Bakersfield Attractions

Kern County

Location and origin

Bakersfield is easy to reach by road, along one of the great motorways of California, the U.S. 5; it is 111mi/179km from Los Angeles and about 290mi/465km from San Francisco. Founded by Colonel Thomas Baker in the seventies of the last century, it first came to life in 1885, when - almost 40 years later than in the actual gold area to the north - gold was discovered in the Kern River Canyon. Major roles in the development of this town were played by the discovery of oil and by agriculture. However, in 1889 a fire destroyed the old town; the 1952 earthquake also caused great damage. Nevertheless, the population increased considerably in the years that followed; with an annual growth rate of some 7% Bakersfield stands at the head of all Californian towns.