Colonel Allensworth State Historic Park

Allen Allensworth was born a slave in Louisville, Kentucky, in 1842. At the age of 12, he was "sold down river" for trying to learn to read and write. After some trading by slave dealers, he was taken to New Orleans, and bought by a slaveholder to become a jockey. The Civil War started, and when the Union forces neared Louisville, Allensworth found his chance for freedom. He joined the Navy and when he was discharged, he had achieved the rank of first class petty officer. In 1871, he was ordained as a Baptist minister and entered the Baptist Theological Institute at Nashville. While serving at the Union Baptist Church in Cincinnati, he learned of the need for Black chaplains in the armed services, and got an appointment as Chaplain of the Black 24th Infantry Buffalo Soldiers.

He had seen many Black people move west after the Civil War to escape discrimination. He teamed up with a gifted Black teacher named William Payne three other men with similar vision, Allensworth decided to establish a place where Black people could live and thrive without oppression. On June 30, 1908, they formed the California Colony Home Promoting Association. They selected an area in Tulare County because it was fertile, there was plenty of water, and the land was available and inexpensive. In August 1908 Colonel Allen Allensworth and the other settlers established a town founded, financed and governed by Blacks. They first bought 20 acres, and later, 80 more. Their dream of developing an abundant and thriving community stemmed directly from a strong belief in programs that allowed Blacks to help themselves create better lives. By 1910 Allensworth’s success was the focus of many national newspaper articles praising the town and its inhabitants. The little town with a big vision grew rapidly for several years -- to more than 200 inhabitants, by 1914. That same year Allensworth became a voting precinct and a judicial district. Colonel Allensworth was killed on September 14, 1914, when hit by a motorcycle, while getting off a streetcar in Monrovia, California. After a funeral at the Second Baptist Church in Los Angeles, he was buried with full military honors.

An unavoidable set of circumstances made it impossible for the residents of this tiny town located 30 miles north of Bakersfield to achieve their founders’ dreams over the long term. But the town did remain home to a handful of families and individuals throughout the 20th century, and true to the courage and resolve of its founders, the town has survived and persevered, earning the well-deserved title “The town that refused to die.” Since most of the water for Allensworth farming had to come underground from the Sierra Nevada Mountains, and there were many other farms and communities between the mountains and Allensworth, the water supply for the town and farms began to dry up. The next blow was the Great Depression that hit the whole country in the early 1930s. Public services began to shut down, and many residents moved to the cities to look for work. The Post Office closed in 1931. By the 1940s, most of the residents were migratory farm workers, and the population was mainly a mixture of Blacks and Hispanics. Housing deteriorated, as most of the people didn't consider Allensworth their permanent home. The population had shrunk to 90, in 1972, and later dropped to almost zero.

A drive began in the early 1970s to save the town of Allensworth. In 1974 California State Parks purchased land within the historical town site of Allensworth, and it became Colonel Allensworth State Historic Park. Allensworth would be an historic monument and public park dedicated to the memory and spirit of Colonel Allensworth as well as a place to note the achievements and contributions of Blacks to the history and development of California. In 1976, when the town site became a state historic park, restorations began, and plans began for further preservation, restoration, and reconstruction, and for interpretation of the history of Allensworth. Today a collection of lovingly restored and reconstructed early 20th-century buildings, including Allensworth’s the Colonel ’s Allensworth's residence, furnished in the 1912 period; the historic schoolhouse, which was still in use until 1972 and is furnished as it would have been on a school day in 1915; the Baptist church; and the Mary Dickenson library. It contains items from the colonel's life in the service and the ministry. There is also a small display of farm equipment as a reminder of the Allensworth economic base. With continuing restoration and special events, the town is coming back to life as a state historic park. The park’s visitor center features a film about the site. A yearly rededication ceremony reaffirms the vision of the pioneers.

In 2008 California State Parks is celebrating the 100th anniversary of the founding of this unique town dedicated to the dignity of the human spirit. There you can learn about Colonel Allen Allensworth and the courageous group of families and individuals who created their own version of the “American Dream.” You can experience the inspiring story of the people who came to an isolated spot in the southern San Joaquin Valley to build a place of their own—a place where hard work, dedication, and faith would allow them and their children the opportunity to control their own discrimination-free destiny. There are volunteers and guides leading tours and recreating the historic atmosphere of the early 1900s. There was a Black History Month Celebration in February, an Old Time Jubilee in May, a Juneteenth Celebration, and the annual Town Rededication in October. One other exciting aspect of the centennial celebration is the creation of a traveling exhibit that is circulating throughout California before coming to the park for Rededication Day in October. Entitled “Allensworth: 100 Years of the California Dream,” the exhibit will showcase the park and demonstrate its impact throughout the state. The Exhibit is on display at the San Bernardino Government Center April 4 through 30, and at the California African American Museum May 1 through October 3).


The park is 30 miles north of Bakersfield; 20 miles north of Wasco on Highway 43; seven miles west of Earlimart on County Road J22.