Keyesville (formerly, Keysville
and Hogeye
) is an
unincorporated community
An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...
in
Kern County
Kern County is a county (United States), county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 909,235. Its county seat is Bakersfield, California, Bakersfield.
Kern County compris ...
,
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
.
It is located west of
Lake Isabella and the
Kern River Valley
The Kern River Valley is a valley and region of the Southern Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada, in Kern County, California, Kern County, California.
History
The valley was inhabited for millennia by the indigenous Tübatulabal and Kawaiisu peo ...
, at an elevation of .
Keyesville, founded in 1854 is named for Richard M. Keyes, whose discovery of gold in 1853 started the
Kern River Gold Rush.
The Keyesville Townsite has been privately owned since the late 1800s and is currently encircled by BLM land
Bureau of Land Management
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior responsible for administering federal lands, U.S. federal lands. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the BLM oversees more than of land, or one ...
.
History
Gold was discovered here in 1853 and the town became a gold hub of Southern California. Still located on the site are the original Post Office, Gold Assayer's office, Mercantile Building, Blacksmith Shop, and one of the brothels. Among the more famous visitors to Keyesville was Grizzly Adams and the "Shootin' Walkers", a family of gunslingers who took up residence here and built the Walker Cabin just outside of the Keyesville townsite, which still stands today. A petition to the commander of
Camp Babbitt about the depredations of the local Native Americans led to the
Keyesville Massacre nearby on 19 April 1863. The townsite is registered as
California Historical Landmark
A California Historical Landmark (CHL) is a building, structure, site, or place in the U.S. state of California that has been determined to have statewide historical landmark significance.
Criteria
Historical significance is determined by meetin ...
#98.
Natural history
Keyesville lies in the lower elevation
Greenhorn Mountains
The Greenhorn Mountains are a mountain range of the Southern Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada, in California. They are protected within the Sequoia National Forest.
Geography
The range is located in eastern Kern County, California, Kern Count ...
. There are scattered trees and brushy
chaparral
Chaparral ( ) is a shrubland plant plant community, community found primarily in California, southern Oregon, and northern Baja California. It is shaped by a Mediterranean climate (mild wet winters and hot dry summers) and infrequent, high-intens ...
slopes surrounding it. A number of
wildflower
A wildflower (or wild flower) is a flower that grows in the wild, rather than being intentionally seeded or planted. The term implies that the plant is neither a hybrid nor a selected cultivar that is any different from the native plant, eve ...
s are in evidence in this part of the Greenhorn Mountains, including the yellow mariposa lily, ''
Calochortus luteus'', which species is at the southern limit of its range within the Greenhorn Mountains.
California Historical Landmark
The California Historical Landmark reads:
:''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.''
Cal California parks Historical Landmarks
/ref>
See also
* California Historical Landmarks in Kern County
*California Historical Landmark
A California Historical Landmark (CHL) is a building, structure, site, or place in the U.S. state of California that has been determined to have statewide historical landmark significance.
Criteria
Historical significance is determined by meetin ...
References
External links
Keysville Special Recreation Management Area
- Bureau of Land Management
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior responsible for administering federal lands, U.S. federal lands. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the BLM oversees more than of land, or one ...
Unincorporated communities in Kern County, California
Greenhorn Mountains
Kern River Valley
California Historical Landmarks
Populated places in the Sierra Nevada (United States)
Unincorporated communities in California
{{KernCountyCA-geo-stub