The Old Kernville Historic Cemetery

The Old Kernville Historic Cemetery (also known as Kern River Valley Historical Cemetery) with known burials dating back to the early 1870's.

According to one of the historic markers in front of the cemetery, Kernville was

founded in 1860 when Adam Hamilton, whiskey dealer, moved shop here from more temperate Quartzburg, founded earlier that year and later obliterated during construction of County Route J-16 (Bear Valley-Hornitos Road).

Both mining camps resulted from the discovery of the Big Blue Ledge above the cemetery by “Lovely” Rogers while tracking a stray mule from the earlier camp of Keyesville. Kernville was called Whiskey Flat until 1864.

Kernville was designated as California Registered Historical Landmark No.132 on January 31, 1934. That marker was moved to the front of the Old Kernville Cemetery and rededicated on May 3, 1953, just after the completion of Isabella Dam. Otherwise, it would have been inundated by the waters of the reservoir now known as Lake Isabella. By that time, most of Old Kernville had been moved to its current site upriver, becoming what we know today as Kernville.

The cemetery is maintained by the Kern River Valley Cemetery District established by the Kern County Board of Supervisors on November 27, 1950. The Old Kernville Historic Cemetery is located about 3.2 miles South of the Kern Valley Museum on the North Fork of the Kern River between current-day Kernville and Wofford Heights. It is about ½ mile N of the site of Old Kernville (now often under the waters of Lake Isabella).