Browse / United States / California / Avenal
Avenal
Californiacity
Avenal
Total population
13,608
Median home value
$228,900
Bachelor's+
Median income
$54,741
Founded
1979
Demographic figures from US Census Bureau · ACS 5-year estimates. Overview below cites Wikipedia and may reference a different year.
- Heat Advisory · ModerateHeat Advisory issued October 1 at 9:30AM PDT until October 4 at 10:00PM PDT by NWS Hanford CA
Source: NOAA National Weather Service.
City facts
Facts from Wikidata (CC0).
Overview
Avenal is a city in Kings County, California, United States. Avenal is located 35 miles (56 km) southwest of Hanford, at an elevation of 807 ft (246 m). It is part of the Hanford-Corcoran metropolitan area, which encompasses all of Kings County. In area, it is the fourth-largest city in Kings County. As of the 2020 census, Avenal had a population of 13,696, which includes inmates at the Avenal State Prison, the first prison actively solicited by a community in the state of California. Many of the remaining residents largely either work at the prison or in the agriculture industry. The prison provides approximately 1,000 jobs to residents. The California Department of Finance estimated that Avenal's population was 13,496 on July 1, 2019. As of that date, Avenal State Prison held 4,165 inmates, which was about 32% of the total population of Avenal. Inmates are counted as city residents by both the United States census and the California Department of Finance.
Read more on WikipediaHistory & geography
History
The City of Avenal was named by Spanish soldiers and explorers. In Spanish, means , and means . This area was covered with wild oats, "waist high," that looked like golden silk and covered the Kettleman Plains. Early American settlers arrived in the Kettleman Hills during the 1850s with dreams of raising cattle and farming. Oil, however, would bring fame, fortune and people to the area. Native Americans had always known oil was in the hills, with natural seepage around Coalinga and Tar Canyon. The first Kettleman Hills well was drilled in 1900, followed by countless unproductive efforts. On March 27, 1927, the Milham Exploration Company began work on Elliot No. 1. The crew toiled for 19 months, drilling past the mark. On October 5, 1928, the well blew out with a roar which was heard away, spewing forth an oil so fine that its color was white, and reportedly could be used unrefined as gasoline in automobiles. The discovery of oil transformed Avenal into a boomtown. In 1929, Standard Oil surveyed the current site of Avenal to build a town. Makeshift houses were hauled in from Taft to take the place of the tents. A water line was laid and later a sewer plant was installed, a post office replaced a cigar box in the general store, a fire department was organized, and a community grew. Standard Oil Company built the residents a 600-seat theater and a hospital. Also in the first year (1929), nearly 20 businesses occupied Kings Street and Skyline Boulevard. By 1936, Avenal boasted a population of 3,000—mostly oil workers—with 100 businesses and 69 private telephones and numerous community organizations. In 1940, Avenal was the second-largest town in Kings County with a population of over 4,000 and was known to have some of the best services and schools in the state.…
Geography
Avenal is located at ,
Excerpted from the corresponding Wikipedia article (CC BY-SA).
Demographics & economy
Race & ethnicity
Source: US Census Bureau — American Community Survey, 5-year estimates.
Geography
Coordinates & boundaries from the US Census TIGER/Line shapefiles.
Climate
10-year averages from ERA5 reanalysis (Open-Meteo).
Current forecast
Forecast for Avenal, CA from NOAA NWS API.
Air quality
Industrial & pollution facilities
Natural hazard risk
Health (adults)
Walkability
Amenities nearby
Wildlife & biodiversity
Schools
Earthquake history
Photos
Sights & places nearby
Notable people from here
People born within ~10 km, from Wikidata (CC0). Click any name for their Wikipedia article.
Nearby places in California
- Lemoore25.4 mi away · pop. 27,038
- Armona30.2 mi away · pop. 3,890
- Home Garden32.7 mi away
- El Paso de Robles (Paso Robles)40.9 mi away
- Creston42.1 mi away
- Matheny43.8 mi away · pop. 572
- Pixley45.8 mi away
- Lake Nacimiento47 mi away · pop. 3,339
- East Tulare Villa48.2 mi away
- Malaga49.8 mi away
- Delft Colony50 mi away
- Delano51.1 mi away · pop. 51,679
Geography & sun
Elevation, sunrise/sunset and daylight from Open-Meteo. Solar climatology from NASA POWER.
Nearby airports
Public attention
Pageview totals from the Wikimedia Pageviews API.
Books about Avenal
Search results from Open Library.
Recent natural events nearby
- Wildfire PLAINS, San Luis Obispo, CaliforniaWildfires · 2026-08-12 · 43 mi
- Wildfire Plaskett, Monterey, CaliforniaWildfires · 2026-08-26 · 73 mi
- Prescribed Fire CRAWFORD CORRAL RX, Tulare, CaliforniaWildfires · 2026-09-19 · 75 mi
- Wildfire Timber, Monterey, CaliforniaWildfires · 2026-08-09 · 90 mi
- Wildfire BUZZARD, Kern, CaliforniaWildfires · 2026-08-05 · 103 mi
- Wildfire DOME, Mariposa, CaliforniaWildfires · 2026-09-15 · 110 mi
- Wildfire RIDGE, Los Angeles, CaliforniaWildfires · 2026-08-07 · 112 mi
- Wildfire GANN, Calaveras, CaliforniaWildfires · 2026-08-03 · 148 mi
Wildfires, storms and other events from NASA EONET (last 12 months, within 250 mi).
Ground air-quality sensors
Recently spotted species
Nearest stream gauge
Events
Gallery
Sources
- • Wikipedia
- • US Census Bureau (ACS 5-year estimates)
- • Open-Meteo (ERA5 reanalysis)
- • NOAA National Weather Service
- • Wikidata
- • Open-Elevation
- • Open-Meteo / sunrise-sunset.org
- • Wikipedia Pageviews API
- • Open Library
- • NASA EONET