Fresno, California – The Bread Basket of the Nation
Fresno, California. Many consider this city, located in the middle of the Central Valley, to be the hub of central California and the bread basket of the nation. It is located just outside the Sierra Nevada mountain range, and by car two hours southeast of San Francisco, four hours North of Los Angeles, and two hours South of Sacramento. It truly is a location that crosses the paths of many travelers throughout the state. Fresno, and surrounding area, is the largest agriculturally producing region the United States. Fresno gets its name from the Spanish word for ash tree, and the city features the ash leaf prominently on it’s flag.
The city of Fresno has an ethnically and economically diverse population of 471,000 residents as of the 2007 census. This makes it the fifth largest city in California, and the thirty-sixth largest city on the nation. The Fresno-Clovis metropolitan area has a population of approximately 1,003,000, which makes it the second largest metropolitan area in the Central Valley after Sacramento. Fresno lies right in the middle of what used to be a huge marsh system that extended all the way through the Central Valley. The area that is now the city was first discovered by Spanish missionaries who were looking for suitable mission sites. The area became the property of the United States in 1846 as a consequence of the Mexican War. After gold was discovered in California, miners flocked to the area and the surrounding foothills as a place to stock up on supplies. Fresno County was established first, before the city, in 1856 with the Millerton community as the county seat.
It was not until 1872, after the first rail line was laid down, that the city of Fresno was established. The strength of the local economy has always been agriculture, as Fresno is located right in the midst of the fertile San Joaquin Valley. 2005 data shows that more than twenty percent of the cities jobs come from the agricultural industry, providing more than three billion to the local economy. It is estimated that one in three jobs in Fresno County is tied in some way to agriculture. Much of the nations produce is grown in the Fresno area, where Fresno County is the largest agricultural producing area in the United States. More than 7500 farmers grow more than 250 crops on more than 1 million acres of farmland.
Fresno truly can be called the bread basket of the Nation. The main crops of Fresno are table grapes, raisins, cotton, cattle, tomatoes, milk, tree fruit, poultry, citrus, and nuts. As a result of this a large food processing industry has developed to support the agricultural production. Canning, curing, drying, freezing, and packing plants are located in the Fresno County area. Agricultural related manufacturing is also present as farm machinery, metal products, transportation equipment, stone, clay, and glass products, lumber and wood products, furniture and fixtures, and electrical equipment. Fresno is also considered a port of entry city making it an ideal center for transportation and distribution.
The city is home to a major university, California State University Fresno. Known as Fresno State, with the Bulldog as their mascot, the 327 acre campus has more than 46 traditional and modern buildings. The university offers 32 nationally accredited departments and programs, which is one the most of any campus in the Cal State system. The 1083 acre University Farm is considered one of the most modern and best equipped agricultural facilities in the nation. More than 22,000 students attend the university, with approximately 17,000 attending full time. There 1,300 graduate study students who are supported with almost 1,400 full time faculty members, who help graduate almost 5,000 students annually.