A history of Los Banos,
then and now
Postcards, papers and photographs of Los Banos from public archives, woven together by decade. Neighbors fill in the gaps.
The story so far
from Wikipedia & the U.S. CensusLos Banos ( lohss BAN-ohss), alternatively Los Baños ( lohss BAN-yohss), is a city in Merced County, California, United States. It is located in the San Joaquin Valley in Central California, near the junction of State Route 152 and Interstate 5. Its population was 45,532 at the 2020 census, up from 35,972 at the 2010 census. The city is served by Los Banos Municipal Airport for air transport access.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 35,972 to 45,532 (+27%). Half of its homes were built before 1997.
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Los Banos yet — the old photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Intro from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Population and housing: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
built from the dates on the items belowFinish Los Banos’s story
Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.
3 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 🔁Retake an old viewBath house, 1900: stand where they stood+15 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10Famous people from Los Banos
See all 11 →
Los Banos, decade by decade
LOCNear Los Banos, California. Migratory agricultural workers.…1939
LOCNear Los Banos, California. Migratory agricultural workers,…1939
LOCNear Los Banos, California. Migratory agricultural workers.…1939
LOCUntitled photo, possibly related to: Near Los Banos, Califo…1939
LOCUntitled photo, possibly related to: Near Los Banos, Califo…1939
LOCUntitled photo, possibly related to: Near Los Banos, Califo…1939
LOCUntitled photo, possibly related to: Near Los Banos, Califo…1939
LOCUntitled photo, possibly related to: Near Los Banos, Califo…1939
LOCUntitled photo, possibly related to: Near Los Banos, Califo…19391980s
2 historic places in Los Banos
2 places in Los Banos are on the National Register of Historic Places, the country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
Where they are
Architectural styles
When they were listed
Then & now
No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as Bath house (1900) and it appears here side by side.
🔁 Retake this view · +15Stories next door
nearby towns’ historyFrom Wikimedia Commons (2) and the Library of Congress (10). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.