Best Web Design in Bakersfield, CA (2026)

Web Design for Bakersfield, California

Bakersfield sits at the southern end of California's Central Valley, an oil-and-agriculture powerhouse that gave American country music its raw, twangy "Bakersfield Sound." It rose from reclaimed swampland in the 1860s into the seat of Kern County, one of the nation's top oil-producing and farming counties. Buck Owens and Merle Haggard made it "Nashville West," and its Basque restaurants and gushing oil fields give the city an identity all its own.

AppWT works with Bakersfield, CA businesses from Livonia, Michigan, mostly online and travelling as needed.

About Bakersfield

Also known as. Bako. Nashville West (for its country-music legacy). The birthplace of the "Bakersfield Sound".

History. Founded along the Los Angeles-Stockton road in 1869 by Thomas Baker, who reclaimed swamplands along the Kern River The area was first known as Kern Island to pioneers who built log cabins there around 1860 Gold was discovered along the Kern River in 1851; oil was discovered in the valley in 1865 The Kern River Oil Field, discovered in 1899 near the city, launched a major oil boom The 1861 floods destroyed the original 1860 settlement, prompting Baker to relocate to the Kern River banks A magnitude-7.5 earthquake struck the area in 1952, causing severe damage

Local economy. Kern County is one of the most oil-productive counties in the United States, and Bakersfield is its hub Agriculture is the other pillar: grapes, citrus, almonds, carrots, alfalfa, cotton, and roses; Kern ranks among the top agricultural counties nationally, earning the region a "breadbasket of California" reputation Top employers are dominated by public institutions: the County of Kern, Kern High School District, Bakersfield City School District, Panama-Buena Vista Union School District, and Dignity Health Manufacturing includes one of the world's largest ice cream plants

Culture and community. Birthplace of the Bakersfield Sound, an electric, guitar-driven country subgenre that rose in the late 1950s and 1960s as a raw counterpoint to polished Nashville Buck Owens moved here in 1951 and opened the Crystal Palace in 1996; Merle Haggard was born in nearby Oildale Dwight Yoakam's cover of "Streets of Bakersfield" hit #1 in 1988 Distinctive Basque dining tradition with historic restaurants like Wool Growers, Noriega's, and Pyrenees; the Kern County Basque Festival is held on Memorial Day weekend The nu-metal band Korn formed in Bakersfield in the early 1990s; the mayor declared February 24, 2006, "Korn Day"

What makes Bakersfield distinct. The population exploded roughly 400% between 1970 and 2010, from about 70,000 to over 347,000 Much of the Kern River is now diverted for agriculture, leaving roughly 30 miles of riverbed running dry through the city By 1880 the small population of 801 already included about 250 people of Chinese descent The region is famous for its dense winter "tule fog," though its density has decreased with drought and development Home track and hometown of racing champions: Rick Mears (four-time Indy 500 winner) was born here, and Daytona 500 winner Kevin Harvick is a Bakersfield native

Kern County seat and the largest city in the southern San Joaquin Valley, known for agriculture, oil production, and country music.

Bakersfield Landmarks and Local Life

• Buck Owens' Crystal Palace - Music venue and museum honoring the Bakersfield Sound
• Bakersfield Sign - Historic neon arch marking the city's identity
• Garces Memorial Circle - California Historical Landmark honoring Father Francisco Garces
• The Park at River Walk - 32-acre park with bike paths, a lake, and an amphitheater
• Kern River County Park - 1,014-acre recreation area with Lake Ming and the California Living Museum

Bakersfield at a Glance

U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2023.

• Median household income: About $77,397
• Adults with a bachelor degree or higher: About 23%
• Housing: About 60% of housing units are owner-occupied
• Housing: About 71% of homes are single-family detached houses