Fresno's history

Fresno's history is steeped in agriculture and transportation; in the early 1870's Leland Stanford designated a train stop in the center of the San Joaquin Valley to be called Fresno Station. The area exploded in wealth and population, making Fresno the 4th largest area in the State of California during the 1920's. The history of Fresno's vibrant life, financial strength, and success as the regional commerce hub for Downtown Fresno was found in the ease of its mobility. Photos of Downtown Fresno in the 1920's show Fresno covered in pedestrian traffic.

The missing piece of all the downtown attempts to recreate a vibrant commerce hub is the mobility component which makes it convenient and easy to get around. In the early 1930s the transit system was removed. That piece has never been replaced. In the early 1930's Fresno's phenomenal growth stopped. A study of old photos and maps reveal Fresno was designed as a big city destination. Fresno County was the 'Ag' center of the universe.

The privately funded Edison hydro-electric facility that fed Los Angeles power was built in Fresno County. Fresno was huge; doorway to three National Parks, halfway between LA and San Francisco, close to the mountains and a couple of hours away from the ocean, it is conveniently located in the middle of everything.