Millerton, Madera County, California
Encyclopedia
Millerton was the original county seat
of Fresno County
, formed in 1856. The county was much larger than it is today, comprising its current area plus all of what became Madera County
and parts of what are now San Benito
, Tulare
, Kings
, Inyo
, and Mono
counties.
Millerton, then on the banks of the free-flowing San Joaquin River
and close to Fort Miller
, became the county seat after becoming a focal point for settlers. The San Joaquin River flooded on Christmas Eve, 1867, inundating Millerton. Some residents rebuilt, others moved.
In 1872, the Central Pacific Railroad
established a station for its new Southern Pacific
line near a farm bounded by the present Chestnut, Belmont, Clovis and California avenues, owned by Anthony Easterby. Soon there was a store. Around the station and the store grew the town of Fresno Station, later called Fresno. Many Millerton residents, drawn by the convenience of the railroad and worried about flooding, moved to the new community.
Two years after the station was established, in 1874, county residents voted to move the county seat from Millerton to Fresno. The vote totals are Fresno 417; Lisbon 124; Centerville 123; Millerton 93. Millerton would become abandoned as a result.
When the Friant Dam
was completed in 1944, the site of Millerton became inundated by the waters of Millerton Lake
. In extreme droughts, when the reservoir shrinks, ruins of the original county seat can still be observed.
The ZIP Code is 93623. The community is inside area code 559
.
County seat
A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....
of Fresno County
Fresno County, California
Fresno County is a county located in the Central Valley of the U.S. state of California, south of Stockton and north of Bakersfield. As of the 2010 census, it is the tenth most populous county in California with a population of 930,450, and the sixth largest in size with an area of . The county...
, formed in 1856. The county was much larger than it is today, comprising its current area plus all of what became Madera County
Madera County, California
Madera County is a county of the U.S. state of California, located in the Central Valley and the Sierra Nevada north of Fresno County. It comprises the Madera-Chowchilla, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census the population was 150,865...
and parts of what are now San Benito
San Benito County, California
San Benito County is a county located in the Coast Range Mountains of the U.S. state of California, south of San Jose. As of 2010 the population was 55,269. The county seat is Hollister, which includes nearly two-thirds of the county's population. El Camino Real passes through the county and...
, Tulare
Tulare County, California
Tulare County is a county located in the Central Valley of the U.S. state of California, south of Fresno. Sequoia National Park is located in the county, as are part of Kings Canyon National Park, in its northeast corner , and part of Mount Whitney, on its eastern border...
, Kings
Kings County, California
Kings County is a county located in the Central Valley of the U.S. state of California. It is located in a rich agricultural region. Kings County is also home to NAS Lemoore, which is the U.S. Navy's newest and largest master jet air station. The county seat is Hanford...
, Inyo
Inyo County, California
-National protected areas:* Death Valley National Park * Inyo National Forest * Manzanar National Historic Site-Major highways:* U.S. Route 6* U.S. Route 395* State Route 127* State Route 136* State Route 168* State Route 178...
, and Mono
Mono County, California
Mono County is a county located in the east central portion of the U.S. state of California, to the east of the Sierra Nevada between Yosemite National Park and Nevada. As of the 2010 census, the population was 14,202, up from 12,853 at the 2000 census...
counties.
Millerton, then on the banks of the free-flowing San Joaquin River
San Joaquin River
The San Joaquin River is the largest river of Central California in the United States. At over long, the river starts in the high Sierra Nevada, and flows through a rich agricultural region known as the San Joaquin Valley before reaching Suisun Bay, San Francisco Bay, and the Pacific Ocean...
and close to Fort Miller
Fort Miller, California
Fort Miller is a former settlement in what was then Madera County, California. It lay at an elevation of 561 feet . It was located on the south bank of the San Joaquin River in what is now Fresno County some 150 miles upriver from Stockton...
, became the county seat after becoming a focal point for settlers. The San Joaquin River flooded on Christmas Eve, 1867, inundating Millerton. Some residents rebuilt, others moved.
In 1872, the Central Pacific Railroad
Central Pacific Railroad
The Central Pacific Railroad is the former name of the railroad network built between California and Utah, USA that formed part of the "First Transcontinental Railroad" in North America. It is now part of the Union Pacific Railroad. Many 19th century national proposals to build a transcontinental...
established a station for its new Southern Pacific
Southern Pacific Railroad
The Southern Pacific Transportation Company , earlier Southern Pacific Railroad and Southern Pacific Company, and usually simply called the Southern Pacific or Espee, was an American railroad....
line near a farm bounded by the present Chestnut, Belmont, Clovis and California avenues, owned by Anthony Easterby. Soon there was a store. Around the station and the store grew the town of Fresno Station, later called Fresno. Many Millerton residents, drawn by the convenience of the railroad and worried about flooding, moved to the new community.
Two years after the station was established, in 1874, county residents voted to move the county seat from Millerton to Fresno. The vote totals are Fresno 417; Lisbon 124; Centerville 123; Millerton 93. Millerton would become abandoned as a result.
When the Friant Dam
Friant Dam
Friant Dam is a concrete gravity dam on the upper San Joaquin River in the Sierra Nevada foothills of Fresno County and Madera County near the town of Friant. The dam, completed in 1942, forms Millerton Lake and was built by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, which owns and operates the dam. The lake...
was completed in 1944, the site of Millerton became inundated by the waters of Millerton Lake
Millerton Lake
Millerton Lake is an artificial lake near the town of Friant about north of downtown Fresno. The reservoir was created by the construction of Friant Dam on the San Joaquin River which with the lake serves as much of the county line between Fresno County to the south and Madera County to the...
. In extreme droughts, when the reservoir shrinks, ruins of the original county seat can still be observed.
The ZIP Code is 93623. The community is inside area code 559
Area code 559
Area code 559 is an area code in Central California, serving the counties ofFresno, Madera, Kings, and Tulare. It was created on November 14, 1998, when the southern half of the area code 209 reached full capacity....
.