The original Beale Memorial Clock Tower was built by Truxtun Beale in 1904. As a gift to the city of Bakersfield, the tower was a memorial to the memory of Truxtun's mother, Mary Edwards Beale.
The clock tower stood in the middle of an intersection downtown until the Fall of 1952. At 4:52am on July 21, 1952, a 7.7 magnitude earthquake struck Bakersfield along the White Wolf fault. It was the most powerful quake to hit California since the great San Francisco quake of 1906. Not a month later, a 7.5 aftershocked erupted from the same fault line, greatly damaging the already weakened structures around Bakersfield.
The clock tower suffered damage as well and was deemed unrepairable. On Nov 13, 1952, what remained standing of the tower was demolished. Several pieces were salvaged from the destruction, including the bell, clock works, iron stairway, balcony railings, and arch grillwork.
in 1961, a committee was formed to direct the building of a restored clock tower. The reconstructed clock tower, using the salvaged parts was constructed at the Kern County Musuem and dedicated on December 13, 1964.
The clock tower still stands today in front of the Kern County Museum. The replica has now stood the test of time longer than the original.
If you visit during the museum's operating hours then you may go in the gate and view the clock up close. You may park directly on the street in front of it or in the musuem parking lot. There is a charge to go inside the museum grounds, which is not required of you. The museum does have many buildings and houses from the late 1800s within.
Logging Requirement (either post it with your log or message/email the photo to me):
Perform one of the following with the clock tower in the background:
Post a photo of yourself (with or without a face showing)
OR
Post a photo of your caching handle written on a sheet or paper
Virtual Reward - 2017/2018
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between August 24, 2017 and August 24, 2018. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards on the Geocaching Blog.