Country United States County Kern County | State California Elevation 785 m | |
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Weather 10°C, Wind NE at 3 km/h, 62% Humidity | ||
Kernville (also, Whiskey Flat, Rogersville and Williamsburg) is a former settlement in the Kern River Valley of the Sierra Nevada, in Kern County, California.
Kernville was established in 1858 as a gold camp. It lay at an elevation of 2,575 feet (785 m).
It was submerged under Lake Isabella reservoir in 1954.
History
An 1858 gold rush, caused by the discovery of the Big Blue Mine nearby, led to the formation of a town on the flats along the Kern River. Briefly called Rogersville (after the man who first found gold in the area while chasing his mule) and Williamsburg, it was soon renamed Whiskey Flat after a saloon opened in the previously "dry" town. The towns name changed again after 1864 to Kernville.
The post office formerly at Keysville was moved to Kernville and operated at Kernville from 1868 to 1951, when service was moved to the new Kernville.
Hollywood producers shot many films, mostly Westerns in the town.
The original townsite is now registered as California Historical Landmark #132.