Places in Madera County
Ahwahnee
This small mountain community is inside the Sierra National Forest, on the way into Yosemite National Park.
Bass Lake
In the 1800s, Bass Lake was not a lake at all, but a lush meadow surrounded by mountains and Ponderosa Pines.
Chowchilla
Chowchilla made national headlines in July 1976 when a school bus of children was kidnapped. Twenty-six children and the bus driver were driven around in two vans for 11 hours before being forced into a moving van that had been buried in a quarry in Livermore. Part-time bus driver Ed Ray, a local farmer, enlisted the aid of the older children to dig their way out. After 16 hours underground, all emerged and walked to a nearby guard shack at the quarry entrance.
Coarsegold
The name derives from the California Gold Rush of the mid-1800s, when prospectors discovered coarse lumps of gold in a nearby creek. At one time, several dozen gold mines operated in the area.
Fairmead
It’s known for the 1993 discovery of mammoth fossils and ongoing excavation at its landfill.
Madera
Madera Wine Trail originates here.
Nipinnawassee
This town is located in historic gold country. It is close to numerous campgrounds, residential homes, Bass Lake and Yosemite National Park.
North Fork
It is the geographic center of California.
O’Neals
Local landmarks include Berry Hill, Blackhawk Mountain, Carter Creek, Coon
Creek, Crook Mountain, Fine Gold Cemetery, Fine Gold Bay, Fresno Banner Mine, Historical Green School, Hildreth Mountain, Hulbert Mountain, Ladd Creek, Little Fine Gold Creek, Mercer Mountain and historical Mountain View School.
Oakhurst
Oakhurst earned the nickname of “birthplace of computer gaming” as it was home to the pioneering computer game developer Sierra On-line from 1981 to 1999.
Raymond
The area was either named for T. Raymond of Raymond & Whitcomb Travel Association in San Francisco, or Walter Raymond of Raymond & Whitcomb Travel Association in Boston. Walter Raymond founded the Raymond Hotel in Pasadena in 1886. When the town was dedicated, residents offered to name the town after Raymond if he would cut the ribbon at the ceremony.
Sharon
The place began as part of a real estate promotion on land owned by San Francisco financier William Sharon.
Wishon
The name commemorates A. Emory Wishon of San Joaquin Light and Power Corporation, later vice president of Pacific Gas and Electric Company.