NO. 652 20-MULE-TEAM
BORAX TERMINUS - The famed Borax 20 mule team was located at the
Southern Pacific terminus for the 20-mule-team borax wagons that
operated between Death Valley and Mojave from 1884 to 1889 is
west of this location. The 20-mule team 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 Death Valley, and built in Mojave at a cost of
$900 each. New borax discoveries near Barstow ended the Mojave
shipments in 1889.
Location: 16246 Sierra Hwy (Hwy 14), Mojave
NO. 741 BEALVILLE - Edward
Fitzgerald Beale, serving under Commodore Stockton in 1846,
established his home here on Rancho le Libre in 1855. He also
engaged in mining and became Superintendent of Indian Affairs
for California and Nevada, and Minister to Vienna.
Location: On Bealville Rd, 0.9 mi N of State Hwy 58, 1.3 mi S of
Caliente
NO. 492 BUTTONWILLOW TREE - Buttonwillow was named for a lone
tree which served as a landmark on an old trans-valley trail.
Site to an ancient Yokuts Indian meeting place, it later became
the location for settlers' stock rodeos. Miller and Lux
established their headquarters and store here about 1885.
Location: On Buttonwillow Dr, 0.5 mi N of State Hwy 58,
Buttonwillow
NO. 742 CAMPSITE OF EDWARD
M. 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. Frémont's third expedition to the West camped
for several weeks during December 1845 and January 1846. Frémont
named the river in honor of Edward M. Kern, topographer for the
expedition - Kern County was established in 1866.
Location: Entrance to Old IsabelIa Rd Recreation Area, on State
Hwy 178, 2 mi N of the town of Lake IsabelIa
NO. 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.
Location: 2.3 mi N of Hwy 58 on Bealville Rd, CalienteNO. 504
BUENA VISTA REFINERY - Eight miles due west of this marker stood
one of California's first commercial oil refineries. Between
August 1864 and April 1867, approximately 4,000 gallons of
illuminating oil produced there was shipped to San Francisco by
the Buena Vista Petroleum Company. Refining operations
terminated due to excessive transportation rates.
Location: NE corner of hwy 33 (PM 41.1) and LoKern Rd., 10 mi N
of McKittrick.
NO. 376 CALIFORNIA
STANDARD OIL WELL 1 - This well was one of the early wells that
in 1899 started a new oil field called the McKittrick Field. The
well pumped about 150 barrels of oil per day for the first six
months - its last production was in April 1929.
Location: McKittrick Field, 400 ft N of Well #CS-54, 0.4 mi N of
State Hwy 50 (P.M.. 15.1), 1 mi S of McKittrick
NO. 382 COLONEL THOMAS BAKER MEMORIAL - In 1863 Colonel Baker,
friend to all travelers, came here to found 'Bakers Field.' His
motto was, 'Time will justify a man who means to do right.' This
civic center is his dream come true.
Location: City Hall, SW corner of Truxtun and Chester Aves,
Bakersfield
NO. 476 DESERT SPRING -
This spring was on an old Indian horse thief trail and later
(1834) Joe Walker Trail. The famished Manly-Jayhawk Death Valley
parties (1849-50) were revived here after coming from Indian
Wells through Last Chance Canyon. This was also a station on the
Nadeau Borax Freight Road.
Location: SE corner Pappas Ranch, on Pappas Rd, then walk 1/4 mi
W toward trees, 0.5 mi S of Valley Rd, 3.7 mi E of Cantil post
office
NO. 290 DISCOVERY WELL OF
KERN RIVER OILFIELD - 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.
Location: On Round Mountain Rd, 0. 7 mi E of China Grade Loop, 7
mi NE of Bakersfield. Call (661) 392-2200 for an appointment to
view the site and plaque.
NO. 291 FAGES-ZALVIDEA
CROSSING - In 1772, Don Pedro Fages, first recorded non-Indian
to visit the southern San Joaquin Valley, crossed this spot on
his way from San Diego to San Luis Obispo. Near this point
crossed Father José María de Zalvidea in 1806, while
accompanying the Ruiz expedition in search of mission sites.
Location: On State Hwy 166 (P.M. 19.0), 5.5 mi W of Mettler
NO. 277 GARCÉS CIRCLE -
This is the approximate site of the Indian rancheria visited by
Franciscan friar Padre Francisco Garcés on May 7, 1776. Padre
Garcés named this spot San Miguel de los Noches por el Santa
Príncipe.
Location: Center intersection of Chester Ave and 30th St,
Bakersfield
NO. 495 GLENNVILLE ADOBE -
This is Kern County's oldest residence, built before the Civil
War by Thomas Fitzgerald as a trading post at the junction of
two Indian trails. The present Greenhorn Road follows the
east-west trail (later the McFarland Toll Road) to the Kern
River mining districts. The town was named in 1857 after James
Madison Glenn, an early settler.
Location: Kern Co Fire Dept, Glennville Substation, on State Hwy
155 (P.M. 40.2), Glennville
NO. 137 GORDON'S FERRY ON
THE KERN RIVER - Gordon's Ferry was an overhead cable-type of
ferry operated during the 1850s by Major Gordon. An adobe
station house was located on the south bank of the Kern River,
just a few yards to the west of this marker, which also served
as a station on the Butterfield Overland Mail Route from 1856 to
1860.
Location: SE side of Kern River bridge, on China Loop, 1,000 ft
S of Round Mountain Rd, Bakersfield
NO. 100 HAVILAH - Gold deposits at Havilah were discovered in
1864. Havilah was the county seat between 1866, when Kern County
was organized, and 1872, when the government was moved to
Bakersfield. Havilah was an active mining center for more than
20 years, and there are still some operating mines in this
vicinity.
Location: State plaque in front of Bodfish post office, NE
corner of Miller St and Kern River Canyon Rd, Bodfish - private
plaque S side of 1866 county courthouse, Caliente-Bodfish Rd
(P.M. 279), Havilah
NO. 132 KERNVILLE - Called
Whiskey Flat until 1864, Kernville was founded in 1860 when
whiskey dealer Adam Hamilton moved shop here from more temperate
Quartzburg, founded earlier that year. Both camps resulted from
a discovery by 'Lovely' Rogers, who found the Big Blue Ledge
while tracking a stray mule from the earlier camp of Keysville.
Location: Old Kernville Cemetery, Wofford Rd, 2.7 mi SE of
Kernville
NO. 98 KEYSVILLE - From
1853 until 1870, Keysville was a center of both placer and
quartz gold mining. On the knoll just below the townsite may
still be seen the outlines of an earthworks fort, built to meet
a possible Indian attack in 1863.
Location: On Black Gulch Rd, 2.0 mi S of State Hwy 155 (P.M.
70.0), 3.3 mi W of Lake IsabelIa
NO. 129 FORT TEJÓN -This
military post was established by the United States Army on June
24, 1854, to suppress stock rustling and protect the Indians in
the San Joaquin Valley. Camels for transportation were
introduced here in 1858. As regimental headquarters of the First
Dragoons, Fort Tejón was an important military, social, and
political center - it was abandoned September 11, 1864.
Location: Fort Tejón State Historic Park, on Lebec Rd, 2.8 mi N
of Lebec
NO. 97 OAK CREEK PASS - In
1776, Father Francisco Garcés used the Oak Creek Pass to return
to the Mojave after exploring the San Joaquin Valley, as did
Frémont in 1844-1845. Until the railroad was built through the
Tehachapi Pass in 1876, Oak Creek Pass was the only route used
through the Tehachapi Mountains.
Location: On Willow Pass Rd, 4.6 mi S of Tehachapi Blvd, 74 mi
SE of Tehachapi
NO. 99 WALKER'S PASS - Discovered by Joseph R. Walker, American
trailblazer, who left the San Joaquin Valley through this pass
in 1834. This area was traversed by topographer Edward M. Kern,
after whom the Kern River was named, while accompanying the
Frémont expedition of 1845. After 1860 it became a mining
freight route to Owens Valley.
Location: At summit on State Hwy 178 (P.M. 79.8), 8.4 mi NW of
Freeman Jct (State Hwy 14)
NO. 130 WILLOW SPRINGS - Willow Springs was visited by Padre
Garcés in 1776 while following the old Horse Thief Trail (later
known as Joe Walker Trail) - Frémont stopped here in 1844, and
the famished Jayhawk Party of 1850 found water here while
struggling from Death Valley to Los Angeles. Still later, Willow
Springs was a stage station of the Los Angeles-Havilah and Inyo
Stage Lines.
Location: From State Hwy 14, go 6.8 mi W on Rosamond Blvd, then
N 0.7 mi on Tehachapi Willow Springs Rd, then 0.6 mi NW on
Truman-Manly Rd, Rosamond
NO. 133 SEBASTIAN INDIAN RESERVATION - The Sebastian or Tejón
Indian Reservation (headquarters ten miles east of here) was
established in 1853 by General Edward Fitzgerald Beale as one of
several California reservations. The number of Indians quartered
here varied from 500 to 2,000. 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.
Location: Grapevine, NE corner of Grapevine Rd and 'D' St, 70 mi
S of Mettler
NO. 278 PLACE WHERE FRANCISCO GARCÉS CROSSED THE KERN RIVER - On
May 1, 1776, Franciscan friar Francisco Garcés crossed the Kern
River one mile north of here. Searching for a shorter route from
Sonora, Mexico to Monterey, California, he was the first known
explorer to describe this river, which he named Río de San
Felipe.
Location: State Hwy 178 (P.M. 10.9) at Rancheria Rd, 11.0 mi E
of Bakersfield
NO. 283 TOP OF GRAPEVINE PASS, WHERE DON PEDRO FAGES PASSED IN
1772 - In 1772, Don Pedro Fages passed this site, traveling from
San Diego to San Luis Obispo via Cajón Pass, Mojave Desert,
Hughes Lake, Antelope Valley, Tejón Pass, Cańada de los Uvas
(Grapevine Canyon), and Buena Vista Lake. He left the first
written record of exploration in the south San Joaquin Valley.
Location: On Lebec Rd, 0.6 mi N of Lebec
NO. 300 ROSE STATION - From 1853 to 1875 this site, originally a
vaquero camp of the Sebastian Indian Reservation, was known as
Rancho Canoa (trough). In 1875, Wm. B. Rose built an adobe stage
station on the site of the Overland Mail way station established
1858. Rose Station was a stockmen's headquarters, post office,
and polling place.
Location: NE corner of Grapevine Rd and 'D' St, 70 mi S of
Mettler
NO. 371 OUTERMOST POINT IN THE SOUTH SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY (VISITED
BY PADRE GARCÉS IN 1776) - 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.
Location: Courtyard of Saint Thomas the Apostle Church, 350 E
Bear Mountain Blvd, Arvin
NO. 374 TULAMNIU INDIAN SITE - The old Yokuts village of
Tulamniu was named Buena Vista by Spanish Commander Fages in
1772. Fr. Zalvidea again recorded the site in 1806. This village
was occupied for several centuries, and in 1933-34 its site was
excavated by the Smithsonian Institution.
Location: 300 ft SE of Block House #BV4, 1.1 mi N of Buena Vista
pumping station, 8 mi E of Taft
NO. 457 INDIAN WELLS - After five days' travel from the Argus
Range, the Manly-Jayhawker parties of 1849 found their first
water at this Indian waterhole on the Joseph R. Walker Trail of
1843. During the 1860s, this was the site of a stage and freight
station for traffic between Los Angeles and the Coso and Cerro
Gordo Mines.
Location: Indian Wells Lodge, 4.9 mi N of Freeman Jct (Hwys 14
and 178) on Hwy 14 (P.M. 62.6)
NO. 485 LAKEVIEW GUSHER 1 - America's most spectacular gusher
blew in here on March 14, 1910. Initially 18,000 barrels per
day, the flow later reached an uncontrolled peak of 100,000
barrels per day, completely destroying the derrick. This Union
Oil Company well produced nine million barrels of oil in 18
months.
Location: Petroleum Club Rd (County Rd 277T, P.M. 1.1) between
Kerto and Cadet Rds, 1.5 mi N of Maricopa via Hwy 33
NO. 498 McKITTRICK BREA PIT - Located one-eighth mile west of
here is an ancient asphaltum seepage in which hundreds of
Pleistocene Age (15,000-50,000 years ago) birds and animals were
trapped. The site was first explored in 1928 by the University
of California - excavation was completed in 1949 by the Los
Angeles and Kern County museums.
Location: SW corner of intersection of State Hwy 33 (P.M. 33. 5)
and State Hwy 58 (P.M. 15.4), 0.5 mi S of McKittrick
NO. 508 TEHACHAPI LOOP - From this spot may be seen a portion of
the world-renowned Loop completed in 1876 under the direction of
William Hood, Southern Pacific railroad engineer. In gaining
elevation around the central hill of the Loop, a 4,000-foot
train will cross 77 feet above its rear cars in the tunnel
below.
Location: On Old State Hwy, 3.2 mi E of Keene exit, 6.5 mi W of
Tehachapi
NO. 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.
Location: NE corner of Bakersfield-Glennville Rd (Ca Rd 365AY,
P.M. 8.3) and Round Mountain Rd, 11 mi NE of Bakersfield
NO. 540 SINKS OF THE TEJÓN, ALSO KNOWN AS ALAMO, STATION OF
BUTTERFIELD OVERLAND MAIL LINES - Six miles east of this point
was the site of the Butterfield Stage Line station Sinks of
Tejón. Operating through present Kern County during 1858-61,
this famous line ran from St. Louis, Missouri to San Francisco
until the outbreak of the Civil War.
Location: SW corner of intersection of David and Wheeler Ridge
Rds, 6.0 mi NE of Mettler
NO. 581 WELL, 2-6 - Near an area of small 40- and 50-barrel
wells, it blew in over the derrick top November 27, 1909, with a
production of 2,000 barrels a day and started one of the
greatest oil booms California ever experienced. Well 2-6 was
located as a wildcat, on June 1, 1909 by Fred C. Ripley.
Location: 100 ft W of Fellows Fire Station on Broadway, Fellows
NO. 588 KERN RIVER SLOUGH STATION - Just south of this point
stood the Kern River Slough Station on the Butterfield Overland
Stage route. 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.
Location: On Panama Rd (Co Hwy 244, P.M. 9.0), 3.1 mi W of
Lamont
NO. 589 MOUNTAIN HOUSE - One and one-half miles north of this
point stood the Mountain House Station on the route of the
Butterfield Stage. 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.
Location: Dry Creek, on Bakersfield-Glenville Rds (Co Rd 363AZ,
P.M. 19.1), 6.3 mi SW of Woody
NO. 631 GARCÉS BAPTISMAL SITE - Three miles north of this point
was the site of the first recorded Christian baptism in the San
Joaquin Valley. On May 23, 1776, Padre Francisco Garcés,
earliest non-Indian in this area, baptized an Indian boy whom he
called Muchachito at a Yokuts Rancheria in Grizzly Gulch.
Location: On State Hwy 155 (P.M. 18.8), 77 mi W of Woody
NO. 643 OLD TOWN (TEHACHAPI) - The oldest settlement in
Tehachapi Valley, known as 'Old Town,' was established here
during the 1860s. Long an important station on the road between
Southern California and the San Joaquin Valley, the community
began to decline when residents gradually moved to nearby
Greenwich, later renamed Tehachapi, after completion of the
Southern Pacific Railroad in 1876.
Location: NE corner of Old Town Rd and Woodford-Tehachapi Rd,
1.3 mi N of State Hwy 202, 2.5 mi W of Tehachapi .
NO. 660 POINT ON THE JEDEDIAH SMITH TRAIL - About February 1,
1827, Jedediah Strong Smith, first American to reach Mexican
California overland, passed near this spot with his party of fur
trappers. From San Gabriel Mission, the group was en route north
to a land reported teeming with 'plenty of Beaver.' Smith and
his men were trailblazers whose exploits soon led to the
American conquest of California.
Location: SE corner of Old Bena and Tower Line Rds, 3.6 mi E of
Edison
NO. 671 SITE OF THE TOWN OF GARLOCK - In 1896, Eugene Garlock
constructed a stamp mill near this spot to crush gold ore from
the Yellow Aster Mine on Rand Mountain. Known originally as Cow
Wells by prospectors and freighters during the 1880s and early
1890s, the town of Garlock continued to thrive until 1898, when
water was piped from here to Randsburg and the Kramer-Randsburg
rail line was completed.
Location: 74 mi W of State Hwy 395 on Garlock Rd, 13.4 mi NE of
Cantil post office
NO. 672 LAVERS CROSSING - In 1854, John C. Reid filed a
squatter's claim on this spot - the 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.
Location: NE corner of White River and Jack Ranch Rds, 1.1 mi W
of Glennville
NO. 690 SITE OF THE LAST HOME OF ALEXIS GODEY - Near this site
stood the home of Alexis Godey, frontiersman and scout, who
lived here from 1883 until his death on January 19, 1889. Born
in St. Louis, Missouri in 1818, he acted as guide for John C.
Frémont's expedition through the Kern area in 1843-44, and was
honored for his services at the Battle of San Pasqual in 1846.
Location: 414-19th St W of Union Ave, Bakersfield
NO. 732 SITE OF THE HOME OF ELISHA STEVENS - Near this spot
stood the last home of Elisha Stevens, noted American pathfinder
and scout. Born in Georgia April 5, 1804, he learned
blacksmithing during his youth - then, drifting west, he became
a trapper on the upper Missouri for more than two decades. In
1844 he led the 50-member Murphy-Townsend wagon train safely
from Council Bluffs, Iowa to Sutter's Fort. During the Mexican
War he served as an ordnance mechanic under Commodore Stockton.
For a time he lived in Santa Clara County, then settled here on
a 38-acre tract, the first permanent settler in the Bakersfield
district. He died September 9, 1887 and is buried in Union
Cemetery.
Location: NW corner of W Columbus and Isla Verde Sts,
Bakersfield
NO. 766 FREEMAN JUNCTION - Explorer Joseph R. Walker passed this
junction of Indian trails in 1834 after discovering nearby
Walker Pass. After their escape from Death Valley, '49er parties
split here to go west and south to the California gold fields.
Here the bandit Tiburcio Vásquez preyed on stages and freighters
traveling between the Kern River mines and Los Angeles and the
mines of Bodie and the Panamints.
Location: On State Hwy 178 (P.M. 88.0), 0.2 mi W of junction
with State Hwy 14
NO. 923 SITE OF THE FLIGHT OF THE GOSSAMER CONDOR - This plaque
at Shafter Airport commemorates the world's first man-powered
flight to complete the Kremer Circuit, August 23, 1977. The
circuit, a figure eight around two pylons one-half mile apart,
was completed in six minutes, twenty-two seconds. The plane was
designed by Dr. Paul MacCready, Jr. and flown by Bryan Allen. A
cash prize of 50,000 pounds was awarded by the Royal
Aeronautical Society, London, England.
Location: Entrance to Shafter Airport, Lerdo Hwy, 5 mi E of
Shafter
NO. 938 RAND MINING DISTRICT - The Yellow Aster, or Rand, mine
was discovered in April 1895 by Singleton, Burcham, and Mooers.
The town of Randsburg quickly developed, followed by the supply
town of Johannesburg in 1896. Both names were adopted from the
profusion of minerals resembling those of the ranch mining
district in South Africa. In 1907, Churchill discovered tungsten
in Atolia, used in steel alloy during World War I. In June 1919,
Williams and Nosser discovered the famous California Rand Silver
Mine at Red Mountain.
Location: Kern Co Desert Museum, Butte Ave, Randsburg
NO. 1022 SHAFTER COTTON RESEARCH STATION - The Shafter Cotton
Research Station, established here in 1922 by the U.S.
Department of Agriculture, developed the "Acala" varieties which
were exceptionally well suited to the San Joaquin valley. The
quality of the acala cottons and the marketing advantage of the
one variety cotton district, created in 1925, resulted in
premium cottons with a world-wide demand. Through the continued
vision and cooperative efforts of growers and researchers,
production of acala cotton became one of California's largest
agricultural enterprises.
Location: 17053 Shafter Avenue, Shafter
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