Park, housed park employees and visitors. The Kern County Board of Supervisors purchased the land for the park in 1921. — Map (db m26141) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Weill House |
| |
Built on the southeast corner of 17th and H Streets in Bakersfield in 1882, Alphonse and Henrietta Weill’s house was considered “modern” for its day because of the high ceilings, long hallway, and indoor plumbing.
In 1870, Alphonse Weill migrated from France to Kern County. He originally settled in the mining town of Havilah to pursue a career as a merchant. Two years later, Alphonse moved to Bakersfield and later opened his own general merchandise store. Alphonse was . . . — Map (db m25395) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Weller House |
| |
In the decades after the end of the Civil War, an unstable economy created economic and social turmoil in the United States. People looking for opportunity migrated to the West.
The Kern County Land Company founded the Rosedale Colony in 1890. After building the Calloway Canal through the area, the company recruited settlers from the eastern United States and Europe.
In 1898, William and Irena Weller migrated from Michigan to Kern County with their children, Amos and Alma, . . . — Map (db m25678) |
| California (Kern County), Bakersfield — Wells, Fargo & Company Express Office |
| |
The discovery of gold in California in 1849 started one of the greatest migrations in American history.
After moving west to seek their fortune in California, people living in mining camps had to travel long distances to a large city to send or receive mail and go to a bank. Sometimes the road to town was treacherous with robbers trying to steal gold from traveling miners.
Henry Wells and William Fargo founded a banking and express company in 1852 to provide services closer . . . — Map (db m25143) |
| California (Kern County), Caliente — 757 — Caliente |
| | Originally known as Allen's Camp after Gabriel Allen, who in the 1870s had a cabin and stock pasture near here, the settlement was named Caliente when railroad construction reached this point in April 1875. The town became a railroad terminal for about 16 months while a force of up to three thousand men, most of them Chinese, labored on the heavy railroad construction on the mountain. — Map (db m11935) |
| California (Kern County), Glennville — 495 — Glennville Adobe |
| |
Kern County’s oldest residence. Built before Civil War by Thomas Fitzgerald as trading post at junction of two Indian trails. Present Greenhorn Road follows east – west trail (later McFarlane Toll Road) to Kern River mining districts. Town named in 1857 after James Madison Glenn, an early settler.
State Registered Landmark No.495
Building and land donated to Kern County by
Mr. and Mrs. Hal Duval
Marker placed by California State Division of Beaches and Parks in cooperation . . . — Map (db m25032) |
| California (Kern County), Glennville — 672 — Lavers Crossing |
| | In 1854 John C. Reid filed a squatter’s claim on this spot. This same year Kern County’s first school class was held here. In 1859 David Lavers, with his father and brother, John, built a hotel and stage barn on the Old Bull Road. The crossing was the principal community in Linn’s Valley until about 1870.
Dedicated
Dec. 13, 1959 — Map (db m25323) |
| California (Kern County), Glennville — Lynn’s Bull Road |
| | William Lynn completed his Bull Road past this site from Linn’s Valley across Greenhorn Mountain to Keyesville in 1856. This freight route was used until the opening of the McFarlane Toll Road through Glennville en route to the Kern River Mines in 1864. — Map (db m25196) |
| California (Kern County), Grapevine — 300 — Rose Station |
| | Wm. B. Rose, in 1875, a mile east; built an adobe stage station on the site of the Overland Mail Way Station established 1858. From 1853 to 1875 site was known as Rancho Canoa (trough). Originally vaquero camp of the Sebastian Indian Reservation. Rose Station was a stockmen's headquarters, post office, and polling place.
Dedicated
November 16, 1941
Bakersfield Parlor No.42, N.S.G.W.
El Tejon Parlor No.239, N.D.G.W.
Kern County Historical Society
Kern County Chamber of Commerce . . . — Map (db m20196) |
| California (Kern County), Grapevine — 133 — Sebastian Indian Reservation |
| | The Sebastian or Tejon Indian Reservation (headquarters 10 miles east of here) was established in 1853 by Gen. Edward Fitzgerald Beale as one of several California Reservations. The number of Indians quartered here varied from 500 to 2000. General Beale acquired title to this area under Mexican Land Grant of 1843. In 1864 the U.S. Government transferred the Indians to other reservations.
Dedicated
Nov. 12, 1937
Bakersfield Parlor Number 42, N.S.G.W.
El Tajon Parlor Number 239, . . . — Map (db m20161) |
| California (Kern County), Kernville — Bob Powers — June 7, 1924 – September 11, 2002 |
| | A fifth generation native of Kern River Valley, Bob is best remembered for the 9 history books he wrote. Without him much of what happened in our valley’s past would have been lost. He was a cowboy, cattleman, ranger, family man and historian. But most of all he was a man of honesty and integrity. As a director and curator for the museum, he gave a lifetime collection of artifacts for all to enjoy. Awarded for his writing, his wife, Marge, said he would be embarrassed with the attention. When . . . — Map (db m25238) |
| California (Kern County), Kernville — 132 — Kernville — California Historical Landmark |
| | Kernville called Whiskey Flat until 1864, was founded in 1860 when Adam Hamilton, whiskey dealer, moved shop here from more temperate Quartzburg, founded earlier that year. Both camps resulted from the discovery of the Big Blue Ledge by “Lovely” Rogers while tracking a stray mule from the earlier camp of Keyesville.
Dedicated
April 18, 1937
[Upper Plaque:]
This Monument Moved From
Old Kernville
and Rededicated
May 3, 1953
by
Kern River Chamber of . . . — Map (db m25169) |
| California (Kern County), Lake Isabella — 742 — Campsite of Edward Kern |
| | Near this spot at the confluence of the north and south forks of the Kern River the Theodore Talbot Party of Captain John C. Fremont’s third expedition to the West camped for several weeks during December 1845 and January 1846. The river was named by Fremont in honor of Edward M. Kern, Topographer for the expedition. Kern County was established in 1866 and derived its name from that of the river.
California Registered Historical Landmark No.742 — Map (db m25092) |
| California (Kern County), Lake Isabella — Old Isabella |
| | Located to the northwest of here, Isabella, a ranching and mining town, was named by Steven Barton in 1893, after Queen Isabella of Spain, Patron of Christopher Columbus. A post office was established here in 1896. In 1953 the community was moved a short distance south to the present location. — Map (db m25102) |
| California (Kern County), Lebec — Camel Trail Terminus — Fort Tejon — California Historical Landmark |
| | Jefferson Davis, “Father of National Highways,” as Secretary of War 1853-57 sponsored the importation of 33 camels for transporting military supplies to the west coast. The camel trail survey ran from San Antonio, Texas to Fort Tejon which marks the western terminus, part of the Jefferson Davis Highway.
The army camel corps arrived at this fort in November, 1857, with Lt. Edward F. Beale in command.
Erected by
California Division,
United Daughters of the Confederacy
May 11, 1956 — Map (db m8053) |
| California (Kern County), Lebec — 283 — Don Pedro Fages |
| | In 1772, Don Pedro Fages, leaving the first written record of explorations in the south San Joaquin Valley, passed this site, traveling from San Diego to San Luis Obispo via Cajón Pass, Mojave Desert, Hughes Lake, Antelope Valley, Tejón Pass, Cañada de los Uvas (Grapevine Canyon), and Buena Vista Lake.
Dedicated
October 9, 1938
Bakersfield Parlor No.42 N.S.G.W.
El Tejon Parlor No.39, N.D.G.W.
Kern County Historical Society
Kern County Chamber of Commerce
Department of . . . — Map (db m20132) |
| California (Kern County), Lebec — 129 — Fort Tejon |
| | This military post was established by the United States Army on June 24, 1854, to suppress stock rustling and for the protection of Indians in the San Joaquin Valley. As regimental headquarters of the First Dragoons, Fort Tejón was an important military, social, and political center. Camels for transportation were introduced here in 1858. The fort was abandoned September 11, 1864. — Map (db m2605) |
| California (Kern County), Lebec — Lieutenant Edward Fitzgerald Beale |
| | This memorial plaque placed in memory of
Lieutenant Edward Fitzgerald Beale
First Superintendent of Indian
Affairs in California appointed
by President Millard Fillmore
Sanctioned by the United States
government the Tejon Indian Reservation
was established in 1853 by Beale for
the welfare and protection of the
Indians in this part of California
Fort Tejon was established in 1854
Dedicated by The Historical Society of Southern California
June 13, 1953 — Map (db m8042) |
| California (Kern County), Lebec — Peter Lebec |
| | Although little is known about Peter Lebec, it is believed that he was killed by a grizzly bear, and buried under this tree. His epitaph was originally carved into the tree. — Map (db m11092) |
| California (Kern County), Mojave — 652 — Mojave 20-Mule Team Borax Terminus |
| | Just west of this point was the Southern Pacific terminus for the 20-mule-team borax wagons that operated between Death Valley and Mojave from 1884 to 1889. The route ran from the Harmony Borax Mining Company works, later acquired by the Pacific Coast Borax Company, to the railroad loading dock in Mojave over 165 miles of mountain and desert trail. A round trip required 20 days. The ore wagons, which hauled a payload of 24 tons, were designed by J. W. S. Perry, Borax Company superintendent in . . . — Map (db m11928) |
| California (Kern County), Tehachapi — 643 — "Old Town" |
| | The oldest settlement in Tehachapi Valley, known as 'Old Town,' was established here during the 1860s. It was long an important station on the road between Southern California and the San Joaquin Valley, the community began to decline when residents gradually removed to nearby Greenwich, later renamed Tehachapi, after completion of the Southern Pacific Railroad in 1876. — Map (db m11913) |
| California (Kern County), Tehachapi — 508 — Tehachapi Loop |
| | From this spot may be seen a portion of the world-renowned “Loop.” It was completed in 1876 under the direction of William Hood, Southern Pacific Railroad Engineer. In gaining elevation around central hill of loop a 4000 foot train will cross 77 feet above its rear cars in tunnel below. — Map (db m11903) |
| California (Kern County), Tehachapi — Tehachapi Pass Railroad Line — Constructed 1874 – 1876 — Commemorated October 1998 |
| | In front of you is the world famous Tehachapi Loop which is about halfway upgrade to the Tehachapi Pass. This steep line averages 2.2% in gradient in its 28 miles of length. This feat of civil engineering genius was crowning achievement of civil engineer William Hood of the Southern Pacific Railway Company. It is one of the seven wonders of the railroad world.
The Tehachapi Pass Railroad Line was cut through solid and decomposed granite by up to 3000 Chinese laborers from Canton, China. They . . . — Map (db m11910) |
| California (Kern County), Tehachapi — The Great Flood of 1932 and Engine No. 3834 |
| | On September 30th torrential rains flooded Tehachapi Creek, undermining the tracks under Santa Fe Engine No. 3834 which was waiting out the storm about ½ mile east of Woodward Station. The engine disappeared into the raging water below. It remained “lost” for two weeks, hidden under 10 feet of mud. It took one month to free the severely damaged engine. Its bell was never found. Almost three years after the flood the newly refurbished engine was returned to service with people . . . — Map (db m11912) |
| California (Kern County), Woody — Granite Station — (Five Dogs) |
| | Built it 1873 by John Elden, this stand of buildings served as store, restaurant, and lodging place on the stage route between Bakersfield and Glennville. In later years it became a stopping place for freighters and sheepmen who were on their trek to the Mojave Desert.
Dedicated 1981
Kern County Museum
Kern County Historical Society
E Clampus Vitus Peter LeBeck Chapter 1866 — Map (db m25716) |
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