1940 Map of Oil Center

About this map

Oil Center and the neighboring industrial hubs of Oil City and Treadwell dominate the high ground north of the Kern River in this detailed 1940 edition. The landscape is defined by the heavy infrastructure of the era's petroleum industry, with a dense network of roads and pipelines giving way to the expanding grid of Bakersfield at the southern edge of the sheet. Education and social services are prominently marked, including the Petroleum Sch, Aztec Sch, and Toltec Sch, alongside the County Hospital. Water management for the valley's development is evident through the Beardsley Canal and China Grade Canal, while the Southern Pacific railroad provides the essential transport link for the region's mineral wealth. In the east, the sharp elevation of Ant Hill rises above the river, providing a stark contrast to the organized industrial activity of the western oil fields.