Published Sources

Books

Abstract of the Laguna de Tache Ranch (Fresno County Abstract Company).Kings County
           Museaum at Burris Park collection.

Anon., "Pen Pictures From the Garden of the World."Chicago: Lewis Publising Co., undated
        but probably 1891.

Anon., "Memorial and Biographical History of the Counties of Fresno, Tulare, and Kern
        California." Chicago: Lewis Publishing Co., 1892.

Applegate, Richard. "?Atishwin: The Dream Helper in South-Central California." Ballena
         Press Anthropological Papers No. 13, Lowell John Bean & Thomas C. Blackburn, eds.
         Socorro, New Mexico: Ballena Press, 1978.

Armona Centennial Committee. "Armona Centennial: Small But Proud." Armona, California,
         1976.  Official centennial history of Armona. Out of print.

Barnett, Bob. "90 Years of High School Basketball -- Central Section Record Book 1907 -
          1996." Fresno, CA: Bob Barnett CIF Central Section Historian, 1996.  90 year basketball
              record book of the Central Section CIF and includes many Kings County individuals. Illustrated.

Beck, Warren A. and Haase, Ynez D. "Historical Atlas of California." Norman, Oklahoma:
          University of Oklahoma Press, 1974.  Includes maps of Mexican land grants, Spanish expeditions
              into the interior of California, stagecoach routes, population, petroleum, irrigation, crops and much
              else of interest for the study of Kings County history. Publication is in print.

Beebe, James W. "History of Kettleman Hills." Hanford, CA: Morning Hanford Journal, 1931. 

Boyd, William Harland. "Stagecoach Heyday on the San Joaquin Valley 1853-1876."
           Bakersfield, CA: Kern County Historical Society, Inc., 1983.

Brown, James Lorin. "The Story of Kings County, California." Berkeley, CA: Lederer, Street &
            Zeus Company, Inc., in cooperation with the Art Print Shop, Hanford, Calif., 1941.  Brief
                history of the County written for school use. Includes illustrations and map.

Brown, James Lorin. "Mussel Slough Tragedy.", 1958. Review of the bloody incident at Mussel
                Slough, California, May 11, 1880, during the conflict between the Southern Pacific and the farmers of
                the Lower Kings River. Event was dramatized in Frank Norris’ novel "The Octopus." Includes
                bibliography.

Brown, Robert R. "History of Kings County." Hanford, CA: Hanford Morning Journal, 1940.

Brown, Robert R. and Richmond, J.E. "History of Kings County." Hanford, CA: Arthur
            Hamilton Causton, 1940. Narrative history includes many first person accounts from Kings County
                pioneers interviewed by authors. More than 150 brief   biographies of Kings County leaders are
            included, some with photographs. Includes index.

Browne, J. Ross. "The Policy of Extending Local Aid to Railroads, with Special Reference to
            the Proposed Line through the San Joaquin Valley to the Colorado River." San
            Francisco: The Alta California Publishing House, 1870. 

"Business Directory and Historical Handbook of Tulare County, California." Tulare, CA:
            Pillsbury and Ellsworth, 1888. 

Clark, Jay and Mattos, Dorothy A., ed. "The Kingdom of Kings: The History of Kings
            County, California." Hanford, CA: Kings-Hanford Kiwanis Club, 1992.  Includes
                interviews with longtime Kings County residents, that are not published elsewhere. Illustrated. Out of
                Print, available in the Kings County Library.

Clark, Jay.  "California's Missions." Hanford, CA: Kings County Schools, 1989.

Clark, Jay, ed.  "Kings County: A Short History." Hanford, CA: Kings County Historical
            Society, 1987.

Clark, Jay, ed.  "Roundup: The Story of Kings County YMCA." Hanford, CA: Kings County
            YMCA, 1979.

Cooke, S. F. "Colonial Expeditions to the Interior of Calif. Central Valley, 1800-1820."
             California State Library Collection, California Section.

Cooke, S. F. "Colonial Expeditions to the Interior of Calif. Central Valley, 1820-1840."
             California State Library Collection, California Section.

Cummins, Marjorie W. "The Tache-Yokuts, Indians of the San Joaquin Valley: Their Lives,
             Songs, and Stories." Fresno, CA: Pioneer Publishing Company, 1979.  Mrs. Cummins was
                 a local music teacher and based this book on her contact with Tachi Yokuts people and her research
                 on their music and folklore. Slides and a tape cassette were part of the original kit prepared for
                 elementary school use.

Davis, "Commercial Encyclopedia of the Pacific Southwest." 1915.

DeVoto, Bernard. "The year of Decision: 1846." Boston: Little, Brown and Co., 1943.

Elliott, Wallace W. "History of Tulare County, California."San Francisco: Wallace W. Elliot &
            Co., 1883.

Emanuels, George. "California Indians: An Illustrated Guide." Walnut Creek, CA: Diablo
            Books, 1991. The Yokuts tribes of Central California are included in this brief illustrated work.
                Most of the text is readable for elementary school students. There is a three-page study guide.

Emanuels, Stephen P. "The Rhodes-Esrey Letters." Lemoore, CA: Kings River Press, 1992.

Gifford, E. W., and W. E. Schenk. "Archeaology of the Southern San Joaquin Valley."
            University of California Publications in American Archeaology and Ethnology, 1926,
            23:1-122.

Gomes, Ruth DuBois, ed.  "Hanford Alma Mater 1892-1992." Hanford, CA: HUHS Class of
            1942, 1992.  A directory of Hanford Union High School alumni, history highlights and bits of trivia
                  from the school's first 100 years. Limited edition.         

Greenwood, Robert "The California Outlaw Tiburcio Vasquez." California State Library
            Collection # 92-V-335G.

Guinn, Professor, J.M., A.M., "History of the State of California and Biographical Record of
            the San Joaquin Valley, CA." Chicago: The Chapman Publishing Company, 1905.

"Handbook of North American Indians, Volume 8, California." Washington, D.C.:
            Smithsonian Institution, 1978. This government publication is too scholarly for most children but is
                a fine resource for teachers and other adults. In addition to chapters on individual tribes,there is
                information on language, archaeology and population. Fine illustrations and photographs and an
                exhaustive bibliography add to the worth of this study. It is in print and available from the U. S.
                Government Printing Office.

Hanford Centennial Committee, "Hanford: Hometown American," Hanford, CA: Hanford
            Centennial Committee, 1990. This pictorial history has brief text. Includes index.

Hanford Sentinel, "Kings County War Album." Hanford, CA: Hanford Sentinel-Journal, 1948.  A
                record of the individuals -- including pictures where available -- who served in the armed forces
                during World War II. Includes brief military service records of the included persons and of the
                Hanford Company B, 185 Infantry and local war-related history.

Holmes, L. C., E. C. Eckmann, J. W. Nelson, and J. E. Guernsey. "Reconnoissance Soil Survey
            of the Middle San Joaquin Valley, California." U. S. Department of Agriculture, 1916.
            Includes detailed maps.

Jackson, Joseph Henry. "Bad Company." New York: Harcourt Brace, 1949.

Kaupke, Charles L. "Forty Years on the Kings River, 1917-1957." Fresno, CA: Kings River
            Water Association, 1957. Kings County Museaum at Burris Park collection.

Kings County Centennial Committee, "Kings County: a Pictorial History." Hanford, CA: Kings
            County Centennial Committee, 1992. This is a volume of photographs with brief text. Includes
                bibliography and index.

"Kings County Resources Illustrated." A Daily Democrat Souvenir. L. M. Powell,
            photographer, W. W. Barnes, publisher. San Francisco: Sunset Photo Engraving Co.,
            1897-98. Illustrated directory of Kings County businesses. Kings County Museum at Burris Park
                collection.

Lapham, Macy H. & W. H. Heileman. "Soil Survey of the Hanford Area, California." U.S.
           Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Soils. reprinted from the Report on Field Operations of
           the Bureau of Soils for 1901. Includes detailed maps.

Latta, Frank F. "Handbook of Yokuts Indians." Oildale, CA: Bear State Books, 1949. Frank
           Latta was a "friend and historian of the Yokuts" and included many firsthand accounts from Native
                Americans in this book.. A very important source for a sympathetic view of Yokuts life after contact
                with early settlers. This title has been printed in a second edition.

Lemoore Centennial Committee, "Lemoore Centennial 1873-1973." Lemoore, CA: Lemoore
           Merchants, 1973.

Menefee, Eugene and Fred A. Dodge. "History of Tulare and Kings Counties California with
           Biographical Sketches of the Leading Men and Women of the Counties Who Have
           Been Identified With Their Growth and Development From the Early Days to the
           Present." Los Angeles: Historical Record Company, 1913. A rare book that is available in the
               reference department of the Kings County Library in Hanford. Includes descriptive table of contents
               and index of names.

Mitchell, Annie R. "The Way It Was: the Colorful History of Tulare County." Fresno, CA:
           Panorama West Publishing, 1976.  An informal recounting of Tulare County history with detailed
               anecdotes. Early Kings County information can be gleaned from many chapters. Most illustrations not
               related to Kings. Has useful bibliography.   

Peichoto, Debbie & Robin Roberts."First Baptist Church of Hanford California: A History of
           the First One Hundred Years." Hanford, CA: First Baptist Church, 1992. 

"Pen Pictures From the Garden of the World, A Memorial and Biographical History of the
           Counties of Fresno, Tulare and Kern, California." Chicago: Lewis Publishing Company,
           1891.

Preston, William L., "Vanishing Landscapes: Land and Life in the Tulare Lake Basin."
           Berkeley: University of California Press, 1981.  A complete geological and cultural history of the
               Tulare Lake basin with numerous maps and charts to illustrate the changes of our valley from
           aboriginal times to the present agricultural period. This is a basic resource for Kings County history.

Retzer, John L., R.A. Gardner, and Ralph C. Cole. "Soil Survey of Kings County California."
           United States Department of Agriculture Series 1938, No. 9, October 1946.  Includes a
               detailed map of Kings County.

Sanford, Bill. "The San Joaquin, the Sierra, and Beyond." Santa Cruz, CA: Western Tanager
           Press, 1994.  Includes a chapter on Hanford, entitled : Hanford: A Three Century City.

Secrest, William E. "The Return of Joaquin." Fresno, CA: Saga-West Publishing Company,
           1973.

Small, Kathleen Edward and Smith, J. Larry. "History of Tulare County, California and Kings
           County." Chicago: Clarke Publishing Company, 1926. A rare set of volumes that is available
                in the reference department of the Kings County Library in Hanford. Kings County Museum at Burris
               Park collection.

Smith, Ephraim K. and William Patnaude."Historical and Architectural resources in Public
           Project No. 48: Grangeville Boulevard reconstruction." [Fresno, CA]: Environmental
           Science Associates, Inc., December 1979.

Smith, Waddell. "Stage Lines and Express Companies in California." San Rafael, CA: Pony
           Express History and Art Gallery, 1965.

Smith, Wallace. "Garden of the Sun." (Originally published in 1939 by Lymanhouse) reprinted
           Fresno, CA: California Historical Books, 1976. Kings County Museum at Burris Park collection.

Smith, Wallace. "Prodigal Sons, the Adventures of Christopher Evans and John Sontag."
            Boston:  The Christopher Publishing Company, 1951.

Thompson, Thomas H. "Official Historical Atlas Map of Tulare County." Tulare, California,
            1892.  Important work with maps showing towns, landowners’ names, irrigation canals, and
                 agricultural development. There are drawings of individual farms and residences throughout the
                 county. (Kings County was part of Tulare until 1893.) A 28 page historical essay introduces the
                 book. Available in library reference departments.

Wallace,William J., and Francis A. Riddell, eds. "Contributions to Tulare Lake Archaeology I:
            Background to a Study of Tulare Lake's Archeaological Past." The Tulare Lake
            Archeaological Research Group, 1991. Kings County Museum at Burris Park collection.

Wallace,William J., and Francis A. Riddell, eds. "Contributions to Tulare Lake Archaeology
            II: The Quest for Tulare Lake's Archeaological Past." The Tulare Lake
            Archeaological Research Group, 1993. Kings County Museum at Burris Park collection.

Walters, Dan. "The New California -- Facing the 21st Century." Sacramento: California
            Journal Press, 1986.

Periodicals

Avenal Rotary Newspaper, magazine section.  "The Story of Avenal." Vol. VIII, No. 6, June 20, 1940.

Bishop, William Henery. "Southern California," Harper's New Monthly Magazine, November, 1882. An article describing a journey through California in 1881.

Brown, J. L. "More Fictional Memorials to Mussel Slough," Pacific Historical review, Volume XXVI, No. 4, November 1957.

Jacobs, Julius. "Mussel Slough: 'In the End, the Farmer Won'," Extra Edition, The Hanford Sentinel, May 12, 1980.

Fiction

Miller, May Merill."First the Blade." Alfred A. Knopf, 1938.

Norris, Frank."The Octopus." P. F.Collier & Son, 1901.

Porter, Rebecca N. "Raisin Valley." Vantage Press, 1953.  

Unpublished

Cabiener, Gail D. "The Early Years of Avenal and Kettleman Hills," typescript. February 9, 1966.

Cutter, Donald C. "The Spanish Exploration of California's Central Valley," Ph. D. Dissertation, University of California, Berkely, 1950.

Featherstone, M. S. "The Mussel Slough Tragedy." (A brief report gathered by a neighbor). In the State Library.

Hall, Clarence R. "A Salute to the Pioneer Village of Grangeville," unpublished and undated manuscript presented to Robert Athey in Armona.

Hall, Clarence R. "A Salute to the Old Fruit Packing Town of Armona as I Saw It and Became Acquainted With Its People in 1903," unpublished and undated manuscript presented to Robert Athey in Armona.

Krend, William J. "Avenal, the Boom and Before," term paper. 1974.

McKinney, William Clyde. "Mussel Slough Episode, a Chapter in the Settlement of the San Joaquin Valley 1865-1880." Unpublished Master's Thesis, University of California, Berkely,  1936, on deposit at Tulare County Library. Contains a good review of the grant of lands to the SOuthern Pacific Railroad Company.

"Pioneer Letters, " typescript. Kings County Library, Hanford, California.

Simmons, Perez. "History of the Avenal Ranch," typescript. 1953.

Primary Sources

Guernsey Temperance Society -- Minutes: March 21, 1922 through May 22, 1923. Donated by the Robert and Alice Burr family July 1964. Kings County Museaum at Burris Park collection.

Lakeside Social Club of 1906. -- Minutes: April 30, 1906 through May 13, 1910. Donated by the Robert and Alice Burr family July 1964. Kings County Museaum at Burris Park collection.