McKittrick, California
McKittrick is an unincorporated community in Kern County, California, United States. McKittrick is northwest of Taft, at an elevation of . The population was 115 at the 2010 census, down from 160 at the 2000 census.For statistical purposes, the United States Census Bureau has defined McKittrick as a census-designated place (CDP). Geography McKittrick is located at the junction of State Routes 33 and 58. According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of , all of it land. The town is in the center of a large oil-producing region in western Kern County. Along State Route 33 to the south of the town is the Midway-Sunset Oil Field, the second-largest oil field in the contiguous United States; within the town itself, as well as to the west is the McKittrick Field; to the northwest is the huge Cymric Field; and along Highway 33 beyond Cymric is the large South Belridge Oil Field, run by Aera Energy LLC. East of McKittrick is Occidental Petroleum's Elk Hills Field, formerly the U.S. Naval Petroleum Reserve. The McKittrick Tar Pits, which are similar to the more famous La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles, contain an assemblage of bones of ice age mammals. They are a series of surface seeps from the underlying McKittrick Oil Field. History The first post office at McKittrick opened in 1910. The name honors Capt. William McKittrick, local landowner and rancher. McKittrick incorporated in 1911. Berry Petroleum Company began sending out a property purchase offer letters of intent to homeowners in 2022 citing a new setback law that holds companies responsible for ensuring pollution from their operations does not negatively impact the health of nearby communities. Demographics 2010 At the 2010 census McKittrick had a population of 115. The population density was . The racial makeup of McKittrick was 101 (87.8%) White, 1 (0.9%) African American, 1 (0.9%) Native American, 0 (0.0%) Asian, 0 (0.0%) Pacific Islander, 7 (6.1%) from other races, and 5 (4.3%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 9 people (7.8%). The whole population lived in households, no one lived in non-institutionalized group quarters and no one was institutionalized. There were 42 households, 14 (33.3%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 21 (50.0%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 7 (16.7%) had a female householder with no husband present, 2 (4.8%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 5 (11.9%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 0 (0%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 9 households (21.4%) were one person and 3 (7.1%) had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.74. There were 30 families (71.4% of households); the average family size was 3.07. The age distribution was 21 people (18.3%) under the age of 18, 11 people (9.6%) aged 18 to 24, 24 people (20.9%) aged 25 to 44, 45 people (39.1%) aged 45 to 64, and 14 people (12.2%) who were 65