California Museums
California Oil Museums List and Information
Kern County Museum - Black Gold: The
Oil Experience
3801 Chester Avenue
Bakersfield, CA 93301
(661) 852-5000
kcmuseum.org
Admission: $10; $9 Student (13-17)
and Senior (60-up); $8 age 6-12;
$7 age 3-5; Free under age 3
Wed-Sun: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. No admission
after 3 p.m.
The Kern County Museum presents Black
Gold: The Oil Experience, a permanent
science, technology and history
interactive exhibit that opened in 2002.
The 9,640-square foot museum hall and
surrounding 2.3 acres present a complete
overview of how oil is created,
different methods of discovery and
extraction throughout history, and the
changing role of industry workers and
their families.
This participatory exhibition features a
variety of learning environments for
audiences of all ages. Highlights
include a simulated travel under the sea
in a diving bell to learn how oil is
formed, an exploration into oil
discovery, recovery and its
transformation into many products we use
today, and the many dangers of asphaltum
mining straight from the mouth of an
old-timer. With Kern County providing
64% of California oil production, oil
production has been a crucial component
of the local economy since 1895.
The outdoor area features a full-size
working jack plant, a wooden derrick
with cable tools, pumping jacks,
oil-field engines and vehicles, in
addition to historic buildings of
yesteryear that have been relocated from
their original sites to the museum
grounds.