More historic than 11% of U.S. towns · #651 of 847 in California. What drives it
Most of Greenfield was built recently: 2% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1982. Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1932 on, and old-book passages.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Greenfield is more historic than 11% of U.S. towns, #651 of 847 in California. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
D
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Greenfield’s overall grade.
Few California towns list much on the Register (a typical California town has 0.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Greenfield’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (31% of California towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share (±2.3 points) is firm at this size.
Founding year: our sources. Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
The story so far
Greenfield, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Greenfield yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Greenfield (formerly, Delkern) is a census-designated place in Kern County, California. It is located 7 miles (11 km) south of Bakersfield, at an elevation of 351 feet (107 m). The population was 3,447 at the 2020 census. The Delkern post office was opened in 1949. That name derives from Kern Delta, a designation for the surrounding area.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 3,991 to 3,447 (-14%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
From the old history books
What they wrote about Greenfield in 1914
Passages that mention Greenfield, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Kern County, California, with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its growth and development from the early days to the present1914 · page 1388Read the page →
Read the text
out fur the oil fields. For three years he worked for the Fisher Oil Company in Venango county. When twenty-one he went to Freeport, Ohio, and secured employment as a tool-dresser. At the expiration of two years he left Ohio for Indiana and at Greenfield had his first experience in drilling, being employed by Al Cole, a local oil man. From that time to the present he has engaged steadily in the drilling department of the oil industry and was successively employed at Greenfield, Ind., Gibsonburg, Ohio, Bay City, Mich, (where a wild-cat proposition engaged his time), and Cluryon
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
By decade
Greenfield, decade by decade
One decade in the archive so far: the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Greenfield is more historic than 11% of U.S. towns, #651 of 847 in California. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
How old are the homes in Greenfield?
2% of Greenfield’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.3 points), against a typical 3.4% for a California town; the median home was built in 1982.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From the Library of Congress (6), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, the USGS Geographic Names Information System and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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