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Baker, California

21 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1933 and the latest in 1993. It stands in the Newberry Springs-Baker census division. It lies in ZIP code area 92309. It lies near Nickel Mountain. The Survey maps it on the Baker quadrangle. 442 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 942 feet above sea level.

Baker within San Bernardino County

Then and now

1933 to 1993

The same ground, surveyed 60 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.

Topographic sheet of Baker, surveyed 1993
Topographic sheet of Baker, surveyed 1933

On record in Baker

Buildings and businesses the archive holds for this place. Each opens its own page, with the source record it came from.

On the National Register 5 records

Population over time

2 figures

Baker fell from 735 to 442 between 2010 and 2020. These are the recorded population figures Wikidata holds for this place, reached through the Geographic Names Information System number this page is keyed on rather than by name, so they belong to this place and not to another of the same name. Most are census counts, but not all are: an early figure may be a founding or settlement estimate, and an estimate published within five years of a census is left out. The change column is computed, and is left blank where more than 20 years separate a figure from the one before it, because a gap that long is not a change between two counts.

YearPeople Change
2010735
2020442-293 (-40%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

9 surveys from 21 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

14 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 14 fires within 5 miles of Baker between 1992 and 2018, burning about 28 acres in total. 1 started naturally. None was 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
Equipment and vehicle use9
Missing data/not specified/undetermined3
Natural1
Misuse of fire by a minor1

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 July 2000Equipment and vehicle useunder an acreCalifornia Desert DistrictENGLAND
4 July 1994Equipment and vehicle use1.0 acresSan Bernardino UnitLADYFINGER
3 July 1996Missing data/not specified/undetermined25 acresSan Bernardino UnitPONDS
18 July 1993Misuse of fire by a minor1.0 acresSan Bernardino UnitROMAN
14 July 1994Equipment and vehicle useunder an acreCalifornia Desert DistrictSODA
1 July 1993Equipment and vehicle useunder an acreCalifornia Desert DistrictCANYON 2
5 June 2018Equipment and vehicle useunder an acreCalifornia Department of Forestry & Fire Protectionnot named
26 June 2012Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreCalifornia Desert DistrictFRENCH FRY

Every fire recorded in San Bernardino County

Mines and quarries near this place

5 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 5 workings within 5 miles of Baker: 3 prospects, 2 occurrences. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Gold, Lead, Copper, Gold, Silver, Silver, Copper, Gold, Lead. 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
Aga MineLead, Copper, Gold, SilverProspect
Aga ProspectSilver, Copper, Gold, LeadOccurrenceVein
BakerLimestone, GeneralOccurrence
Rat Hole MineGold, TungstenProspect
PreemaGoldProspect

Every working recorded in San Bernardino County

Storms near this place

31 since 1997

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Baker in 31 storm reports between 1997 and 2024: 24 flash flood, 4 thunderstorm wind, 2 hail, 1 flood. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
August 2023Flash FloodBaker$1,000,000Four feet of rushing water trapped people in their cars on Highway 127. The road was severely damaged.
September 2022Flash FloodBaker$50,000Zzyzx Rd was damaged, and Mojave Rd was impassable from Rasor Rd to Kelbaker Rd.
September 1999HailBaker$40,000Large hail fell over Interstate 15 near Baker. Numerous cars reportedly sustained dents and broken windshields.
August 2023Thunderstorm WindBaker$25,000Thunderstorm winds blew over a big rig and blew down power lines.
September 2024Flash FloodBaker$20,000Highway 127 was impassable due to being flooded with 1.5 feet of water plus rocks and debris. One car with four occupants was stuck and water was coming into the car.
September 2012Flash FloodBaker$20,000On Highway 127 north of Baker, one vehicle was stuck in flood waters up to the dashboard.
July 2022Flash FloodBaker$15,000Hwy 127 was flooded with lots of rocks and debris in the road, and one vehicle was stuck in the water.
July 2024Flash FloodBaker$10,000Highway 127 was flooded near mile marker 15. One car was stranded due to water getting into the ignition.
August 2023Flash FloodBaker$10,000Flash flooding in Baker was up to vehicle hoods.
August 2018Flash FloodBaker$10,000Highway 127 was flooded between Power Line Road and Riggs Road. The water nearly submerged an empty vehicle.
August 2016Flash FloodBaker$5,000A vehicle was stuck in water and debris on Highway 127 at mile marker 15.
July 2015Flash FloodBaker$5,000A car was stalled in floodwaters along Highway 127 15 miles NNW of Baker.
September 2014Flash FloodBaker$5,000Highway 127 was flooded and closed, with two cars stuck in the water.
August 2013Flash FloodBaker$5,000Highway 127 washed out just north of Powerline Road.
July 2012Flash FloodBaker$5,000Kelbaker Road was flooded with water and debris just south of Baker.
July 2022Flash FloodBaker$2,000Water and mud flowed over I-15.
October 2018Flash FloodBaker$2,000Highway 127 was flooded with water, mud, and debris.
August 2022Flash FloodBaker$1,000Highway 127 was flooded at Baker Blvd.
August 2022Flash FloodBaker$1,000Highway 127 was closed between mile markers 15 and 21.
July 2021Flash FloodBaker$1,000Highway 127 was flooded and impassable.
November 2019FloodBaker$1,000Standing water was on Highway 127 just north of the I-15 off ramp.
October 2018Flash FloodBaker$1,000Water flowed over Highway 127 15 miles N of Baker.
July 2017Flash FloodBaker$1,000Highway 127 was flooded at mile marker 12.
July 2006Thunderstorm WindBaker-At Red Pass Lake mesonet station.
July 2005Thunderstorm WindBaker-Also dust storm with visibility down to 50 feet.
July 2005Flash FloodBaker-State Highway 127 washed out, with cars stuck in water up to the doors.
October 2005Flash FloodBaker-State Highway 127 flooded at Dumont Dunes Rd.
July 2003Flash FloodBaker-CHP reported a car stuck in flash flooding on Highway 127 south of Baker. Occupants were safe.
July 2001Flash FloodBaker-Strong thunderstorms produced 1.54 inches of rain in a two hour period which caused several roads to flood.
August 1997Thunderstorm WindBaker-A weather spotter in Baker reported winds estimated at 55 to 60 mph from a nearby thunderstorm. No damage was reported.
September 2011HailBaker-no account filed

Every storm recorded in San Bernardino 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
Zzyzx8.6 miles21
Beacon Station11.6 miles20
Halloran Springs12.2 miles28
Cronise (historical)14.7 miles24
Talc (historical)14.9 miles21
Belfast (historical)15.2 miles21
Cronese Valley15.5 miles24
Balch15.5 miles21

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 BakerAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q633459The 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 238894. 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.

Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.