KVPR
Central Valley Roots
KVPR's Central Valley Roots explores the history, people and places of Central California. Discover something new about our region, past and present, with each episode. From Fresno and Bakersfield, to Visalia and Merced, the Central Valley is full of rich stories that make the place we call home special. Send us your question about local history or places to roots@kvpr.org and we might answer it in a future episode. Hear the series on the radio weekdays at 5:06 a.m., 9:04 a.m. and 5:32 p.m. or listen to our podcast.
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Episodes
Royal Porter Putnam and the birth of Porterville 09.07.2026 1:29
Nestled close the Sierra foothills in Tulare County, Porterville began as a ferry crossing on the Tule River.
Fresno's Maynard Dixon: A pioneering artist of the American West 08.07.2026 1:29
Dixon's landscape paintings ranged in styles from impressionism to angular modernism, all while capturing the beauty of the Southwestern landscape.
A man-made landmark in Yosemite: The Ahwahnee Hotel 07.07.2026 1:29
The grand hotel has been a Yosemite Valley icon since 1927, and has hosted presidents and royalty.
Two Fresno-area musicians who had counterculture rock hits in the 1960s: Barry McGuire and Terry Talbot 06.07.2026 1:30
Barry McGuire and Terry Talbot had their own big hits during the anti-war movement, before they both moved to Fresno and shifted their careers into worship music.
Fresno's Duncan Ceramics Building: a colorful landmark for over 50 years 03.07.2026 1:30
Fresno-area artist Stan Bitters designed the collection of glazed ceramic reliefs starting in 1969.
The history behind Fresno's Fig Garden Village shopping center 02.07.2026 1:29
Fig Garden Village was built in the "Town and County" style in the 1950s using reclaimed timbers, bricks and an eclectic design that has made it popular for close to 70 years.
The Mariposa County gold country town with Latino roots: Hornitos 01.07.2026 1:28
This gold country town was built around a central plaza, in the Mexican tradition.
Tulare's Mefford Field & historic B-17 Flying Fortress 30.06.2026 1:29
Countless pilots trained at Mefford Field during World War II, and a vintage B-17 nearby is a popular roadside attraction on Highway 99.
Downtown Fresno's Farmer's Market Shopping Center, gone but not forgotten 29.06.2026 1:29
Patterned after LA's Original Farmer's Market, it was a Fresno landmark from the 1940s through the 1990s.
The story of Fresno's Tower District 28.06.2026 1:58
The neighborhood is much older than its namesake theater, which was built in 1939 in Fresno's first "streetcar suburb."
The craftsman-style bungalows of the Central Valley 27.06.2026 1:28
Look in older parts of Fresno, Bakersfield and other cities, and you're likely to find a Craftsman-style bungalow.
1953: When Fresno workers rebuilt America's top fighter jet 26.06.2026 1:29
North American Aviation established a plant at the Fresno Air Terminal to rebuild F-86 Sabrejets returning from the Korean War for the U.S. Air Force.
Bakersfield's iconic Sill Building: A downtown landmark since 1940 25.06.2026 1:29
The Streamline Moderne-style building was built in 1940, and once housed a giant neon Coca-Cola sign on its roof.
Merced County's historic town of Snelling 24.06.2026 1:29
The historic courthouse in Snelling is the oldest in Merced County.
The day in 1953 when 12 different arson fires set downtown Fresno ablaze 23.06.2026 1:29
Fresno's Hughes Hotel was destroyed on July 10, 1953, and numerous other buildings were damaged in an arson spree that remains unsolved to this day.
She broke the California's Senate's glass ceiling: Dinuba's Rose Ann Vuich 22.06.2026 1:29
Before Rose Ann Vuich was elected in 1976, the California State Senate was "male, pale and stale."
How the actor who played the Wizard of Oz's Tin Man transformed Madera 21.06.2026 1:29
Actor Jack Haley was the developer behind several Madera-area projects, including the Madera Ranchos.
This Madera County community was once a World War II-era bombing range 20.06.2026 1:29
The Bonnadelle Ranchos development was built on the site of a former World War II bombing range.
Route 466: Route 66's Kern County cousin 19.06.2026 1:29
Decommissioned in the 1960s, U.S. Route 466 traveled on portions of today's Highways 58, 99, 46 and 41, from Barstow to Morro Bay.
Old Red: How a Fresno machine helped revolutionize cotton harvesting, and wound up in the Smithsonian 18.06.2026 1:29
A red International Harvester from Fresno sits in the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C.
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