BlockBefore

Asphalto, California

24 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1912 and the latest in 1981. It stands in the West Kern census division. The Survey maps it on the West Elk Hills quadrangle. It stands 932 feet above sea level. The federal gazetteer marks this settlement historical: it is no longer a populated place, though the surveys that recorded it still are.

Asphalto within Kern County

Then and now

1912 to 1981

The same ground, surveyed 69 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.

Topographic sheet of Asphalto (historical), surveyed 1981
Topographic sheet of Asphalto (historical), surveyed 1912

Topographic sheets covering this place

12 surveys from 24 printed sheets

Matched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.

Fires near this place

183 since 1993

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 183 fires within 5 miles of Asphalto (historical) between 1993 and 2020, burning about 21,129 acres in total. 5 started naturally. 3 were recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause Fires
Missing data/not specified/undetermined72
Power generation/transmission/distribution55
Equipment and vehicle use38
Natural5
Misuse of fire by a minor3
Arson/incendiarism3
Debris and open burning3
Smoking3
Recreation and ceremony1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
9 September 2009Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreCentral California DistrictDERBY ACRES
9 September 1998Power generation/transmission/distribution25 acresCentral California DistrictUNNAMED FIRE 0550
9 September 1998Power generation/transmission/distributionunder an acreCentral California DistrictUNNAMED FIRE 0484
6 September 1999Power generation/transmission/distributionunder an acreCentral California DistrictUNNAMED FIRE 0616
5 September 2006Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresCentral California DistrictUNNAMED FIRE 0829
5 September 2006Misuse of fire by a minor3.0 acresCentral California DistrictDERBY 2
4 September 2007Smokingunder an acreKern County Fire Departmentnot named
30 September 2000Power generation/transmission/distributionunder an acreCentral California DistrictUNNAMED FIRE 0654

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Kern County

Mines and quarries near this place

10 of 18 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 18 workings within 5 miles of Asphalto (historical): 11 past producers, 6 prospects, 1 unknown. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Gypsum-Anhydrite, Sand and Gravel, Construction, Stone, Crushed/Broken, Pumice. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
McKittrickPumicePast Producer
Sheep Springs Pit and MillClayPast ProducerSedimentary
Derby Acres PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Shell Shale QuarryStone, Crushed/BrokenPast Producer
Standard Oil Co. PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Twisselman Shale PitStone, Crushed/BrokenPast Producer
Derby AcresGypsum-AnhydriteProspect
Green and CollinsGypsum-AnhydritePast Producer
McKittrickGypsum-AnhydritePast Producer
McKittrickGypsum-AnhydritePast Producer

Every working recorded in Kern County

Nearest settlements

The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.

Map PlaceDistance Sheets
McKittrick1.1 miles24
Olig (historical)3.3 miles22
Derby Acres4.0 miles23
Reward4.3 miles22
Lokern7.2 miles24
Fellows9.3 miles23
Buttonwillow9.6 miles25
Warren (historical)10.2 miles23

Elsewhere

Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.

Wikipedia article on Asphalto (historical)An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q4807969The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0).

Provenance

This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 1662015. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.

Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.