Blackstone Avenue
Encyclopedia
Blackstone Avenue is a major roadway arterial in Fresno, California
, USA. This street is the location of a number of historic structures and is also the locus of a considerable concentration of retail commercial land usage. The campus of the Fresno City College
straddles Blackstone Avenue in the vicinity of McKinley Avenue.
In 1946, the area contained many residences on large lots. The photographs observed indicate that many of these large lots included row crops. Surrounding lands at that time were predominantly used for agriculture, with orchards lining much of the western side of Blackstone Avenue. A mixture of row crops, vacant fields, orchards, and scattered residences made up much of the landscape on the eastern side of Blackstone Avenue.
The aerial photographs taken in 1962 indicate that land use in the subject site vicinity showed significant change between 1946 and 1962. Urbanization occurred in the Blackstone Avenue vicinity during this period. Orchards and row crops had been largely replaced by commercial and residential structures by 1962.
s of the Blackstone Avenue area are a heterogeneous mix of generally poorly sorted clay
, silt
, sand
and gravel
.
Fresno, California
Fresno is a city in central California, United States, the county seat of Fresno County. As of the 2010 census, the city's population was 510,365, making it the fifth largest city in California, the largest inland city in California, and the 34th largest in the nation...
, USA. This street is the location of a number of historic structures and is also the locus of a considerable concentration of retail commercial land usage. The campus of the Fresno City College
Fresno City College
Fresno City College is a community college in Fresno, California. Established in 1910, it was the first community college in California and the second in the nation...
straddles Blackstone Avenue in the vicinity of McKinley Avenue.
History
The local history may be best recorded by some of the old surviving homes on Blackstone Avenue which are in the Register of National Historic Places, including the Ella Hoxie Home (251 N. Blackstone Avenue); Brix Home (313 N. Blackstone Avenue); Griffen Home (319 N. Blackstone Avenue); Hines Home (333 N. Blackstone Avenue). Earth Metrics Inc. performed an analysis of historic aerial photographs in the Blackstone Avenue vicinity.In 1946, the area contained many residences on large lots. The photographs observed indicate that many of these large lots included row crops. Surrounding lands at that time were predominantly used for agriculture, with orchards lining much of the western side of Blackstone Avenue. A mixture of row crops, vacant fields, orchards, and scattered residences made up much of the landscape on the eastern side of Blackstone Avenue.
The aerial photographs taken in 1962 indicate that land use in the subject site vicinity showed significant change between 1946 and 1962. Urbanization occurred in the Blackstone Avenue vicinity during this period. Orchards and row crops had been largely replaced by commercial and residential structures by 1962.
Geology
The elevation of Blackstone Avenue is approximately 330 feet (100.6 m) above mean sea level. The underlying sedimentSediment
Sediment is naturally occurring material that is broken down by processes of weathering and erosion, and is subsequently transported by the action of fluids such as wind, water, or ice, and/or by the force of gravity acting on the particle itself....
s of the Blackstone Avenue area are a heterogeneous mix of generally poorly sorted clay
Clay
Clay is a general term including many combinations of one or more clay minerals with traces of metal oxides and organic matter. Geologic clay deposits are mostly composed of phyllosilicate minerals containing variable amounts of water trapped in the mineral structure.- Formation :Clay minerals...
, silt
Silt
Silt is granular material of a size somewhere between sand and clay whose mineral origin is quartz and feldspar. Silt may occur as a soil or as suspended sediment in a surface water body...
, sand
Sand
Sand is a naturally occurring granular material composed of finely divided rock and mineral particles.The composition of sand is highly variable, depending on the local rock sources and conditions, but the most common constituent of sand in inland continental settings and non-tropical coastal...
and gravel
Gravel
Gravel is composed of unconsolidated rock fragments that have a general particle size range and include size classes from granule- to boulder-sized fragments. Gravel can be sub-categorized into granule and cobble...
.