Southern Pacific Transportation Company
The Southern Pacific Transportation Company, earlier Southern Pacific Railroad and Southern Pacific Company, and usually called the Southern Pacific or Espee, was an American Class I railroad. It was absorbed in 1988 by the company controlled the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad. The railroad was founded as a holding company in 1865. By 1900 the Southern Pacific Company was a railroad system incorporating many smaller companies, such as the Texas and New Orleans Railroad and Morgans Louisiana. It extended from New Orleans through Texas to El Paso, across New Mexico and through Tucson, to Los Angeles, through most of California, including San Francisco, Central Pacific lines extended east across Nevada to Ogden and reached north through Oregon to Portland. By the 1980s route mileage had dropped to 10,423 miles, in 1988 the Southern Pacific was taken over by D&RGW parent Rio Grande Industries. The combined railroad kept the Southern Pacific name due to its recognition in the railroad industry.
Along with the addition of the SPCSL Corporation route from Chicago to St. Louis, by 1996 years of financial problems had dropped SPs mileage to 13,715 miles, and it was taken over by the Union Pacific Railroad. Southern Pacific founded important hospitals in San Francisco, Tucson, in the 1970s, it founded a telecommunications network with a state-of-the-art microwave and fiber optic backbone. This evolved into Sprint, a company name that came from the acronym for Southern Pacific Railroad Internal Networking Telephony. The original aim was to construct a railroad from Galveston Bay to a point on the Red River near a trading post known as Coffees Station, the GRR built 2 miles of track in Houston in 1855. Track laying began in earnest in 1856 and on 1 September 1856 GRR was renamed the Houston and Texas Central Railway. SP acquired H&TC in 1883 but it continued to operate as a subsidiary under its own management until 1927, when it was leased to another SP-owned railroad, the Texas and New Orleans Railroad.
The Buffalo Bayou and Colorado Railway, was chartered in Texas on 11 February 1850 by a group that included General Sidney Sherman, bBB&C was the first railroad to commence operation in Texas and the first component of SP to commence operation. Surveying of the route alignment commenced at Harrisburg, Texas in 1851, the first 20 miles of track opened in August 1853. SP was founded in San Francisco, California in 1865 by a group of businessmen led by Timothy Phelps with the aim of building a connection between San Francisco and San Diego, California. The company was purchased in September 1868 by a group of known as the Big Four, Charles Crocker, Leland Stanford, Mark Hopkins. The Big Four had, in 1861, created the Central Pacific Railroad, CPRR was merged into SP in 1870
California's 21st congressional district
Cities in it include, Delano and outer parts of Bakersfield. The district is represented by Republican David Valadao. Formerly, from 2003-2013, the 21st district covered all of Tulare County, as of April 2015, there are four former members of the U. S. House of Representatives from Californias 21st congressional district that are currently living. The most recent representative to die was Augustus F. Hawkins on November 10,2007, the most recently serving representative to die was James C. List of United States congressional districts GovTrack. us, Californias 21st congressional district RAND California Election Returns, District Definitions California Voter Foundation map - CD21
California Democratic Party
The California Democratic Party is the state branch of the United States Democratic Party in the state of California. Headquartered in Sacramento, it is chaired by veteran Democratic politician and former United States Representative John L. Burton and it is the majority party in both chambers of the California State Legislature, i. e. the State Assembly and the Senate. In regards to businesses and economics, the California Democratic party takes a stance that protects consumers, small businesses, the platform makes a point to champion the economic reforms of President Barack Obama. The 2012 platform addresses the issues of family in several sections, the platform promises to protect seniors and all types of families with fair economic and social policies. These policies range from continuing Medicare for the elderly and keeping playgrounds safe for children, the platform highlights the right of a woman to make choices for her own body and claims that healthcare is a natural right of all people.
The California democrats further promise to protect the dignity of disabled citizens, the platform is dedicated to advocating for the rights of women through equal pay and affirmative action. The party prioritizes the creation of a sustainable and earth-friendly state, focus is placed on the development of alternative forms of energy and how energy is consumed. In addition, the stresses that green jobs are a solution to economic. Finally, the platform takes stances on open internet use, the Democrats of California support the right of the people to express their thoughts and ideas through any media, and their right to assemble. The party believes that laws should be fair and that immigrants should not be discriminated against. The party wishes to bring education to the forefront, aiming to turn California into a state for academic achievement. A Detailed description of the California Democratic Partys position on all of the issues can be found in their 2012 Platform document. The California Democratic Party passes multiple resolutions every year as a way of expressing their opinion to lawmakers statewide, while the partys resolutions have no legal force themselves, they are official documents that elected representatives should take into account when making decisions.
A few recent resolutions are summarised below,2012 Buy American This resolution, written 18 November 2012, encourages all arms of government to favor American suppliers of goods and services. The above are three of a long list of Resolutions passed by the California Democratic Party in 2012 and in preceding years. The history of the Democratic Party of California is complex and long, the State has traded hands every few cycles since its admission into the union in 1850. At that time, the state was firmly in the hands of the Democratic Party, until the early 1880s after the Republican Party abolished slavery, the Republicans held the state through the power and influence of railroad men. The Democratic Party responded by taking an anti-corporate, anti freedom of attainment position, in 1894, Democrat James Budd was elected to the governorship, and the Democratic Party attempted to make good on their promises to reform the booming railroad industry
Firebaugh, California
Firebaugh is a city in Fresno County, United States. The population was 7,549 at the 2010 census, up from 5,743 as of the 2000 census, the ZIP Code for the community is 93622 and the city is located inside area code 559. Firebaugh is located on the west side of the San Joaquin River 38 miles west of Fresno, inside the city, a small commercial district includes the ubiquitous California Central Valley water tank painted with the citys name. State Route 33 runs through downtown just west of center, the San Joaquin Valley Railroad, West Side Subdivision, passes through downtown. Outside of city, the area is almost entirely agricultural land in all directions, most fields of irrigated row crops along SR33 are feed crops such as alfalfa. The city is named for Andrew D. Firebaugh, an area entrepreneur, during the Gold Rush, Firebaughs most famous local enterprise was a ferry boat. It shuttled people across the San Joaquin River and he built a toll road from Bell Station to Pacheco Pass. The toll road went along a parallel to present-day State Route 152.
Firebaugh was a station on the Butterfield Overland Stage, the Firebaughs Ferry post office operated from 1860 to 1862. The Firebaugh post office opened in 1865, in the 1880s, the area of Firebaugh was once part of the massive holdings of the Miller and Lux Company. The company had a large sheep operation covering what today is Dos Palos to Mendota. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has an area of 3.5 square miles. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Firebaugh has a semi-arid climate, the 2010 United States Census reported that Firebaugh had a population of 7,549. The population density was 2,145.2 people per square mile. The racial makeup of Firebaugh was 4,715 White,70 African American,116 Native American,40 Asian,0 Pacific Islander,2,371 from other races, Hispanic or Latino of any race were 6,887 persons. The Census reported that 7,536 people lived in households,13 lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, there were 145 unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 6 same-sex married couples or partnerships. 197 households were made up of individuals and 95 had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older, the average household size was 3.93.
There were 1,678 families, the family size was 4.17
Fresno County, California
Fresno County, officially the County of Fresno, is a county located in the northern portion of the U. S. state, California. As of the 2010 census, the population was 930,450, the county seat is Fresno, the fifth-largest city in California. Fresno County comprises the Fresno, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is part of the Fresno-Madera and it is located in the Central Valley, south of Stockton and north of Bakersfield. The area now known as Fresno County is the homeland of Yokuts and Mono peoples. In 1846, this became part of the United States as a result of the Mexican War. Fresno County was formed in 1856 from parts of Mariposa, Fresno is Spanish for ash tree and it was in recognition of the abundance of the shrubby local Ash, Fraxinus dipetala, growing along the San Joaquin River that it received its name. Parts of Fresno Countys territory were given to Mono County in 1861, the settling of Fresno County was not without its conflicts, land disputes, and other natural disasters. Floods caused immeasurable damage elsewhere and fires plagued the settlers of Fresno County, in 1882, the greatest of the early day fires wiped out an entire block of the city of Fresno, and was followed by another devastating blaze in 1883.
At the same time residents brought irrigation and extensive agriculture to the area, moses Church developed the first canals, called Church Ditches, for irrigation. These canals allowed extensive cultivation of wheat, francis Eisen, leader of the wine industry in Fresno County, began the raisin industry in 1875, when he accidentally let some of his grapes dry on the vine. Easterby and Clovis Cole developed extensive grain and cattle ranches and these and other citizens laid the groundwork for the cultivation of Fresno County – now one of the nations leading agricultural regions. In more recent times became a major crop in Fresno and the southern San Joaquin Valley. The Coalinga field continues to produce oil, and is currently the eighth-largest field in the state. According to the U. S. Census Bureau, the county has an area of 6,011 square miles. Major watercourses are the San Joaquin, Kings River, Delta-Mendota Canal, Big Creek, Friant Kern Canal, Helm Canal and it is bordered on the west by the Coast Range and on the east by the Sierra Nevada.
It is the center of an agricultural area, known as the most agriculturally rich county in the United States. The county withdrew 3.7 billion US gallons of water per day in 2000. Fresno County is part of the Madera AVA wine region, Fresno was actually named after two particular ash trees that grew near the town of Minkler on the Kings River, one of which is still alive and standing
California State Route 180
The freeway through Fresno has the distinction of having the most heavily traveled section of road in the San Joaquin Valley. Major plans include an extension west to Interstate 5, the actual western terminus of SR180 is at SR33 in Mendota, with an unconstructed portion defined west across Interstate 5 to SR25 in Paicines, currently signed as County Route J1. In Mendota, the route is carried on Oller Street and San Benito Avenue and it follows the Kings River into General Grant Grove, where SR198 splits off south toward Sequoia National Park. The entire portion beyond Hume Road is closed during winters, usually after the first snowfall, the old route east of SR99 to the General Grant Grove is part of the National Highway System. The old routing of SR180 through downtown Fresno remains on the books, the road no longer connects with its freeway bypass at all, the east and west ends terminate in cul-de-sacs. Local agencies are now forced to maintain or improve the road. A study into the use of Measure C funds found that traffic volumes will likely increase between 50% and 100% across the road by 2020, especially in the more rural areas.
SR180 is a commercial route along most of its urban length, being a main street of Mendota, Minkler. In east Fresno, the Kings Canyon corridor is one of the largest multicultural business districts in the city, together with east Belmont a mile north. The segment from SR99 to I-5, including the unbuilt portion, is named the Deran Koligian Memorial Highway. In Fresno, SR180 is Sequoia-Kings Canyon Freeway, named for its destinations to the east in the Sierra Nevada - Sequoia National Park, the SR 41/SR180 interchange is named the Rose Ann Vuich Interchange, for the longtime State Senator who secured funding for the initial freeway. The interchange at Fowler Avenue is the Kimberly Marie Hamilton Memorial Interchange, inside of Kings Canyon it is the Kings Canyon Scenic Byway or Kings River Highway. In 1935 LR41 was extended to be a road from Kings Canyon to Tracy, signed as SR180 to Mendota and SR33 beyond. Through Fresno from the west, the turned on B Street, Stanislaus Street, down Broadway, turned at Ventura Street and left downtown on it.
At some point the road was split into parallel one-way roads, with traffic using Amador Street, A Street. None of this route has been improved, and is signed only as County Route J1 for most of its extent, the existing routes from I-5 to SR-25, passing through Panoche and Llanada, are rugged and not currently state-maintained. The Fresno Master Freeway plan was developed in the boom, with a western bypass by 99, an eastern bypass by 41. 99 was constructed in 1962, but lack of funds and a freeway revolt prevented the construction of the SR180,180 was particularly controversial because it cut through one of Fresnos historic districts
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume, it is a quantity of type number density. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and most of the time to humans and it is a key geographical term. Population density is population divided by land area or water volume. Low densities may cause a vortex and lead to further reduced fertility. This is called the Allee effect after the scientist who identified it, commonly this may be calculated for a county, country, another territory, or the entire world. The worlds population is around 7,000,000,000, the worldwide human population density is around 7,000,000,000 ÷510,000,000 =13.7 per km2. If only the Earths land area of 150,000,000 km2 is taken into account and this includes all continental and island land area, including Antarctica. If Antarctica is excluded, population density rises to over 50 people per km2, this number by itself does not give any helpful measurement of human population density. Several of the most densely populated territories in the world are city-states, cities with high population densities are, by some, considered to be overpopulated, though this will depend on factors like quality of housing and infrastructure and access to resources.
Most of the most densely populated cities are in Southeast Asia, though Cairo, for instance, Milwaukee has a greater population density when just the inner city is measured, and the surrounding suburbs excluded. Arithmetic density, The total number of people / area of land, physiological density, The total population / area of arable land. Agricultural density, The total rural population / area of arable land, residential density, The number of people living in an urban area / area of residential land. Urban density, The number of people inhabiting an urban area / total area of urban land, ecological optimum, The density of population that can be supported by the natural resources. S. States by population density Selected Current and Historic City, Ward & Neighborhood Density
Shannon Grove
Shannon Lee Grove is an American politician who served in the California State Assembly. A Republican, Grove represented the 34th district, which encompass most of Kern County and she served three terms in office. She is the executive officer of an employment agency she started in 1993 with her sister-in-law. Grove was born in Kern County and grew up there, upon returning to her native Kern County, Grove worked for two temporary staffing agencies, TempServ for one year and Workforce Staffing for another year. Grove was elected in the Tea Party wave of 2010 and she was reelected twice to the California State Assembly, and was sworn in to her third term in 2014. Due to term limits, Grove was not eligible to run for a term in 2016. In the Assembly, Grove served as chair of the Elections and Redistricting Committee, and sits on the Agriculture, Insurance. Grove advocates changing the California State Legislature from a full-time to a part-time body, Grove pitched the idea in a four-minute video produced by a Tea Party group in 2012.
A Field Poll showed that 39 percent of voters supported Groves idea, Grove introduced a bill in 2015 that would mandate that California public colleges and universities allow student organizations to maintain belief-based requirements for its members and leaders. The bill targeted the California State University systems open membership or all-comers policy, Grove has introduced anti-abortion legislation into the Assembly, which did not pass. Grove opposed legislation passed by the Assembly in 2015 in response to misinformation at crisis pregnancy centers, in June 2016, Grove attracted attention and criticism after linking abortion legislation and the wrath of God to the drought in California. Groves remarks sparked a backlash and were criticized as patently ridiculous by NARAL Pro-Choice California, Grove responded to criticism by saying that she had been misconstrued. In a Facebook post following the speech, Grove wrote, Is this drought caused by God, Grove states in the video, Our children are going to lose this blessing if water policy in California does not change.
Californias bread basket, which feeds this nation and the world, Grove opposed the aid-in-dying legislation passed by the California State Legislature, Suicide should never be used as a legitimate way to end human suffering. In Assembly floor debate on the legislation in 2015, Grove stated, colleagues, in February 2016, Grove introduced two pieces of legislation to require California public-employee unions to post itemized budgets online and to hold ratification elections every two years. Grove has opposed providing financial assistance to families struggling to afford diapers for infant children. Grove is a critic of Californias high-speed passenger rail project. Grove has called the project a train to nowhere and believes that it is too costly, Grove sponsored legislation to amend Californias Private Attorneys General Act of 2004, which allows workers to sue employers who fail to properly pay workers or commit other labor law violations
California
California is the most populous state in the United States and the third most extensive by area. Located on the western coast of the U. S, California is bordered by the other U. S. states of Oregon and Arizona and shares an international border with the Mexican state of Baja California. Los Angeles is Californias most populous city, and the second largest after New York City. The Los Angeles Area and the San Francisco Bay Area are the nations second- and fifth-most populous urban regions, California has the nations most populous county, Los Angeles County, and its largest county by area, San Bernardino County. The Central Valley, an agricultural area, dominates the states center. What is now California was first settled by various Native American tribes before being explored by a number of European expeditions during the 16th and 17th centuries, the Spanish Empire claimed it as part of Alta California in their New Spain colony. The area became a part of Mexico in 1821 following its war for independence.
The western portion of Alta California was organized as the State of California, the California Gold Rush starting in 1848 led to dramatic social and demographic changes, with large-scale emigration from the east and abroad with an accompanying economic boom. If it were a country, California would be the 6th largest economy in the world, fifty-eight percent of the states economy is centered on finance, real estate services and professional, scientific and technical business services. Although it accounts for only 1.5 percent of the states economy, the story of Calafia is recorded in a 1510 work The Adventures of Esplandián, written as a sequel to Amadis de Gaula by Spanish adventure writer Garci Rodríguez de Montalvo. The kingdom of Queen Calafia, according to Montalvo, was said to be a land inhabited by griffins and other strange beasts. This conventional wisdom that California was an island, with maps drawn to reflect this belief, shortened forms of the states name include CA, Cal. Calif. and US-CA.
Settled by successive waves of arrivals during the last 10,000 years, various estimates of the native population range from 100,000 to 300,000. The Indigenous peoples of California included more than 70 distinct groups of Native Americans, ranging from large, settled populations living on the coast to groups in the interior. California groups were diverse in their organization with bands, villages. Trade and military alliances fostered many social and economic relationships among the diverse groups, the first European effort to explore the coast as far north as the Russian River was a Spanish sailing expedition, led by Portuguese captain Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo, in 1542. Some 37 years English explorer Francis Drake explored and claimed a portion of the California coast in 1579. Spanish traders made unintended visits with the Manila galleons on their trips from the Philippines beginning in 1565
San Joaquin River
The San Joaquin River /ˈsæn wɑːˈkiːn/ is the longest river of Central California in the United States. An important source of water as well as a wildlife corridor. People have inhabited the San Joaquin Valley for more than 8,000 years, the newcomers quickly appropriated the rich natural and hydrologic resources of the watershed for use in farms and cities, but found themselves plagued by flood and drought. Because of the topography of the San Joaquin Valley, floods once transformed much of the lower river into a huge inland sea. In the 20th century, many levees and dams were built on the San Joaquin and these engineering works changed the fluctuating nature of the river forever, and cut off the Tulare Basin from the rest of the San Joaquin watershed. The river was called many different names, at different parts of the river were known by different names. The present name of the dates to 1805–1808, when Spanish explorer Gabriel Moraga was surveying east from Mission San José in order to find possible sites for a mission.
Moraga named a tributary of the river for Saint Joachim, husband of Saint Anne and father of Mary, the name Moraga chose was applied to the entire river, it was in common use by 1810. In the Mono language, the river is called typici h huu, a member of the Pedro Fages party in 1772, Crespis vantage point was the hilltops behind modern San Francisco. Another early name was Rio San Juan Bautista, the origin of which is unknown.8 mi southeast of Mount Lyell, the Middle Fork is usually considered part of the main stem. The South Fork, which begins at Martha Lake in Kings Canyon National Park and flows through Florence Lake, from the mountainous alpine headwaters, the San Joaquin flows generally south into the foothills of the Sierra, passing through four hydroelectric dams. It eventually emerges from the foothills at what was once the town of Millerton, the location of Friant Dam since 1942, which forms Millerton Lake. Below Friant Dam, the San Joaquin flows west-southwest out into the San Joaquin Valley – the southern part of the Great Central Valley – passing north of Fresno, from Mendota, the San Joaquin swings northwest, passing through many different channels, some natural and some man-made.
Northeast of Dos Palos, it is joined by the Fresno. Fifty miles downstream, the Merced River empties into an otherwise dry San Joaquin, the majority of the river flows through quiet agricultural bottomlands, and as a result its meandering course manages to avoid most of the urban areas and cities in the San Joaquin Valley. About 11 mi west of Modesto, the San Joaquin meets its largest tributary, near Vernalis, it is joined by another major tributary, the Stanislaus River. About 40 mi from the mouth, the river draws abreast to the flank of Stockton. From here to the mouth, the river is dredged as part of a navigation project, past the head of tide, amid the many islands of the delta, the San Joaquin is joined by two more tributaries, the Calaveras River and the larger Mokelumne
Semi-arid climate
A semi-arid climate or steppe climate is the climate of a region that receives precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not extremely. There are different kinds of climates, depending on such variables as temperature. Semi-arid climates tend to short or scrubby vegetation, with semi-arid areas usually dominated by either grasses or shrubs. To determine if a location has a climate, the precipitation threshold must first be determined. If the areas precipitation is less than the threshold but more than half the threshold. Hot semi-arid climates tend to be located in the tropics and subtropics and these climates tend to have hot, sometimes extremely hot and warm to cool winters, with some to minimal precipitation. Hot semi-arid climates are most commonly found around the fringes of subtropical deserts, hot semi-arid climates are most commonly found in Africa and South Asia. In Australia, a portion of the Outback surrounding the central desert regions lies within the hot semi-arid climate regime.
Hot semi-arid climates can be found in North America, primarily in Mexico, areas of Texas near Mexico, cold semi-arid climates tend to be located in temperate zones or elevated portions in subtropical zones. They are typically found in continental interiors some distance from bodies of water. Cold semi-arid climates usually feature warm and dry summers, though their summers are not quite as hot as those of hot semi-arid climates. Unlike hot semi-arid climates, areas with cold semi-arid climates tend to have cold winters and these areas usually see some snowfall during the winter, though snowfall is much lower than at locations at similar latitudes with more humid climates. These large diurnal temperature variations are seen in hot semi-arid climates. Cold semi-arid climates are most commonly found in Asia and North America, they can be found in Northern Africa, South Africa, sections of South America and sections of interior southern Australia and New Zealand. As a result of this, some areas can have climates that are classified as hot or cold depending on the isotherm used.
One such location is San Diego, which has cool summers for the due to prevailing winds off the ocean. Arid Forest Research Institute Continental climate Dust Bowl Goyders Line Pallisers Triangle Köppen climate classification Wave height Ustic
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