San Bernardino is the
county seat of
San Bernardino County, California,
United States. San Bernardino's estimated population, as of 2006, is 205,010.
[1] As of 2006, it was the 18th largest city in California, and the 101st largest city in the United States.
[2] San Bernardino is part of the
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario Metropolitan Area, the 14th largest metro in the nation, commonly referred to as the "
Inland Empire". San Bernardino held the
Miss Teen USA 1988 and also the
Miss Teen USA 1989. San Bernardino has three major events, the annual Route 66 Rendezvous,
[3] a multi-day classic automobile event held in
downtown San Bernardino each September, the National Orange Show,
[4] held each April/May, and the Western Regional
Little League Championships each August. The world's largest
fast food chain,
McDonald's, began in the city in
1940 by brothers
Dick and Mac McDonald.
Though the closing of Norton Air Force Base and Kaiser Steel, as well as the relocation of railroad jobs in the 1980s and 1990s had a large impact on the economy and culture of the city, new industrial development is occurring near the San Bernardino International Airport. Though traditional retail and office areas such as downtown and Highland Avenue have suffered, the City is seeing growth along its south-end focused on Hospitality Lane. Though much of the housing stock is, on the average, older than the surrounding region, new homes continue to be built in different parts of the City, with the bulk on the north-end in the Verdemont area.
San Bernardino, California is one of the oldest communities in the State of California. San Bernardino was named on May 20, 1810, but the present-day location was not largely settled until 1851 after statehood. The first Anglo-American colony was established by Latter-day Saints (Mormons). The City was incorporated in 1854. The Latter-day Saints were recalled in 1857 by Brigham Young. The city later became a trading hub for the region. The California Southern Railroad established a rail link with Los Angeles and the rest of the nation in 1883. In 1905, the City of San Bernardino passed its first Charter. World War II brought what would become Norton Air Force Base. The McDonald Brothers opened the first McDonald's restaurant in San Bernardino 1948. In 1980, the Panorama Fire destroyed 284 homes. In 1994, Norton Air Force Base closed, later becoming San Bernardino International Airport.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 153.5 km² (59.2 mi²), of which 152.3 km² (58.8 mi²) of it is land and 1.1 km² (0.4 mi²), or 0.74%, is water.
