Bena (formerly Pampa)[2] is an unincorporated area of Kern County, California.[1] It is located on the Union Pacific Railroad 7 miles (11 km) west-northwest of Caliente,[2] at an elevation of 863 feet (263 m).[1] The Pampa post office operated from 1889 to 1890 and again during 1901.[2]
Bena | |
|---|---|
  Bena Location in California  Bena Bena (the United States) | |
| Coordinates: 35°19′36″N 118°44′23″W / 35.32667°N 118.73972°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | California |
| County | Kern County |
| Elevation | 863 ft (263 m) |
Railroad history
editThe Bena railroad station was built in 1885.[3] In 1918, Standard Construction agreed to build four rail operators' houses near Bena for Southern Pacific.[4] In 1962, the old Bena railroad station became the site of the largest superphosphate manufacturing plant west of the Mississippi River.[3]
The Southern Pacific and Santa Fe Railroads donated the old Bena depot, once located a few miles from the Tehachapi Loop, to Kern Pioneer Village in 1961.[3][5] Bena Depot was fully restored by the Kern County Museum in 2020.[6]
Oil fields and landfill
editThe area near Bena was the site of wildcat drilling for oil in the 1930s[7] and 1940s.[8]
Kern County now operates a landfill at Bena.[9]
References
edit- ^ a b c U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Bena, California
- ^ a b c Durham, David L. (1998). California's Geographic Names: A Gazetteer of Historic and Modern Names of the State. Clovis, Calif.: Word Dancer Press. p. 1001. ISBN 1-884995-14-4.
- ^ a b c "Big Fertilizer Plant Starts Kern Output". The Fresno Bee. April 29, 1962. Retrieved November 24, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Will Build Houses". Bakersfield Morning Echo. September 27, 1918. Retrieved November 24, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Garcia, Olivia (February 5, 2017). "Kern Pioneer Village research center ready for researchers". The Bakersfield Californian. Retrieved November 24, 2023.
- ^ "Recent Restoration Projects". Kern County Museum. Retrieved November 24, 2023.
- ^ "Three Wildcats Seek New Field". Fresno Bee. June 13, 1937. Retrieved November 24, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Oil Field Notes". The San Francisco Examiner. November 30, 1949. Retrieved November 24, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Bena". Kern County Public Works. Retrieved November 24, 2023.
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