Bank

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The Kern Valley Bank, established on February 24, 1874, was the first bank incorporated in Kern County.

Established soon after the economic depression known as the Panic of 1873, the Kern Valley Bank managed to weather the nationwide economic turmoil and survive for 37 years - an admirable record for a small community bank.

Solomon Jewett cofounded the bank, which opened on the corner of 18th Street and Chester Avenue in downtown Bakersfield. Jewett served as the president of the bank from 1874 until 1905. The bank closed amidst financial trouble six years later.

Built by Ronald McDonald around 1892, the County of Kern donated this former residence once located on Beale Avenue in East Bakersfield in 1959.

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The interior of the Kern Valley Bank, circa 1890.		historicphoto421:
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The Kern Valley Bank on the southwest corner of Chester Avenue and 18th Street in 1889.







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