David Miller Joe Levy
128-601: Air21 Airlines was a short-lived United States airline based in Fresno, California , led by Mark Morro , founded by David Miller and co-founded by David J. VanderLugt. The airline operated five Fokker F28 Fellowship 64-passenger twin engine jet aircraft. Air21, named through its slogan "Your Low-Cost Carrier and Low-Cost Airline for the Twenty-First Century", was founded by David Miller in January 1994. Miller,
256-407: A semi-arid climate ( Köppen climate classification BSh , bordering BSk ), with cool, mild winters and long, hot, dry summers. December and January are the coldest months, averaging 47.5 °F (8.6 °C) and 48.0 °F (8.9 °C), respectively; mornings see temperatures at or below freezing, with the coldest night of the year typically bottoming out around 29 °F (−1.7 °C). July
384-710: A drop in the area's water table, resulted in the town's demise. The Depression -era migrants to the San Joaquin Valley from the South and Midwest are one of the more well-known groups in the Central Valley, in large part due to the popularity of John Steinbeck 's novel The Grapes of Wrath and the Henry Fonda movie made from it. By 1910, agriculture in the southern Great Plains had become nearly unviable due to soil erosion and poor rainfall. Much of
512-534: A female householder with no husband present, and 30.1% were non-families. 23.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.99 and the average family size was 3.57. San Joaquin Valley The San Joaquin Valley ( / ˌ s æ n hw ɑː ˈ k iː n / SAN whah- KEEN ; Spanish : Valle de San Joaquín )
640-653: A fresh water lake. Lake Corcoran was the last widespread lake to fill the valley about 700,000 years ago. At the beginning of the Holocene there were three major lakes remaining in the southern part of the Valley, Tulare Lake, Buena Vista Lake and Kern Lake . In the late 19th and in the 20th century, agricultural diversion of the Kern River eventually dried out these lakes. Today, only a fragment of Buena Vista Lake remains as two small lakes Lake Webb and Lake Evans in
768-534: A given crop: Stockton produces the majority of the domestic asparagus consumed in the United States, and Fresno County is the largest producer of raisins. Cattle and sheep ranching are also vitally important to the valley's economy. During the late 19th century and early 20th century, the Miller & Lux corporation built an agricultural monopoly centered around cattle. The corporation can be characterized as
896-625: A hard-driving sound that is still deeply associated with the city. The San Joaquin Valley produces 12.8% of California's agricultural production (as measured by dollar value). Often called a breadbasket region, the valley farms emphasize fruits, vegetables and nuts more than grain for bread. Major crops include grapes (wine grapes, table grapes and raisins ), cotton , almonds , pistachios , citrus , and vegetables. Walnuts, oranges, peaches, garlic, tangerines, tomatoes, kiwis, hay, alfalfa and numerous other crops have been harvested with great success. Certain places are identified quite strongly with
1024-593: A lake, three small ponds, seven picnic areas, and five miles (8 km) of multipurpose trails that are part of the San Joaquin River Parkway's Lewis S. Eaton Trail. When complete, the Lewis S. Eaton trail system will cover 22 miles (35 km) between Highway 99 and Friant Dam. The park's amphitheatre was renovated in 2010, and has hosted performances by acts such as Deftones , Tech N9ne , and Sevendust as well as numerous others. Woodward Park hosts
1152-494: A loss of as much as $ 11 billion each year. San Joaquin Valley is a major agricultural center of California. The agricultural demand for water far outstrips the urban and industrial demand. Overuse of nitrogen fertilizers and irrigated agriculture is common, and according to Thomas Harter, the chair for Water Resources Management and Policy at UC Davis, “more than 80 pounds of nitrogen per acre per year may leach into groundwater beneath irrigated lands, usually as nitrates”. Between
1280-625: A majority of Kern County in Southern California. Although the valley is predominantly rural, it has three densely populated urban centers: Stockton / Modesto , Fresno / Visalia , and Bakersfield . The San Joaquin Valley is the southern half of California's Central Valley . It extends from the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta in the north to the Tehachapi Mountains in the south, and from
1408-713: A management pilot and executive, partnered with David J. VanderLugt, treasurer of a small startup airline in Visalia, California . In October 1994, Miller and VanderLugt filed necessary paperwork for the certification of operations with the United States Department of Transportation in Washington, D.C. The next year, in March 1995, Miller and VanderLugt along with Mark Morro and Joe Levy, CEO of Gottschalks Department Stores, released their IPO prospectus for
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#17328020847491536-409: A portion of the former Buena Vista Lakebed. The San Joaquin Valley has extremely hot, dry summers and pleasantly mild winters characterized by dense tule fog . Its rainy season normally runs from November through April. The valley has experienced a severe and intensifying megadrought since the early 2010s. This drought is not only affecting humans, with farmland taking much of the impact, but also
1664-611: A precursor to corporate farming transforming the yeoman farmer into wage workers. The success of the business can be attributed to founder Henry Miller 's direct management style which is reflected in his detailed correspondences to his subordinates. During recent years, dairy farming has greatly expanded in importance. As areas such as Chino and Corona have become absorbed into the suburban sprawl of Los Angeles, many dairy farmers have cashed out and moved their herds to Kings, Tulare, and Kern counties. Between 1990 and 2004, 28,092 hectares (70,231 acres) of agricultural land
1792-594: A predecessor of the Fresno Irrigation District. In 1872, the Central Pacific Railroad established a station near Easterby's—by now a hugely productive wheat farm—for its new Southern Pacific line. Soon there was a store near the station and the store grew into the town of Fresno Station, later called Fresno. At that time, Mariposa street was the main artery, a rough dusty or muddy depression. Many Millerton residents, drawn by
1920-409: A result of the sting. In the early 2000s, Fresno's two major venues were built, Chukchansi Park (2002) and Save Mart Center (2003). The 2017 Fresno shootings resulted in the death of 4 people. Fresno has a total area of 116 square miles (300 km ) with 98.96% land covering 114.79 square miles (297.3 km ), and 1.04% water, 1.21 square miles (3.1 km ). Fresno's location, very near
2048-550: A small wooden depot in 1872. In 1889, the Southern Pacific Railroad, which had acquired Central Pacific, constructed a new depot on the original depot site. The brick Queen Anne style depot was a jewel for the city and is one of Fresno's oldest standing buildings. In 1971, 99 years after it first opened for business on its current site, the Depot closed its rail operations due to the decline in business. Between
2176-616: A source of drinking water for 90% of San Joaquin Valley's residents. Nitrates have found their way into the aquifers around the San Joaquin Valley, affecting over 250,000 people in communities that are poor and rural. In 2006, the State Water Resources Board took samples from domestic wells in Tulare County; they found that 40% of 181 domestic wells had nitrate levels above the 10 mg/L legal limit. Though locals have typically used filters for their water,
2304-635: A strong history in Stockton. Filipino organizations in Stockton are reflected in various commercial buildings identified as Filipino. Filipinos fought for the U.S. against Japan in WWII, in exchange for favorable immigration status. Stockton has been an adjunct to the San Francisco Bay Area, which was a major military production and transit area during WWII. Filipino emigration to Stockton followed. Colonel Allensworth State Historic Park marks
2432-408: A three-year drought was prompting changes to the agriculture industry in the valley. Farmers began using complex irrigation systems and using treated waste water to feed crops, while many were switching from farming cotton to other commodities, chief among them, almonds. California has long been one of the nation's most important oil-producing states, and the San Joaquin Valley has long since eclipsed
2560-433: A troubled gestation during which its creator resigned, BankAmericard went on to become the world's first successful credit card . This financial instrument was usable across a large number of merchants and also allowed cardholders to revolve a balance (earlier financial products could do one or the other but not both). In 1970, BankAmericard was spun off into a separate company, and in 1976, that company became Visa Inc. In
2688-611: Is 72.7%. According to the United States Census Bureau 's American Community Survey , six San Joaquin Valley counties had the highest percentage of residents living below the federal poverty line in 2006 of any counties in California. The report also showed that the same six counties were among the 52 counties with the highest poverty rate in the United States . The median income for a household in
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#17328020847492816-409: Is 75 mi (121 km). The city is located near several Sierra Nevada lakes including Bass Lake , Shaver Lake , and Huntington Lake . Fresno is also only two and a half hours from Monterey , Carmel , Big Sur and the central coast. Because Fresno sits at the junction of Highways 41 and 99 (SR 41 is Yosemite National Park's southern access road, and SR 99 bypasses Interstate 5 to serve
2944-493: Is a National Historic Landmark as well as a Superfund site. Before World War II, Fresno had many ethnic neighborhoods, including Little Armenia, German Town, Little Italy, and Chinatown . In 1940, the Census Bureau reported Fresno's population as 94.0% white, 3.3% black and 2.7% Asian. Chinatown was primarily a Japanese neighborhood and today few Japanese-American businesses remain. During 1942, Pinedale , in what
3072-700: Is a federally recognized tribe of Kitanemuk , Yokuts , and Chumash indigenous people of California . Their ancestral homeland is the southern San Joaquin Valley, San Emigdio Mountains , and Tehachapi Mountains . Today they live in Kern County, California , headquartered in Wasco and Bakersfield, California . The Picayune Rancheria of Chukchansi Indians of California is a federally recognized tribe of indigenous people of California , Chukchansi or Foothills Yokuts , now located in Madera County in
3200-490: Is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California , United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about 115 square miles (300 km ) and had a population of 542,107 as of the 2020 census , making it the fifth-most populous city in California , the most populous inland city in California, and the 34th-most populous city in
3328-425: Is an increased presence of southeastern wind directions in the wind rose statistics. Fresno meteorology was selected in a national U.S. Environmental Protection Agency study for analysis of equilibrium temperature for use of ten-year meteorological data to represent a warm, dry western United States locale. The official record high temperature for Fresno is 115 °F (46.1 °C), set on July 8, 1905, while
3456-536: Is important to maternal and child health and is another comparative indicator of community health. According to the California Department of Health Services, 37% of births in Merced County occurred with no or late prenatal care and the San Joaquin Valley average was 19.5% of births with no or late prenatal care. By comparison, the California average was 13.6% of births and the national average
3584-521: Is known as the center of Fresno's LGBT and hipster communities. The area is also known for its early twentieth century homes, many of which have been restored in recent decades. The area includes many California Bungalow and American Craftsman style homes, Spanish Colonial Revival Style architecture , Mediterranean Revival Style architecture , Mission Revival Style architecture , and many Storybook houses designed by Fresno architects, Hilliard, Taylor & Wheeler. The residential architecture of
3712-420: Is near the geographic center of California, approximately 220 miles (350 km) north of Los Angeles , 170 miles (270 km) south of the state capital, Sacramento , and 185 miles (300 km) southeast of San Francisco . Yosemite National Park is about 60 miles (100 km) to the north, Kings Canyon National Park 60 miles (100 km) to the east, and Sequoia National Park 75 miles (120 km) to
3840-690: Is not state-maintained. The part east of unbuilt State Route 65 near Minkler is eligible for the State Scenic Highway System; the road east of Dunlap is the Kings Canyon Scenic Byway, a Forest Service Byway. Other important highways in the valley include State Route 46 (SR 46) and State Route 41 (SR 41), which respectively link the California Central Coast with Bakersfield and Fresno; State Route 33 (SR 33), which runs south to north along
3968-487: Is now North Fresno, was the site of the Pinedale Assembly Center , an interim facility for the relocation of Fresno area Japanese Americans to internment camps . The Fresno Fairgrounds were also utilized as an assembly center. Row crops and orchards gave way to urban development particularly in the period after World War II; this transition was particularly vividly demonstrated in locations such as
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4096-560: Is the lowest with only 42 percent of the daylight time in sunlight because of tule fog . However, the year averages 81% of possible sunshine, for a total of 3550 hours. Average annual precipitation is around 11 inches (279 mm). Most of the wind rose direction occurrences derive from the northwest, as winds are driven downward along the axis of the California Central Valley ; in December, January and February there
4224-469: Is the southern half of California 's Central Valley . Famed as a major breadbasket , the San Joaquin Valley is an important source of food, producing a significant part of California's agricultural output. San Joaquin Valley draws from eight counties of Northern and one of Southern California , including all of San Joaquin and Kings counties, most of Stanislaus , Merced , and Fresno counties, and parts of Madera and Tulare counties, along with
4352-415: Is the warmest month, averaging 83.5 °F (28.6 °C); normally, there are 38 days of 100 °F (37.8 °C)+ highs and 113 days of 90 °F (32.2 °C)+ highs, and between July and August, there are only 3.6 days where the high does not reach 90 °F (32.2 °C). Summers provide considerable sunshine, with July exceeding 96 percent of the total possible sunlight hours; conversely, December
4480-480: The Armenian and Hmong communities. In 1920, Armenians comprised 9% of the population of the city of Fresno, with 4,000 Armenian residents at the time. Old Armenian Town was the old Armenian neighborhood in the center of Fresno. The Hmong community of Fresno , along with that of Minneapolis–Saint Paul , is one of the largest two urban U.S. ethnic Hmong communities, with just over 24,000 people, or about 5% of
4608-520: The Blackstone Avenue corridor. Fresno's geographical remoteness also made it an early pioneer in the field now known as fintech , long before the term was invented. In September 1958, Bank of America launched a new product called BankAmericard in Fresno. The city was specifically selected in part for its remoteness, to limit damage to the bank's image in case the project failed. After
4736-562: The Environmental Protection Agency , meaning residents are exposed to air quality that is confirmed to be hazardous to human health. The region of the San Joaquin Valley has some of the richest soil that allows for the production of many crops. Crops in this region include: grapes, oranges, cotton, vegetables and nuts. The plethora of crop land allows for the valley to benefit from the income of crop sales. About sixty percent of California's crops come from
4864-536: The Federal Bureau of Investigation 's Operation Rezone sting resulted in several prominent Fresno and Clovis politicians being charged in connection with taking bribes in return for rezoning farmland for housing developments. Before the sting brought a halt to it, housing developers could buy farmland cheaply, pay off council members to have it rezoned, and make a large profit building and selling inexpensive housing. Sixteen people were eventually convicted as
4992-547: The Los Angeles Basin as the state's primary oil production region. Scattered oil wells on small oil fields are found throughout the region, and several enormous extraction facilities – most notably near Lost Hills and Taft , including the enormous Midway-Sunset Oil Field , the third-largest oil field in the United States – are veritable forests of pumps. Shell operated a major refinery in Bakersfield; it
5120-867: The Pacific Ocean . The somewhat larger southern portion is the Tulare Basin, an endorheic basin centered on Tulare Lake . Historically, Tulare Lake was fed by the Tule River , the Kings River, the Kaweah River , the White River and the Kern River , but much of this water has been diverted for agricultural uses and the watershed is mostly dry in its lower reaches. The San Joaquin Valley began to form about 66 million years ago during
5248-683: The Shinzen Japanese Gardens , boasts numerous picnic areas and several miles of trails. It is in North Fresno and is adjacent to the San Joaquin River Parkway . Roeding Park , near Downtown Fresno, is home to the Fresno Chaffee Zoo , and Rotary Storyland and Playland . Kearney Park is the largest of the Fresno region's park system and is home to historic Kearney Mansion and plays host to
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5376-672: The Union Pacific Railroad does not currently allow the San Joaquins trains to run on the highly congested rail route over Tehachapi Pass , which is the only route between Bakersfield and Los Angeles . Passengers between these towns must travel on Amtrak Thruway buses. The San Joaquin Valley is also the location of the planned initial operating segment of the California High-Speed Rail (CAHSR) project, which will run 171 miles from Bakersfield in
5504-505: The War in Vietnam . These immigrants, the majority of whom are Hmong , Laotian , Cambodian , and Vietnamese , have largely settled in the communities of Stockton, Modesto, Merced , and Fresno . Hmongs, Laotians, and Cambodians are the largest communities of Southeast Asians in the San Joaquin Valley, and the valley has some of the largest populations of these groups in the nation. Fresno has
5632-424: The ammonium nitrate that “accounts for more than half of the region’s PM2.5 on the area’s most polluted days.” Exacerbated by stagnant weather and the temperature drop of the cooler seasons, much of the air pollution becomes trapped beneath a layer of warmer air, resulting in a phenomenon known as temperature inversion and condensing the accumulation of pollutants within the valley. Population growth has caused
5760-472: The " Okies " of primarily English and Scots-Irish descent who migrated to California from the Midwest and South . Mennonite groups descended from Russian Germans settled in the areas of Reedley and Dinuba , as well as Lutheran and Catholic Volga Germans who settled in the broader Fresno area. The San Joaquin Valley has a large and exceptionally diverse Asian American population; primarily from
5888-455: The "rain year" from July 1982 to June 1983 down to 4.43 inches (112.5 mm) from July 1933 to June 1934. The most rainfall in one month was 9.54 inches (242.3 mm) in November 1885 and the most rainfall in 24 hours was 3.55 inches (90.2 mm) on November 18, 1885. Measurable precipitation falls on an average of 46.5 days annually. Snow is a rarity; the heaviest snowfall at the airport
6016-775: The 1880s and World War II, Downtown Fresno flourished, filled with electric streetcars, and contained a number of "lavish" and "opulent" buildings. Among them, the original Fresno County Courthouse (demolished), the Fresno Carnegie Public Library (demolished), the Old Fresno Water Tower , the Bank of Italy Building , the Pacific Southwest Building , the San Joaquin Light and Power Building (currently known as
6144-448: The 1950s and 1980s, when nitrogen fertilizer use grew sixfold, nitrate concentrations in groundwater increased 2.5 times. Fertilizer runoffs contributes roughly 90% of all nitrate inputs to the alluvial groundwater system. Within agriculture, the two major factors are High-Intensity Crop Production and Large Dairy Herds. Because these communities are cut off from larger water distribution, they are dependent on wells, making groundwater
6272-420: The 1960s, Fresno suffered numerous demolitions of historic buildings, including the old Fresno County Courthouse and the original buildings of Edison High School . This was the result of car-centric urban planning focused on making more room for cars and parking lots, a commonplace approach in the United States at that time. The dance style commonly known as popping evolved in Fresno in the 1970s. In 1995,
6400-503: The 1970s onward, landlords and large corporations have also hired undocumented immigrants . This has allowed them to increase their profits due to low overhead on wages. The San Joaquin Valley has—by California standards—an unusually large number of European, Middle Eastern, and Asian ethnicities in the heritage of its citizens. These communities are often quite large and, relative to Americans immigration patterns, quite eclectic: for example, there are more Azorean Portuguese in
6528-405: The 1990 census, it moved up to 47th place with 354,000, and in the census of 2000, it achieved 37th place with 428,000. The Fresno Municipal Sanitary Landfill was the first modern landfill in the United States, and incorporated several important innovations to waste disposal, including trenching, compacting, and the daily covering of trash with dirt. It was opened in 1937 and closed in 1987. It
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#17328020847496656-675: The 1990s and 2000s. The other, Castle Air Force Base , located near Atwater was closed during the Base Realignment and Closure of the 1990s. Although both are in Kern County, Edwards Air Force Base and China Lake Naval Air Weapons Station are located in the High Desert area of that county. The California real estate boom that began in the late 1990s has significantly changed the San Joaquin Valley. Once distinctly and fiercely independent of Los Angeles and San Francisco,
6784-561: The Bay Area's orbit as well. Bakersfield, traditionally a boom-bust oil town once described by urban scholar Joel Kotkin as an "American Abu Dhabi ," has seen a massive influx of former Los Angeles business owners and commuters, to the extent that gated communities containing million-dollar homes are going up on the city's outskirts. Wal-Mart , IKEA , Target , Amazon , CVS Pharmacy , Restoration Hardware , and other various large shipping firms have built huge distribution centers both in
6912-779: The California coastal ranges ( Diablo and Temblor ) in the west to the Sierra Nevada in the east. The valley contains two large river systems, divided north and south. The northern portion of San Joaquin Valley is called the San Joaquin Basin: the watershed of the San Joaquin River and its tributaries including parts of the Kings River , all of which drain northwest into the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta and eventually out to
7040-489: The Fig Garden Christmas Tree Lane, which is a nationally recognized event. There is also an upscale swim and racquet club located in northwestern Fig garden, which has multiple amenities including a heated lap pool, massage therapy, daycare, etc. Towards the northern boundary there is a shopping center called Fig Garden Village which hosts a plethora of upscale shopping opportunities. Fresno has
7168-713: The Grand 1401), and the Hughes Hotel (burned down), to name a few. Fulton Street in Downtown Fresno was Fresno's main financial and commercial district before being converted into one of the nation's first pedestrian malls in 1964. Renamed the Fulton Mall , the area contains the densest collection of historic buildings in Fresno. While the Fulton Mall corridor has suffered a sharp decline from its heyday,
7296-522: The Hispanic population, 42.7% of the total population are Mexican , 0.4% Salvadoran , and 0.4% Puerto Rican . Non-Hispanic Whites were 30.0% of the population in 2010, down from 72.6% in 1970. The Census reported that 485,798 people (98.2% of the population) lived in households, 4,315 (0.9%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 4,552 (0.9%) were institutionalized. There were 158,349 households, of which 68,511 (43.3%) had children under
7424-603: The Kings County average of 1.1 beds per a thousand and the San Joaquin Valley average of 1.8 beds per a thousand were again less than the state average of 2.1 bed per a thousand. Consequently, the age adjusted death rate is significantly higher than the rest of California. In response the University of California with the University of California, Merced is exploring opening a research medical school specializing in rural care, in hopes that some graduates will settle in
7552-681: The Mall includes some of the finest public art pieces in the country, including a casting of Pierre-Auguste Renoir 's bronze "The Washer Woman", reportedly the only one of the six castings that one can walk up to and touch. In October 2017, the City of Fresno finished and opened Fulton Mall to traffic, becoming Fulton Street. This change was celebrated with a large public parade featuring current mayor Lee Brand and former mayor Ashley Swearengin. The public art pieces will be restored and placed near their current locations and will feature wide sidewalks (up to 28' on
7680-454: The San Joaquin Valley and provide better healthcare. Currently, the Latino and Mexican descendants are large percentage of the demographics in the San Joaquin Valley. Since not long after the onset of the bracero program during World War II , all but a minor percentage of the farmworkers in the region have been of Mexican ancestry. Ethnic and economic friction between Mexican-Americans and
7808-528: The San Joaquin Valley at the time of the 2011-2015 American Community Survey 5-year Estimates by United States Census Bureau reported a population of 4,080,509. The racial composition of San Joaquin Valley was 1,428,978 (35.0%) Non-Hispanic White, 2,048,280 (50.2%) Hispanic or Latino, 310,557 (7.6%) Asian, 193,694 (4.7%) Black or African American, 40,911 (1.0%) American Indian and Alaska Native, and 13,000 (0.32%) Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander. The educational attainment of high school graduate or higher
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#17328020847497936-542: The San Joaquin Valley during World War II, most of them going to Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego to work in war-related industries. Many of those who stayed ended up in Bakersfield and Oildale , as the southern San Joaquin Valley became an important area of oil production after major Southern California oil fields such as Signal Hill began to dry up. Country music legends Buck Owens and Merle Haggard came out of Bakersfield's honky-tonk scene and created
8064-865: The San Joaquin Valley has long suffered from some of the United States' worst air pollution . With a PM2.5 measure of 17 micrograms per cubic meter of air, the San Joaquin Valley’s air pollution readings exceed both California's Ambient Air Quality Standard of 12 micrograms per cubic meter, and the National Ambient Air Quality Standard of 9 micrograms per cubic meter. Some of the San Joaquin Valley’s sources of air pollution stem from vehicle emissions, agricultural practices, and crop and wildfires. The use of diesel and gasoline fueled vehicles produces an excess of nitrogen oxides ( NOx ), eventually forming nitric acid that reacts with ammonia gas from cow manure and urine to create
8192-398: The San Joaquin Valley is located in Hanford and includes a Doppler weather radar . Weather forecasts and climatological information for the San Joaquin Valley are available from its official website. The San Joaquin Valley was originally inhabited by the Yokuts and Miwok peoples . The first European to enter the valley was Pedro Fages in 1772. The Tejon Indian Tribe of California
8320-445: The San Joaquin Valley than in the Azores. Many groups are found in majorities in specific cities, and hardly anywhere else in the region. For example, Assyrians are concentrated in Turlock , Dutch in Ripon , and Croats in Delano . Kingsburg is famous for its distinctly Swedish air, having been founded by immigrants from that country. Ethnic groups found in a broader area are Portuguese , Germans , Armenians , Basques , and
8448-420: The San Joaquin Valley to rank with Los Angeles and Houston in most measures of air pollution. Only the Inland Empire region east of Los Angeles has worse overall air quality, and the San Joaquin Valley led the nation in 2004 in the number of days with quantities of ozone considered unhealthy by the Environmental Protection Agency . The San Joaquin Valley has been deemed an "extreme non-attainment zone" by
8576-455: The San Joaquin Valley was Pedro Fages in 1772. The county of Fresno was formed in 1856 after the California Gold Rush and was named for the abundant ash trees (Spanish: fresno) lining the San Joaquin River . The San Joaquin River flooded on December 24, 1867, inundating Millerton . Some residents rebuilt, others moved. Flooding also destroyed the town of Scottsburg on the nearby Kings River that winter. Rebuilt on higher ground, Scottsburg
8704-472: The San Joaquin Valley, only the Wilmington Oil Field in Los Angeles County has untapped reserves greater than 100,000,000 barrels (16,000,000 m ), while six fields in the San Joaquin Valley (Midway-Sunset, Kern River , South Belridge , Elk Hills , Cymric , and Lost Hills ) each have reserves exceeding 100,000,000 barrels (16,000,000 m ) of oil. The isolation and vastness of the San Joaquin Valley, as well as its poverty and need for jobs, have led
8832-447: The San Joaquin Valley. Aside from the collapse of median home values, persistent crime, unemployment and poverty were common factors between Bakersfield , Fresno , Merced , Modesto and Stockton – every major city of the San Joaquin Valley. Insufficient access to medicine in the United States, in particular prenatal and preventive care, is typified by both rural and inner city communities. Early and adequate access to prenatal care
8960-415: The San Joaquin Valley. The Santa Rosa Rancheria belongs to the federally recognized Tachi Yokuts tribe and is located 4.5 miles (7.24 km) southeast of Lemoore, California , in the San Joaquin Valley. Since 2010, statewide droughts in California have further strained both the San Joaquin Valley's and the Sacramento Valley's water security . The total population of the eight counties comprising
9088-542: The Tower District contrasts with the newer areas of tract homes urban sprawl in north and east areas of Fresno. In the northeastern part of Fresno, Woodward Park was founded by the late Ralph Woodward, a long-time Fresno resident. He bequeathed a major portion of his estate in 1968 to provide a regional park and bird sanctuary in Northeast Fresno. The park lies on the southern bank of the San Joaquin River between Highway 41 and Friant Road. The initial 235 acres (0.95 km ), combined with additional acres acquired later by
9216-601: The Tower, the Farmers' market opened on the northwest corner of Olive and Van Ness and LitHop, an annual literary festival, featuring mostly local writers. The neighborhood features restaurants, live theater and nightclubs, as well as several independent shops and bookstores on or near Olive Avenue. Since renewal, the Tower District has become an attractive area for restaurant and other local businesses. The Tower District
9344-437: The United States and international service to Mexico. Additionally, there are three nonprimary airports in the region: Meadows Field Airport near Bakersfield , Stockton Metropolitan Airport and Merced Municipal Airport . The San Joaquins service handles passenger traffic between Bakersfield and Stockton with extensions to either Sacramento or Oakland . Amtrak rail service does not continue south of Bakersfield, as
9472-493: The Upward Extension Act of 1907 to offer lower-division college-level coursework to local high school graduates who wanted to attend college but were reluctant to move hundreds of miles away to do so. The high school's Collegiate Department evolved into Fresno City College , the oldest community college in California and the second oldest in the United States. In the 1920s and 1930s, Fresno State Teachers College
9600-448: The age of 18 living in them, 69,284 (43.8%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 30,547 (19.3%) had a female householder with no husband present, 11,698 (7.4%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 12,843 (8.1%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships , and 1,388 (0.9%) same-sex married couples or partnerships . 35,064 households (22.1%) were made up of individuals, and 12,344 (7.8%) had someone living alone who
9728-489: The airline's filing to a Chapter 7 status. According to the Air21 March 1996 system timetable and route map, the airline operated Fokker F28 jet service into the following destinations: This article relating to a United States airline is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Fresno, California Fresno ( / ˈ f r ɛ z n oʊ / ; Spanish for ' Ash tree ')
9856-447: The airline. Air21 commenced passenger operations in December 1995. The crash of ValuJet Airlines Flight 592 in 1996 refocused public attention on the operations of low-cost carriers. With a negative public perception increasing, passenger numbers declined. Air21 ceased operations in January 1997, whereupon it entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy . Two months later in March 1997 a buyout of the company by investment banker David Walsh converted
9984-604: The annual California Interscholastic Federation State Championship cross country meet. It is the home of the Woodward Shakespeare Festival which began performances in the park in 2005. Located in the western portion of Fresno, Old Fig Garden is an unincorporated community that, over time, has been completely encircled by the city of Fresno. Fig Garden was created in 1947, as the then-known Fig Garden Men's club achieved nonprofit corporate status, allowing itself to have much more governance. In 1979,
10112-637: The annual Civil War Revisited, the largest reenactment of the Civil War in the west coast of the U.S. In its 2023 ParkScore ranking, The Trust for Public Land , a national land conservation organization, reported that Fresno had one of the worst park systems among the 100 most populous U.S. cities, with only 5% of city land being used for parks and recreation. The survey measures median park size, park acres as percent of city area, residents' access to parks, spending on parks per resident, and playgrounds per 10,000 residents. The Central Pacific Railroad built
10240-464: The area has seen increasing exurban development as the cost of living forces young families and small businesses further and further away from the coastal urban cores. Stockton, Modesto, Tracy (as well as the nearby city of Mountain House ), Manteca, and Los Banos are increasingly dominated by commuters to San Francisco and Silicon Valley, and the small farming towns to the south are finding themselves in
10368-440: The city was 50.2% White , 8.4% Black or African American , 1.6% Native American , 11.2% Asian (about a third of which is Hmong ), 0.1% Pacific Islander , 23.4% from other races , and 5.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 39.9% of the population. There were 140,079 households, of which 40.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.1% were married couples living together, 17.6% had
10496-698: The city's population, being of Hmong descent. The 2010 United States Census reported that Fresno had a population of 494,665. The population density was 4,404.5 inhabitants per square mile (1,700.6/km ). The racial makeup of Fresno was 245,306 (49.6%) White , 40,960 (8.3%) African American , 8,525 (1.7%) Native American , 62,528 (12.6%) Asian (3.6% Hmong , 1.7% Indian , 1.2% Filipino , 1.2% Laotian , 1.0% Thai , 0.8% Cambodian , 0.7% Chinese , 0.5% Japanese , 0.4% Vietnamese , 0.2% Korean ), 849 (0.2%) Pacific Islander , 111,984 (22.6%) from other races , and 24,513 (5.0%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 232,055 persons (46.9%). Among
10624-403: The city, brings the park to a sizable 300 acres (1.2 km ). Now packed with amenities, Woodward Park is the only Regional Park of its size in the Central Valley. The park has a multi-use amphitheatre that seats up to 2,500 people, an authentic Japanese Garden, fenced dog park, bike park, two playgrounds, two-mile (3 km) equestrian trail, exercise par course, three children's playgrounds,
10752-478: The city. Another devastating blaze struck in 1883. In 1909, Fresno's first and oldest synagogue , Temple Beth Israel , was founded. As a result of its remoteness from the great universities of the San Francisco Bay Area and Greater Los Angeles , Fresno became a statewide leader in educational innovation. In 1910, Fresno High School was the first California high school to take advantage of
10880-552: The college moved to what is now the site of Fresno City College one-half mile north of the Tower District. After decades of neglect and suburban flight, the neighborhood revival followed the re-opening of the Tower Theatre in the late 1970s, which at that time showed second- and third-run movies, along with classic films. Roger Rocka's Dinner Theater & Good Company Players also opened nearby in 1978, at Olive and Wishon Avenues. Fresno native Audra McDonald performed in
11008-811: The convenience of the railroad and worried about flooding, moved to the new community. Fresno became an incorporated city in 1885. In 1903, the faltering San Joaquin Power Company was renamed the San Joaquin Light and Power Corporation and included the Fresno City Water Company and the Fresno City Railway. By 1931 the railway, now known as the Fresno Traction Company , operated 47 streetcars over 49 miles (79 km) of track. Two years after
11136-409: The early Paleocene era. Broad fluctuations in the sea level caused various areas of the valley to be flooded with ocean water for the next 60 million years. About 5 million years ago, the marine outlets began to close due to uplift of the coastal ranges and the deposition of sediment in the valley. Starting 2 million years ago, a series of glacial episodes periodically caused much of the valley to become
11264-504: The east side of the street) to continue with the pedestrian-friendly environment of the district. The historic Tower Theatre , which is included on the National Register of Historic Places, is the center of the Tower District. The theater was built in 1939 at the corner of Olive and Wishon Avenues. The Tower District neighborhood is just north of downtown Fresno proper, and one-half mile south of Fresno City College. Although
11392-510: The filters need to be installed correctly and replaced frequently, which may not be economically feasible for the residents in Orosi. Table 2 on page 20 from Pacific Institute 's "The Human Costs of Nitrate-contaminated Drinking Water in the San Joaquin Valley" indicates the water systems that were contaminated with nitrates over the legal limit, the percentage of the population affected that are non-white and that are below or near poverty-level, and
11520-532: The first major infestation of the boll weevil .) When the onset of the Great Depression created a national banking crisis, family farmers—usually heavily in debt—often had their mortgages foreclosed by banks desperate to shore up their balance sheets. In response, many farmers loaded their families and portable possessions into their automobiles and drove west. Many of the Okies and Arkies left
11648-401: The geographical center of California, places the city a comfortable distance from many of the major recreation areas and urban centers in the state. Just 60 mi (97 km) south of Yosemite National Park , it is the nearest major city to the park. Likewise, Sierra National Forest is 40 mi (64 km), Kings Canyon National Park is 60 mi (97 km) and Sequoia National Park
11776-515: The land in this area. However, the unhealthy air levels that arise from smog lead to the destruction of many crops. According to the California Air Resources Board the San Joaquin Valley loses about one billion dollars every year due to the pollution in the air destroying these crops. Furthermore, as crops and vegetation die off from the air and water quality, farmers sometimes turn to burning to dispose of them. Due to
11904-562: The largest U.S. city without an Interstate highway), while SR 99 runs through them. Both highways then merge at the southern end of valley en route to Los Angeles. When the Interstate Highway System was created in the 1950s, the decision was made to build I-5 as an entirely then-new freeway bypass instead of upgrading the then-existing U.S. 99 . Since then, state and federal representatives have pushed to convert SR 99 to an Interstate, although this cannot occur until all of
12032-565: The leading roles of Evita and The Wiz at the theater while she was a high school student. McDonald subsequently became a leading performer on Broadway in New York City and a Tony award -winning actress. Also in the Tower District is Good Company Players' 2nd Space Theatre. The Tower District is a hub for community events such as Jamaica My Weekend, Mardi Gras in February, Gay Pride Parade , car shows, A Taste of The Tower, Halloween in
12160-419: The location of the only California town to be founded, financed and governed by African Americans. The small farming community was founded in 1908 by Lt. Colonel Allen Allensworth , Professor William Payne, William Peck, a minister, John W. Palmer, a miner, and Harry A. Mitchell, a real estate agent, dedicated to improving the economic and social status of African Americans. Uncontrollable circumstances, including
12288-557: The mountains through Clovis and many smaller communities. This route is part of the California Freeway and Expressway System and is eligible for the State Scenic Highway System. State Route 180 is a state highway which runs through the heart of the San Joaquin Valley from Mendota through Fresno to Kings Canyon National Park. A short piece near the eastern end, through the Grant Grove section of Kings Canyon National Park,
12416-418: The name was changed to Fig Garden Home Owners Association. Fig Garden is unique to the rest of Fresno, as it features largely no sidewalks and is lined with various large trees. The homes are well-maintained and landscaped due to strict regulations from the homeowners association. Due to a tax Fig Garden residences voted for, there is nearly round-the-clock sheriff service within the district. The district hosts
12544-489: The nation. Named for the abundant ash trees lining the San Joaquin River , Fresno was founded in 1872 as a railway station of the Central Pacific Railroad before it was incorporated in 1885. It has since become an economic hub of Fresno County and the San Joaquin Valley, with much of the surrounding areas in the Metropolitan Fresno region predominantly tied to large-scale agricultural production. Fresno
12672-451: The neighborhood was known as a residential area, the early commercial establishments of the Tower District began with small shops and services that flocked to the area shortly after World War II. The character of small local businesses largely remains today. To some extent, the businesses of the Tower District were developed due to the proximity of the original Fresno Normal School (later renamed California State University at Fresno ). In 1916,
12800-454: The official record low is 17 °F (−8 °C), set on January 6, 1913. The average windows for temperatures of 100 °F (37.8 °C)+ are June 2 through September 15; for temperatures of 90 °F (32.2 °C)+, April 25 through October 10; and for freezing temperatures, December 14 through January 24, although no freeze occurred during the 1983–84 or 2020–21 winter seasons. Annual rainfall has ranged from 23.57 inches (598.7 mm) in
12928-514: The poor air quality. The elderly population is also vulnerable to air pollution and could even suffer from heart attacks due to decreased lung functions. Reports state that the residents in this community suffer from high rates of asthma and experience many related symptoms. The American Lung Association attributes the noxious gas in the San Joaquin Valley to roughly 1,300 premature deaths every year, including public impacts such as lost days of school or work and emergency room visits, and
13056-669: The portions of SR 99 between I-5 and the U.S. 50 junction in Sacramento are upgraded to Interstate standards . State Route 58 (SR 58), which is a freeway in Bakersfield and along most of its route until its terminus in Barstow , is an extremely important and very heavily traveled route for truckers from the valley and the Bay Area who want to cross the Sierra Nevada and leave California (by way of Interstate 15 or Interstate 40 ) without having to climb Donner Pass or brave
13184-399: The potential to damage aqueducts, roads, bridges, and flood-control structures. In the long term, the subsidence caused by extracting groundwater could irreversibly reduce the underground aquifer's water storage capacity, although immediate and short term needs are given higher priority and sense of urgency than long term sustainability. The National Weather Service Forecast Office for
13312-516: The regions of Punjab in India and Pakistan, the Philippines, and Southeast Asia, especially Laos and Cambodia. Punjabi Sikh Americans have immigrated to the San Joaquin Valley since the early 1900s and 1910s, and remain a very large presence in the area. To this day, Punjabi is the third most spoken language in the San Joaquin Valley region, after English and Spanish, and the first Sikh Gurdwara
13440-487: The rural population of states such as Kansas , Texas , Oklahoma , and Arkansas left at this time, selling their land and moving to Chicago , Kansas City , Detroit , and fast-growing Los Angeles . Those who remained experienced continuing deterioration of conditions, which reached their nadir during the drought that began in the late 1920s and created the infamous Dust Bowl . (Small cotton farmers in states such as Mississippi and Alabama suffered similar problems from
13568-498: The second-largest Hmong population of any American metropolitan area after Minneapolis–Saint Paul , and Stockton is believed to have the largest percentage of Cambodian Americans of any major American metropolitan area. Merced , Modesto, Fresno, Visalia , and Stockton have some of the largest populations of Laotian Americans in the United States. The Filipino American population is concentrated in Delano and Lathrop . Filipinos have
13696-623: The south to Merced in the north. Freight service is provided by BNSF Railway , Union Pacific Railroad and San Joaquin Valley Railroad . The valley is served by the Western Area Power Administration . Western owns and operates its own equipment here and so performs its own weed management . Rotating and mixing herbicide modes of action are employed to preserve efficacy . Hemmed in by mountains and rarely having strong winds to disperse smog ,
13824-684: The southeast. Fresno is also the third-largest majority-Hispanic city in the United States with 50.5% of its population being Hispanic in 2020. The original inhabitants of the San Joaquin Valley region were the Yokuts people and Miwok people , who engaged in trading with other Californian tribes of Native Americans including coastal peoples such as the Chumash of the Central California coast, with whom they are thought to have traded plant and animal products. The first European to enter
13952-451: The southern end of the valley and northern part of the valley because of quick access to major interstates and low local wages. Further integration with the rest of the state is likely to continue for the foreseeable future. Interstate 5 (I-5) and State Route 99 (SR 99) each run nearly the entire length of the San Joaquin Valley. I-5 runs in the western part of the valley, bypassing the major population centers (including Fresno, currently
14080-538: The state to build numerous prisons in the area. The most notable of these is Corcoran , whose inmates have included Charles Manson and Juan Corona . Other correctional facilities in the valley are at Avenal , Chowchilla , Tracy , Delano , Coalinga , and Wasco . The only significant military base in the region is Naval Air Station Lemoore , a vast air base located 25 kilometres (16 mi) WSW of Hanford . Unlike many of California's other military installations, NAS Lemoore's operational importance has increased in
14208-631: The station was established, county residents voted to move the county seat from Millerton to Fresno. When the Friant Dam was completed in 1944, the site of Millerton became inundated by the waters of Millerton Lake . In extreme droughts, when the reservoir shrinks, ruins of the original county seat can still be observed. In the nineteenth century, with so much wooden construction and in the absence of sophisticated firefighting resources, fires often ravaged American frontier towns. The greatest of Fresno's early-day fires, in 1882, destroyed an entire block of
14336-689: The surplus of crop burning to clear land. more air pollution is created, adding to the severity of the San Joaquin Valley's already poor air quality. The San Joaquin Valley suffers from extremely high ozone levels that tend to increase even more on hot days. Kids are more inclined to play outdoors during summer when the weather is warmer. According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency this could lead to health issues such as asthma because these children are not fully developed yet. Roughly one in six children in this region suffer from asthma due to
14464-483: The traffic congestion of Los Angeles . Proposals have also been made to designate this highway as a western extension of I-40 once the entirety of the route between Mojave and Barstow has been upgraded to a freeway. This would provide an Interstate connection for Bakersfield, currently the second-largest U.S. city without an Interstate. The most recent additions to this system are State Routes 168 and 180. Route 168 begins in Fresno on Route 180 linking to Huntington Lake in
14592-472: The urban centers of the San Joaquin Valley), the city is a major gateway for Yosemite visitors coming from Los Angeles . The city also serves as an entrance into Sierra National Forest via Highway 168 , and Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks via Highway 180 . Fresno has three large public parks, two in the city limits and one in county land to the southwest. Woodward Park , which features
14720-414: The valley was $ 46,713. The poverty rate for individuals below the poverty level is 23.7%. In 2005 U.S. congressional researchers compared the economically distressed Valley to the traditionally impoverished Appalachia region, resulting in the appellation New Appalachia . In 2011 Forbes, after taking the fluctuation of median home values, five of the top twenty "most miserable cities" were located in
14848-575: The valley's predominantly white farming elite manifested itself most notably during the 1960s and 1970s, when the United Farm Workers , led by César Chávez , went on numerous strikes and called for boycotts of table grapes. The UFW generated enormous sympathy throughout the United States, even managing to terminate several agricultural mechanization projects at the United States Department of Agriculture . However, from
14976-582: The valley's western rim and provides a connection to Ventura and Santa Barbara over the Santa Ynez Mountains ; and State Route 152 (SR 152), an important commuter route linking Silicon Valley with its fast-growing exurbs such as Los Banos . The busiest airport in San Joaquin Valley is the Fresno Yosemite International Airport , which offers scheduled passenger flights to several major airline hubs in
15104-628: The wildlife as well. In August 2015, the Director of the California Department of Water Resources stated, "Because of increased pumping, groundwater levels are reaching record lows—up to 100 feet lower than previous records." Research from NASA shows that parts of the San Joaquin Valley sank as much as 8 inches (0.20 m) in a four-month period, and land near Corcoran sank 13 inches (0.33 m) in 8 months. The sinking has destroyed thousands of groundwater well casings and has
15232-523: Was 10% of births Likewise, the counties of the San Joaquin Valley have relatively high ratios of population to physicians, suggesting relatively low access, with the highest in Kings County at 1,027 patients per a physician, the San Joaquin Valley average at approximately 671 patients per a physician and the California average of 400 patients per a physician. Another measure of access is licensed acute care hospital beds per thousand population, where
15360-478: Was 2.2 inches (5.6 cm) on January 21–22, 1962. See or edit raw graph data . Fresno is the larger principal city of the Fresno-Madera CSA , a Combined Statistical Area that includes the Fresno (Fresno County) and Madera (Madera County) metropolitan areas, which had a combined population of 922,516 at the 2000 census . Fresno is home to numerous ethnic minority communities, such as
15488-403: Was 29.3 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.5 males. There were 171,288 housing units at an average density of 1,525.2 per square mile (588.9/km ), of which 158,349 were occupied, of which 77,757 (49.1%) were owner-occupied, and 80,592 (50.9%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.6%; the rental vacancy rate
15616-436: Was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.07. There were 111,529 families (70.4% of all households); the average family size was 3.62. The age distribution of the population shows 148,823 people (30.1%) under the age of 18, 62,601 people (12.7%) aged 18 to 24, 135,076 people (27.3%) aged 25 to 44, 102,064 people (20.6%) aged 45 to 64, and 46,101 people (9.3%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age
15744-460: Was 7.6%. 235,430 people (47.6% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 250,368 people (50.6%) lived in rental housing units. As of the census of 2000, there were 427,652 people, 140,079 households, and 97,915 families residing in the city. The population density was 4,097.9 inhabitants per square mile (1,582.2/km ). There were 149,025 housing units at an average density of 1,427.9 square miles (3,698 km ). The racial makeup of
15872-483: Was at the forefront of the evolution of the state teachers colleges into state colleges offering a broad liberal arts education . The state colleges later became the California State University and Fresno State became California State University, Fresno . Fresno entered the ranks of the 100 most populous cities in the United States in 1960 with a population of 134,000. Thirty years later, in
16000-399: Was founded in Stockton in 1915. Following abolition of immigration restrictions from Asia in the 1960s and 1970s, large numbers of Pakistanis and Indians from Punjab, Gujarat, and Southern India have settled in these valley communities including Modesto , Livingston , Fresno , Stockton , and Lodi . In addition, the late 1970s and '80s saw an influx of immigrants from Indochina following
16128-525: Was lost to urban development in the San Joaquin Valley. Although there have been some token efforts at confronting the problems of (sub) urban sprawl , the politically conservative climate of the Valley generally prefers traditional suburban sprawl type of growth such as low density housing and strip malls anchored by so-called big box stores and opposes measures such as "Smart Growth", "Transit Oriented Development", "High Density Housing", and increased public transit such as light and commuter rail. By August 2014,
16256-531: Was renamed Centerville. In 1867, Anthony Easterby purchased land bounded by the present Chestnut, Belmont, Clovis and California avenues, that today is called the Sunnyside district . Unable to grow wheat for lack of water, he hired sheep man Moses Church in 1870 to create an irrigation system. Building new canals and purchasing existing ditches, Church then formed the Fresno Canal and Irrigation Company,
16384-537: Was sold in 2005 to Flying J , a Salt Lake -based firm that operates truck stops and refineries. Flying J's bankruptcy in 2009 resulted in the refinery being shut down. The oil and gas fields in Kern County are receiving increased attention since the July 2009 announcement by Occidental Petroleum of significant discovery of oil and gas reserves Even prior to this discovery the region retains more oil reserves than any other part of California. Of California fields outside of
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