Knightsen

History

Knightsen is a small, unincorporated community of 1,568 residents and 1,500 horses in far eastern Contra Costa County, California in the eastern San Francisco Bay Area closest to Oakley, California. The community was founded by George W. Knight, and its name is a portmanteau of his last name and his wife (Christina Christensen). During the 1880s, settlers began moving in and planting the first almond trees in the area. A few dairies also sprang up. Other crops, such as apricots, grapes and alfalfa were also planted. Until the railroad was built, farmers shipped their produce via water, using Babbes Landing off Dutch Slough, near the north end of what is now Sellers Avenue. The first buildings in Knightsen were a station house, a railroad station and a pumping plant, all belonging to the Santa Fe. After Knight's grocery, came the Lyon Brothers asparagus plant, which could ship two to four carloads of asparagus per day during the harvest season. The railroad made shipping crops much easier. Soon, six dairies were shipping an average of of milk per day. During the 1920s, Knightsen was one of the largest milk shipping points in California. Voters approved forming the Knightsen Irrigation District in 1920 to provide water to of farmland. The cost of the project then was $650,000. Even before the project was completed, the district was absorbed by the East Contra Costa Water District. The change from dry farming to irrigation brought other notable changes. The Knightsen Farm Bureau was organized in 1918. It built a hall in 1922 that has since been used for school graduations, dances, weddings, political functions, school plays, holiday celebrations, church services, a safe haven for flood victims and an endless list of other events. John N. Kristich, a pipe manufacturer…

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of , 99% of it land.

Race & ethnicity