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Welcome to Bishop, California!

The City of Bishop, California was named after one of the first non-native settlers in Inyo County, Samuel A. Bishop. In 1861 Bishop drove more than 500 cattle into the Owens Valley and created the San Frances Ranch, later named Bishop Creek, three miles southwest of the city. In 1845 Owens Valley, Owens River, and Owens Lake were named after Richard Lemon Owings or “Richard Owens” during John C. Fremont’s expedition of California. The exploration party included Owens along with other pioneers of the American West, Kit Carson, and Ed Kern. The Paiute Indians called Owens Lake by the name of Pacheta and the Owens River Wakopee.

Inyo County is the second-largest county in California in size with a population of slightly more than 19,000 residents. The county is so big that several eastern states put together would fit neatly within its boundaries. As a result the county also has the second-lowest population density in California. Inyo County contains both the highest and lowest points in the contiguous United States; Mt. Whitney, 14,496 feet above sea level, and Badwater in Death Valley, 282 feet below sea level. A difference of nearly 15,000 feet.

Courtesy The Other Side of California (used with permission)

Courtesy of Christopher Chaos YouTube Channel (used with permission)

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