If you are in Bakersfield and looking for something to do, I highly recommend stopping by to learn about the city's history. Caution: It gets really hot in Bakersfield, so it might be a tad hot. Make sure to hydrate, wear comfortable clothes, and shoes because you will be walking around looking at the exhibits. There are a few indoor exhibits, but the majority are outside. Tours are self-guided, which is a plus because you can freely explore the grounds and village in the back. There are a few indoor exhibits that feature the vehicles used in the past for multiple purposes, and also a barn that includes memorabilia from old bars that our ancestors enjoyed in Kern County. Definitely a cool concept filled with lots of artifacts from the past. What a great day to enjoy a fun blast from the past! read more

A MUST-SEE! If you're in Bakersfield, you love architecture, and appreciate the growth of a city, you need to see the Kern County Museum. The best introduction to a region is learning of its history. I stopped by as I told my Mom this is a highly-rated experience and gem of the community! Turns out, it is. Kern County Museum is an immersive outdoor experience set up as a community or town where you go from houses to buildings to barns, exploring what life was like when people lived in the olden days. We spotted a hotel, doctor's office, schools, courthouse, and so many more buildings. All the structures are well-maintained and have descriptions in front of them. You're even allowed to go in some of the buildings! My favorite was a the spooky Mason Lodge! We spent a while enjoying the stories and significance of these locations which led to the development of a well-known Central California city! Kern County Museum even has a research center, mini art gallery, and children's discovery center. The facilities are clean and well-kept. There's an indoor section to the museum with background on Native American and war-time culture in Kern. My Mom and I came during a week day, we saw several parents bring their children to explore the museum. There's plenty of parking and room to move around. As an educator, i highly recommend checking this out! It's also perfect for field trips! read more

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Spring time and fall is the best time to visit kern county museum. It's almost all outdoors so it's important to have good weather. It is THE PLACE to learn about kern county and bakersfield history. I love coming here and learning new things every time. Not all the exhibits are open each time so it's a little hit or miss but fun to try exhibits when they are open. The country music scene exhibit is really cool and makes you proud of the bakersfield sound and the vehicles exhibit was awesome for any car/wagon lover. I was impressed with the amount of historical vehicles. Then we also love the Lori Brock museum which is perfect for little kids to enjoy the arts/crafts area and make believe area and a small outdoor play ground. It's one of our favorite local activities! read more

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Checked out the new Lego Room at the Lori Brock Children's museum. The children's museum is located inside the museum, and it's such a fun place to go play. They have a room with a play restaurant, bank, ambulance, fire station, store, etc. There's also a great little puppet theater outside as well as a play ground and a fossil digging area. If you find three fossils you get a prize, and my son was all about it! They converted a new room into a Lego room and there are so many stations to sit and play at. There's also an art room that always features an art project. I like the new sensory boxes that have some cool rocks and sea shells. We also loved walking around the big museum and seeing the train and all of the older buildings. Today they had the Howell house open, which was a great treat! We got to go upstairs and all of the rooms. read more

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Kern County Museum felt like I stepped back in time. Parking was easy with a spacious lot and you enter through a gate before heading to the ticket window right across from the first building. It took us over two hours to see everything properly. The Chamber of Commerce building was air conditioned and more modern than the surrounding buildings. Inside there were interesting exhibits about the United States role in various wars plus a seasonal display featuring wedding dresses from different decades. Most of the interactive parts worked well though a few lights were out. The Black Gold Experience was a big building all about the history of oil mining in Bakersfield. It was fun to get hands on with the drilling activities but some of the stations were stuck which took a little away from the experience. I enjoyed the Neon Courtyard as it was a spacious area filled with vintage signs and decor. It would be ideal for a social gathering if the lights were working. We spent the rest of our time exploring the life sized buildings. Some of the glass wasn't perfectly clear so it was a bit tricky to see inside, but the details and old time tokens made each place feel really authentic and lived in. The only downside was the gift shop, they mostly had bulk snacks so no unique souvenirs to bring home. I would definitely come back, especially on a cooler day since most areas didn't have shade or air conditioning. read more

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What an amazing local treasure we have here. I visited this past weekend while cheering on my father as he ran the half marathon for the Bakersfield Marathon. Until this past weekend, I had not been to the Kern County Musuem since I was a child enjoying the discovery center. I can't wait to come back and explore the musuem as an adult. They have amazing outdoor exhibits which made for such a fun Start and Finish Line for the marathon. They have Bakersfield historic building signs, landmarks, and even some historic homes such as Merle Haggard's. I'm excited to spend more time enjoying all the Kern County Museum has to offer. read more

I love this place. I would come here as a kid and do tours or just run around. I also remember the California History day activities. So much fun. Come check out the transportation exhibit or learn more about the Bakersfield Sound. read more

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Pioneer Village is so interesting.We enjoyed touring the grounds and met a few visitors to Kern County. But, we were disappointed that the shades were drawn at the Howell House and two others. Why? It's late fall. read more

Wear your walking shoes and dress for being outside. The entire museum is outside. The main doors you walk up to from the parking lot is not the front door. Walk past the double doors and walk through the wrought iron gate. Follow the large entrance sign. Check in is at the gift shop on the left hand side right after the bathrooms. Just walk up to the window and they will slide it open. I've been to a lot of museums all over the country and have never been to a museum like this before. It's an outdoor museum that tells the history of Bakersfield using houses and buildings. People for all walks of life have donated houses and building to this museum and they have then laid out like a little town. You can walk into most of the homes and buildings. There is plexiglass will allow you view the interior of the house, but will stop you from wandering around. I took a lot more pictures, but they didn't seem to save. read more

Kern County Museum - View from parking lot - Museums Near Me - Bakersfield, California

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I have only been to the KCM when events were happening at it. This was my first time purposefully seeking out going to the KCM. I wish I would have purchased the membership for $40 for two reasons. 1. There's so much to see we didn't get to see everything 2. It gives you access to a few other places around town, including the art museum and calm. The KCM has lots of old buildings/ homes on display, including Merle Haggard's house. They have a Bakersfield Sound area, which is dedicated to the artists that developed the sound. They have an old neon lights area. This was like a micro scale of the Vegas Neon Light Museum, but still very cool! They have a Native American history area, oil history area, mining history area, etc. It was overall very informative and a fun way to spend a few hours, for not that much money. read more

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Cool historical info about the history and development of Kern County including buildings, vehicles, farming and objects . Easy to take in at your own speed and it isn't too crowded . Loved the trees within the museum park walking area. Really pleasant! read more

Kern county museum was WAY more than I was expecting!! I was pretty amazed at how big the place is! How many attractions, houses, & businesses where all there! It's amazing how much they have been able to preserve! AND EVERYTHING was just so interesting and awesome! I love history and old stuff lol. We came on a Sunday afternoon, place wasn't crowded at all. 10$ for tickets, the only downside was the big green victorian house along with the tan house across from it, where not open to the public that day! And I really wanted to check out that green house lol! But really there was just SO MUCH other stuff to be seen, it wasn't that big of a deal. Wear your best walking shoes!! Because your gonna get a workout here! We stayed about 2 hours and still didn't even manage to see all there was, we decided to save some so we can come back at a later date to check out the rest! We also ran into this older gentleman who worked there a couple times throughout our trip, he kindly stopped us and gave us a little lesson about a couple of the different attractions we happened to be by at that time. He was such a sweet man, who had a lot of passion and knowledge for the history of Bakersfield, and it was nice to hear things explained in a detailed manner without having to read all the signs lol.... Because there are A LOT of signs to read!! some pretty lengthy! And ain't no one got time to be reading all that!! Lol especially when there is so much to look at! We got good at "scanning the signs" versus reading them entirely. But there is a lot of cool info on those signs! The other downside was that a lot of the buttons did not work throughout the entire place. I didn't really care for the button pushing part though so it didn't bother me that much, but for some, it might be more of a disappointment. . . And most of the houses / buildings (most, not all) do have plexiglass, so you are not allowed to fully go in and look at everything up close, but I'm sure that's part of how they keep everything preserved and in good condition. . . And to keep theft at a minimum. Still, your able to see a lot behind the plexiglass! Pretty awesome place! We will definitely be coming back! I want to find out when that green victorian house will be open and go back then! If you in need of something different to do, this is definitely it! read more

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They are on the ASTC (Association of science and technology centers) reciprocity list but the girl working there denied our admission. We showed her the list with Kern County Museum on it but she said she didn't know anything about it, the list must be new and that we had to pay. The list is from May- December 2025. Don't be on the reciprocity list if you're not going to honor it. read more

For $10 you can go on a peaceful walk through the historic buildings in Pioneer Village. Everything from a church to a schoolhouse, to homes. Can't go inside them but you can peer through windows. The main building offers a more intimate view into Bakersfields past. It's very dark, very old- it's a museum! A very small museum. Still, it's worth visiting once. I might go again just for the scenic walk through Pioneer Village. If you're looking for a souvenir, don't get your hopes up. They advertise a gift shop but it's just a shelf behind the ticket booth that you cannot browse comfortably. It was my first visit to this museum so I was excited to get something to remember it by--even if the gift shop was just a shelf. Well, the lady working the booth was not very kind in telling us we couldn't get closer to view the items. Rules are rules, but you don't have to be rude when answering a question. Better luck to the next person who wants to buy a souvenir(: read more

Kern County Museum - Pioneer village dentist and bank - Museums Near Me - Bakersfield, California

Today's trip to the museum was a school field trip, but I am no stranger to The Kern County Museum. Why wouldn't you want to enjoy a day at the museum. A small fee to enter if you don't have a pass. All the interesting history. It's a great walk workout, and you can bring in a lunch from wherever and enjoy it. And when the weather is beautiful out again, why not? read more

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I remember coming to Kern County Museum years ago for a festive Cowboy Day event with cowboy & cowgirl poetry, and civil war reenactors fighting a battle. These amiable, hospitable guys in blue and grey uniforms thought that I might fit in their unit as a Samurai since the U.S. forced Japan to open its ports in 1853 when the vast U.S. whaling industry needed Japan to serve as a supply depot for its ships catching whales all over the world until petroleum replaced whale oil. Remember, Herman Melville's Moby Dick.   Kern County Museum proper is still not open due to Covid so the indoor exhibits can not be viewed. The history of the region where the oil and the petroleum industry took a prominent role will have to be explored for another day.  The outdoor exhibits featuring homes from elegant Victorian to depression era dust bowl hovels & 19th century log cabins. Plenty of 19th & early 20th century hotel, hospital, drug store, courthouse, jails with only buckets for toilets, and other buildings dedicated to various trades of that era.  There is a section dedicated to mid 20th century neon signs of former businesses that are now gone. Huge oil derricks & pumps, steam locomotive which have a dystopian steampunk look of the Victorian era.  I felt like a voyeur peeking into windows, space in between bars, slats, going up & down stairs. It takes a minimum of 90 minutes to view it all at a more leisurely pace reading explanatory notes. About one hour if you rush through.  Good way to see historical Kern County buildings concentrated in one park like setting.  $10 admission fee. read more

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I first came here in 2019 and instantly fall in love. My dad used to come here back in the day, and now I take my children here. Its so peaceful and secure, there are a ton of different buildings from so many different timelines. The kids center always has new crafts and tons of stuff for them to do indoors and outdoors. Our favorite time to come is in the fall when its cool out and we stay for hours. This is a place I will always remember. read more

Thank You to all the Hard working staff! You continue to provide younger generations the History that is so important.

This was super rad, they have a children's center, a playground and lots of historic buildings where you can see how people lived and worked. Lots of fun for kids read more

Came for the sunday swap meet. Charming setting with a wide range of vendors. Love the collection of historic buldings (kinda like a tiny Greenfield Village) and an exhibit of the Bakersfield Sound as a bonus! read more

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We went to safe Halloween last night and it was trash. The worstexperience ever. The line was extremely long and we got there before it opened in an appropriate amount of time. There were maybe 10 stops and most were very underwhelming. They gave minimal candy and more pamphlets than anything. The decorations were underwhelming. Crowd management was not there. No security in the parking lots but had 10 security not managing the line very well. They had only 2 lines for about 500-600 people. I'm so upset. My kids were even over it. read more

Kern County Museum - Museums Near Me - Bakersfield, California

Could be great for young (5-12 yo) kids, but very run down and dusty. I guess it was awesome 20 years back.

Neat exhibit of local history. Lots of stuff on the local oil industry. I liked seeing Merle Haggard's family home (a renovated boxcar!). Two of the historic buildings, the Weill House and the Norris School Building, are rumored to be haunted. read more

My daughter loves the discovery center! There are a number of different activities for children to keep them occupied for hours. I bought a membership through CALM which includes free admission to all the local museums and a select few in other cities. Great value for the money! read more

First off let me say that this is one of the free reciprocal zoos/museums that you can visit if you have a membership to CALM. We have a family membership so that gets us in for free. My kids are always happy to come here. In the cooler months they love to walk around the grounds and look or learn about Kern County's history. The huge old oil rig is the current favorite since you get to push the button and watch how it worked way back when. They love the Lori Brock children's discovery center. I love it because it's air conditioned and they love all the things that you are allowed to play with and touch. They are currently working on a portion of it and the "kid city" area is a little dated but kids don't care. The kid city area has a store, bank, newsroom, theater, library, ambulance, and much more for the kids to pretend with. They have a Lego room that my kids enjoy too. They do offer a summer camp program and have a nice playground in the back. It is easy to spend a few hours here and keep them entertained. You are also allowed to bring food on the premises and enjoy a picnic on one of the many tables. read more

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Don't ever take your city for granted. Go check out the history of Bakersfield and take a trip back in time. The history is amazing. The buildings dating back in the 1900s are filled with exploration and facts. So open your mind and take a trip to the Kern County museum. Bring the kiddos and share the experience with them. I love Bakersfield and it's history. You should too!! read more

Kern County Museum - Museums Near Me - Bakersfield, California

We did our wedding photos there... perfect place and cheap venue for privacy and photos I was running late and they had no problem working with me and the schedule changes.. read more

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To be honest with you we had no idea what to expect from this museum because we did not know much about Kern County. We have drove past in on our way to Los Angeles. As you can imagine we were fascinated with the black gold exhibit because we learned so much. We did not to expect to learn that Kern County is estimated to be the 5th largest oil field in the United States. Oil was discovered in Kern County in 1899 and it is the third largest oil field in California. This exhibit goes into depth on how oil was discovered and its progress over the past century. There are also a lot of really cool hands on exhibits which show and explain the process of the oil production. Did you know that cameras, dolls, crayons, dentures  and much more are made out of petroleum. A large portion of oil is used for gas while a small portion is used for other things such as asphalt, lubricants, and products. There are many buildings to go into end explore. There are actually 50 original buildings from around the county in this one location. We also really enjoyed the Lori Brick Children's Discovery Center which had so many hands on and pretend play available. read more

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This place is awesome! I absolutely recommend it. It's totally worth the money. Each exhibit is unique and lots of fun. Definitely stop by the church if you're feeling hot. You'll thank me later. This place is so huge that we ran out of time. We'll definitely return to see the rest! read more

Kern County Museum - Museums Near Me - Bakersfield, California

This is to all parents of toddlers/ young children who travel often PURCHASE THE TRAVEL MEMBERSHIP. There is no other bang for your buck deal! This membership alone has saved me a few hundred dollars when we are traveling to other cities/states, because many of the museums have 100% reciprocity due to our memberships. I will be continuing to purchase the travel membership on a yearly basis because it is the best kept secret! read more

Great place to visit for the Christmas Season. Right now for 2020 they are open but as a drive thru. It's pretty neat my daughter enjoyed it. The price was $25 and I bought it online before I arrived there. I showed them the print out and proceeded to drive inside. Here is the website for more info http://christmastown.net read more

The mission of a museum, if it chooses to accept it, is to transport you to another time, another place, another space, another state of mind or even another dimension. And Kern County Museum has clearly not only accepted the mission but succeeded in a most wonderful way, making it a truly great museum in my book. To be honest, the KCM is at least three museums in one. After visiting several times with friends and family over the years, I can say that if you are a history buff at all, this museum is absolutely not to be missed. First, there's the outdoor village featuring homes from all different stages of Kern County's growth: an adobe, a log cabin, a stunning Victorian house, business buildings (the blacksmith, the shoe maker, the undertaker), a courthouse and a photographer's shop. Each building was carefully transported, set up and decorated to create the most authentic experience possible. It's like going back in time. Perfect for little kids to run around and explore! Then there's the newer "Black Gold: The Oil Experience" museum. This modern museum features a movie about the oil history of the area and lots of interactive activities that are perfect for kids. Not to be missed. (There's also the Children's Discovery Center for the little ones, which, to be honest, I have not seen.) And then there's the former Kern County Chamber of Commerce building which has been transformed into a space for changing exhibits. This brings me to the highlight of my most recent visit with my dear mother: meeting Mr. Reford Hutson who grew up in Kern County during the Dust Bowl. We were visiting the "Rising from the Dust" exhibit about the families that lived in the Arvin Federal Migrant Camp during the Dust Bowl. We had just stopped in for a minute and had asked him to take our picture when he mentioned that he was featured in a video that was playing. Little did we know we were talking to a local history legend! He took so much time to tell us amazing stories of his life growing up in the camp: how he knew the children in the Dorothea Lange photograph "Migrant Children", how strong and amazing the sense of community in the camp was, and how he and his friends from the camp still get together every week for breakfast. Talk about living history! Truly unforgettable. Thank you so much, Mr. Hutson! Also cool to listen to music from the "Bakersfield Sound". Thank you, Kern County Museum, for so many unforgettable experiences over the years. read more

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A fun little museum with lots of history. Lots of events here for the kids. They do something here on most major holidays. I've been to their Safe Halloween and also their Christmas Town events. Fun and well worth the admission. They also have some adult events here in the summer that get pretty fun! Well kept grounds and friendly, knowledgable employees. I may buy a yearly pass. Just not sure if there's enough to see over and over again. read more

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Great place to walk and get some air. Perfect to come with the kids they can learn about history. Plenty of things to look at, bring comfy shoes! read more

Great place to visit if you are going to China Alley or near Bakersfield. $10 admission gets you to a huge outdoor park where real vintage houses are displayed ( all day admission, In & Out OK) . Follow the map and take your time to walk around the park, each house has a beautiful story and history behind it. They do offer guided tours to 2 of the houses, but need to check with the Gift Shop for daily schedule. We visited on a sunday morning and were the only visitors there for a few hours. IF you like old houses, then you will love this outdoor museum. REMEMBER to apply Sunscreen before entering! read more

The Kern County museum houses many historical Bakersfield buildings, a small children's museum, and spaces that often are used to host activities: Brews in the Village, Mud Volleyball, Nut Festival, etc... On this visit we were confined to the children's museum, as it was nearing nap time. Five stars for improvement on the Lori Brock Museum. It has been transformed into a Makers Space and a Discovery Center that is STEM focused. All activities are inquiry based and highly engaging. This is their first phase of an exciting transition. Both information desks told me they were bringing back Kid City, as their members were disappointed that it had gone. Add a star for listening to the peeps. There were 3D printers and laser cutters, but they were not operating on the day we visited. Understandable, as these aren't easy to use and are not inexpensive pieces of equipment. The two year old's favorite part was the Makers Annex with Lego stations, equipped with tablets where children can choose step by step directions and it will guide them through the building. The twelve year old's favorite was the wind tunnel. He enjoyed throwing items into it and watching them fly. Both our 12 and 2 year old enjoyed themselves, and that is a feat! read more

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This in regards to the Lori Brock Discovery Museum ONLY. We have been looking forward to taking our grandkids for some fun, NOT! Absolutely, filthy! Really nothing for them to do and everything is just so dirty, like NOTHING has been cleaned since before COVID. Most things that our older grand could be hands on with didn't even work. They only thing that we can say we enjoyed was being together, outa the heat and in the arts and crafts room (which I have all that stuff here). I'm very sorry to have to leave this review but I felt it necessary for the next family that wants to give this place a try. So not worth it in our books. read more

I've gone here many times with my boyfriend. Our latest trip was for lamplight tours and any night out with him is a good night. It's super cute during lamplight because it's decorated more for Christmas . I've never been when there isn't a event so I can't say much for that part but every time I go is fun. They finally had Maggards Home open but the line was so long we didn't wait and got a funnel cake before we finished. read more

Be aware! You can not go into the houses on the property. You can't even see into many of them. And admission is $10 a person

Awesome museum. Need to go back. Only saw the little town buildings and oil exhibit. Loved it. Everyone should go experience it. read more

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