Port Hueneme
When you have a dream of something it can come true. The idea for building a Port at Point Hueneme was the direct result of a coastal exploration by Thomas Bard in 1867. Bard had learned of an unusual submarine valley — Hueneme Canyon, over 1000 feet deep, that came within 300 feet of the proposed channel and how an underground river would keep the channel free of silt. By the 20th century, agriculture in Ventura County added Sunkist which became the County's principal crop. By the 1930's Port Hueneme became a commercial port, later taken over by eminent domain during the war times and became a naval base. The farmers received $2 million for their port, enough to let them meet bonds and interest, plus the satisfaction of having contributed importantly to the Pacific war. But they were back to trucking their crops to Los Angeles. Following the end of the Pacific war and the hectic demobilization that followed, negotiations began for the return to commercial operations of the “Port the Farmers Built.” After a series of fitful starts the Navy in 1947 finalized a lease agreement with the Oxnard Harbor District for the District’s original Dock #1 consisting of sixteen acres of the original 322 acres it had been forced to give up five years earlier. By 1960 the Oxnard Harbor District completed a feasibility study by which the District would purchase Dock #1 outright along with 6 additional acres for a total of 22 acres, along with the addition of 35 acres from the city of Port Hueneme. The newly reconstructed Wharf 1 was now 1,800 feet long and able to accommodate up to three ships. 1977 saw the arrival of Mazda Motors of North America. 1979 Del Monte Fresh Produce shoe the Port as their west coast distribution hub. Check the link to read and see more about the Port and all that it has been a part of.
