Madera, California, United States

🇺🇸 Madera (Spanish for wood), is a city in California and the county seat of Madera County. Located in the San Joaquin Valley, Madera is the principal city of the Madera Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is part of the Fresno-Madera-Hanford Combined Statistical Area. The city is also home to the Madera Unified School District.

History The town was named after the Spanish term for lumber. The town was laid out by the California Lumber Company in 1876. From 1876 to 1931, a 63-mile (101 km) water flume carried lumber from the mountains to Madera where the lumber was shipped by train.

The first post office at Madera opened in 1877. On May 16, 1893, Madera County officially became a county of the state of California and the town incorporated as the City of Madera on March 27, 1907. One of the city's first African Americans to hold an elected office was Rev. Naaman N. Haynes, who was voted in as a Madera Unified School District school board trustee in the 1960s.

Landmarks include the historic Madera County Courthouse, the notable Madera water tower, and a fully operational drive-in movie theater.

Geography The geographic centre of California is 38 mi (61 km) east of Madera. Via California Route 99, the city is 23 miles (37 km) north-west of Fresno and 72 miles (116 km) south-east of Modesto. According to the United States Census Bureau, Madera has a total area of 16.5 square miles (43 km²), all of it recorded as land. The Fresno River, a tributary of the San Joaquin River, passes through the city north of downtown.

Madera is the location of the Madera AVA wine region.

Education: University ◦ Madera Community College ◦ San Joaquin Valley College Madera (for-profit) • Public libraries ◦ Madera County Public Library.

Transport Within the city, State Route 99 carries traffic in a generally north-west / south-east orientation. East of the city, State Route 41 can be accessed via either eastbound county roads or via State Route 145, the latter of which turns from a northeast–southwest bearing to a directly south orientation within the city. The eastern terminus of State Route 152 is located 10 miles (16 km) to the north of the city, on State Route 99.

Just north of Madera is the Madera Amtrak station. A California High-Speed Rail stop is also planned.

There is a Greyhound bus station located downtown.

The City of Madera provides local intracity public transportation services under the Madera Metro branding. Madera residents can travel conveniently from neighborhoods to shopping centres, local schools, medical offices and work sites on the Madera Metro fixed-route transit services. Madera County Connection, a county agency, provides intercity bus services to other communities in Madera County.

Madera Municipal Airport is a general aviation airport owned and operated by the City of Madera. It is situated on approximately 524 acres on the north-west edge of the city and is supervised by the Madera Public Works Department. Madera residents also have access to the nearby Yosemite International Airport, located in Fresno.