Bakersfield Life

Ten Historic Events That Have Shaped the History of Bakersfield

Ten Historic Events That Have Shaped the History of Bakersfield
By Jeff Nickell

It has now been 140 years since the city of Bakersfield was founded and named for Col. Thomas Baker. Things have certainly changed – very much for the better – since the tiny group of people living in log cabins named the city Bakersfield in 1869. And while most have heard of the 1952 earthquake and the great fire of 1889, what else happened in the past 14 decades to make Bakersfield what it is today?

We asked local historian Jeff Nickell to scour the vast reaches of his mind and research to gather together the following list: The 10 historic events that shaped Bakersfield. And what a list it is. Those interested in the history of the city – and even those who aren’t – will be fascinated by what they find in the next few pages. There will surely be reminders of events that everyone knows about and many events that few realize even happened.

In the end, it is a list of historic proportions … well, historic to Bakersfield, anyway. From water to highways and so much more, this list encapsulates 140 years of history in less than 2,500 words. We hope that you will find it both educational and entertaining.

Col. Thomas Baker’s Reclamation of the Kern River

Colonel Baker was both smart and lucky.  With the use of Yokuts Indians labor, he began building canals to divert water from the Kern River.  Mother Nature also pitched in by providing a flood that would help the colonel reclaim 100,000 acres before the end of 1863.  The tale of how he accomplished such a feat is quite remarkable.

A man by the name of R.M. Gilbert lived on the north side of the Kern River as it flows under the North Chester Avenue Bridge.  Gilbert allowed a friend to build a ditch that would lead water to his friend’s property more than a mile away. 

On Christmas night 1863, the engorged river found the man-made ditch and cut into the earth deeper and deeper until a new pathway had been created for its journey to Buena Vista Lake.  Stories abound that the fury of the river did more work than could have been accomplished by all the men, horses, and plows in the state.

Colonel Baker acted quickly.  He built a headgate on the old riverbed and built the beginning of the Town Ditch.  And thus, the swamplands in the Kern Island were reclaimed and the course of the Kern River was changed forever.

Building of Canals

The diversion of water from the Kern River that Col. Baker started was only the beginning of what would come.  The Kern County Land Company and other entities began building canals that siphoned water from the river.  The grand-daddy of them all was the Kern County Land Company’s Calloway Canal.  Some other early canals were the Pioneer Canal, the Farmer’s Canal, and the Kern Island Canal.

The Calloway Canal was completed in 1888 and carried water over twenty-five miles to ranches and farms located in the northeastern part of Rosedale continuing on northwest through Shafter and Wasco.  As the canal was being finished, Haggin and Carr were purchasing land surrounding the canal. 

The diversion of water from the Calloway Canal was the reason the land holdings of Henry Miller and Charles Lux located approximately twenty miles west of Bakersfield began drying up.  There simply was not enough water in the Kern River once the headgate to the Calloway Canal was opened up.

In fact, what once were “clear and rushing” streams turned into “good for almost nothing” stagnate marshlands.  This was devastating to the Miller and Lux Empire.  After all, they used the river water for irrigation and it also served as a watering hole for the vast number of cattle they owned.  This lead to the Great Water Suits between the Kern County Land Company and Miller & Lux.

The 1952 Earthquakes

The first earthquake with its epicenter near Tehachapi struck at 4:52AM on July 21. The 7.6 tremor killed fourteen people.  It also did substantial damage to buildings not only in Tehachapi but Bakersfield as well.  The rail lines through the Tehachapi Mountains were damaged and photos show the ground torn apart and tunnels cave in.

As if that were not enough, another quake followed August 22 at 3:42PM.  It killed two more people.  The earthquakes changed the architectural look of downtown Bakersfield.  The Beale Memorial Clock Tower, the 1876 Kern County Courthouse (serving as City Hall in 1952), and the 1912 Kern County Courthouse were all seriously damaged.  A decision was made to tear the buildings down.  A New City Hall and Kern County Courthouse would be built, but the old time piece would never again tower over 17th Street and Chester Avenue (the Clock Tower was rebuilt in front of the Kern County Museum and dedicated December 13, 1964).  I might add that the government buildings were rebuilt but certainly not with the character that they had before.

Highway 99 Built West of Bakersfield

Some of you who are new to the area may be asking yourselves, “What is he talking about? Highway 99 runs right through the middle of town.”  But, that wasn’t always the case.  And, it is interesting when you think about our current roads projects and the trials and tribulations that have taken place trying to determine what routes certain roads will take.

The decision to construct Highway 99 where it now resides essentially took motorists along the outskirts of Bakersfield.  It was dedicated in 1964.  Until then, Union Avenue was the state highway until it hit the Garces Circle where traffic diverted north on Chester Avenue.  So, the reason you see the Kern County Museum on Chester is for that very reason…when the museum’s main building (originally the Kern County Chamber of Commerce) was built in 1928 it fronted the main thoroughfare through our town.

Most of the down-trodden hotels you now see on Union Avenue were much nicer and provided respite for weary travelers.  But, business dried up due to the movement of traffic to the west.  The businesses along Union Avenue had some great looking neon signs.  The Bakersfield Inn was at one time the world’s largest motor inn.  And, of course, there was the Bakersfield Sign, built in 1949, that welcomed visitors and residents alike to town.

The Construction of the Isabella Dam

Congress approved construction of Isabella Dam in the Flood Control Act of 1944.  However, funding was not appropriated until 1948.  The groundbreaking for the dam was held on May 29, 1948 and work began under the direction of the Army Corps of Engineers.

The original estimate was that the dam would cost$15,000,000 to construct.  When the project was completed in March of 1953, the total cost ended up being $21,000,000.
The construction of the Isabella Dam caused the relocation of the town of Kernville.  When Lake Isabella is running low, you can still see some of the foundations of the town’s buildings.

The creation of the Isabella Dam was important to Bakersfield because it provided protection from flooding of the Kern River.  In fact, as the dam was being constructed, the river flooded in November of 1950 causing more than $1,000,000 damage.  Just imagine if the dam had not been built and every few years we had to suffer through such a flood!  Another purpose of the dam was to improve irrigation for Kern County farms helping to further the region’s claim as one of the top agricultural regions in the world.  The flood Control Act also listed power development, recreation, and improvement of fish and wildlife resources as reasons the dam should be built.

The Fire of 1889

Bakersfield was a town growing rapidly. Its’ people were living with great hope and looked forward to bright futures. But, none of them could have imagined the utter devastation that awaited them on July 7, 1889. It was that date in time that the Great Fire of 1889 ripped through the business district.

It is purported that the fire started in or near the Kelsey residence on 20th Street between Chester and I (at that time it was not ‘Eye’). The volunteer fire department responded promptly and hooked into a cast iron hydrant that was located in front of the old Southern Hotel at the corner of 19th and Chester. The hydrant was connected to the Scribner Water System that was supplied by pumps and wells at the southeast corner of 17th and Chester. The system was not strong enough to douse the flames.

The fire spread from Kelsey’s Undertaking & Furniture Store to the Hayden & White building to the Echo building. From there it ignited the new Southern Hotel and then jumped across to the west side of Chester Avenue burning everything in its’ path all the way to 17th Street.  Nearly all the businesses were wiped out, but fortunately most of the residences were spared.

The Bakersfield Sound

Legendary guitar player Eugene Moles indicated that the Bakersfield Sound was formed from many phases of singular parts and that no one person can really take sole credit for coming up with the sound.  Moles adds that the sound, to the best of his recollections, started in 1949/1950.  He remembers piano player George French (whom he said was the ultimate professional), Billy Mize, Fuzzy Owen, Lewis Talley, Tex Butler, and Bill Woods as leaders of the movement.  It should be noted that the Bakersfield Sound was driven by the piano, steel guitar, and of course the Telecaster guitar.

The migration of the ‘Okies’ to California in the 1930s and 1940s is really where the Bakersfield Sound started. “The (Bakersfield) music was simple but powerful, played by simple-living people who had to leave their farms to come west,” said Tommy Collins, an Oklahoma native who wrote his first hit songs after moving to Bakersfield in 1951.

The Bakersfield Sound was crafted in homes, garages, and most importantly honky tonks.  Places like the Blackboard Café, Bob’s Lucky Spot, Rainbow Gardens, Pumpkin Center Barn Dance, Beardsley Ballroom, Clover Club, Tex’s Barrel House, and Trout’s gave musicians a place to hone their skills.

Of course, the international fame of the Bakersfield Sound is directly related to the success of Buck Owens and Merle Haggard.

The County Seat Moves from Havilah to Bakersfield

In 1883, although settlers were moving into the area, the population of the County was quite small considering its 8,000 square mile boundaries.  However, the annual per capita value of agricultural products was “thought to be greater than any other portion of the world.”  The future of Kern County was agriculture and residents realized that and decided in 1872 the County seat needed to move from the gold mining town of Havilah to Bakersfield.

In November 1872, a petition was presented asking for the removal of Havilah as the seat of County government.  An election was ordered to be held on February 15, 1873.  Thirteen towns received votes with Havilah and Bakersfield the top vote getters: Havilah with 332 and Bakersfield with 370.  This being after three precincts were thrown out by the County Board of Supervisors because of “irregularities.”  The election was contested for a year.  “In February 1874, the Supervisors ordered the Town Hall of Bakersfield to be designated as the court rooms of the County.”

In 1876, a grand courthouse was constructed and was a worthy center-piece for the thriving community.

Kern River Oil Discovery

The Discovery Well on the banks of the Kern River brought an oil boom to what became the Kern River Oil Field.  Within a very short time, more than two-hundred companies were created to try their luck at drilling for oil.  As noted oil historian Bill Rintoul wrote in his 1990 publication Drilling Through Time, “the names of the companies reflected everything from high hopes to pride in regional areas…including Prosperity, the Pennsylvanian, the Hawkeye State, the Sovereign, American Eagle, and Uncle Sam just to name a few.”

The main use of crude oil from the Kern River Field’s was as fuel for locomotives.  People were so enamored with the black gold that was flowing and the forest of wooden derricks, that Southern Pacific Railroad began promoting sightseeing trips from San Francisco to visit the Kern River Field.  The cost of a round-trip excursion was $10.60.

Within four years, the Kern River Oil Field was producing seventeen-million barrels a year.  This allowed California to become the top oil-producing state in the Union in 1903.  Over 100 years later the Kern River Field is still one of the top producers in the United States.

The Dust Bowl Migration

With the Untied States already in the midst of the Great Depression, drought and wind swept across the southwestern United States in the early to mid 1930s rendering land non-farmable.  Thousands of people from Oklahoma, Arkansas, and other southwestern states abandoned their homes and fled west.  They heard of a ‘land of opportunity’ with boundless fruits and vegetables that needed to be harvested.

By 1934, residents of Kern County were alarmed at the rate of migration and worried that the outsiders would take away local jobs.  With the influx of thousands of ‘Okies’, public facilities and services such as schools and hospitals were overwhelmed.  Camps, or resettlement facilities, were constructed in Arvin, Buttonwillow, Shafter, and Wasco to give assistance to the migrant population.

A large percentage of the migrant population stayed in Bakersfield and Kern County.  As the years have flown by, the roots established by the ‘Okies’ have deepened.  They assimilated into Bakersfield life and many found success in what truly was and still is the ‘land of opportunity’.