Jackson, Mississippi

We are in Jackson, Mississippi!

Jackson is the capital of the U.S. state of Mississippi. Located south of the Yazoo River, it is considered to be the southern border of the Mississippi Delta.^[3] Jackson is most populous city in the state, and is one of two county seats of Hinds County, with the town of Raymond being the other.

The population of the city declined from 184,256 at the 2000 census to 173,514 at the 2010 census. The 2010 census ascribed a population of 539,057 to the five-county Jackson metropolitan area.^[4]

The current slogan for the city is "Jackson, Mississippi: City with Soul."^[5] Jackson is ranked 3rd out of America's 100 largest metro areas for the best "Bang For Your Buck" city according to Forbes magazine.^[6] The study measured overall affordability, housing rates, and more. The city is named after Andrew Jackson, who was a general at the time of the naming but later became president of the United States. The city is the anchor of the Metro area.

USS Jackson (LCS-6) will be the first ship of the United States Navy to be named in honor of the city.^[7]

Odessa, Texas

We have arrived in Odessa, Texas.

We are about 577 kms away from Dallas - so you know where we are going when we get there?

We are headed to Southfork!

Here the scoop on Odessa:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Odessa,_Texas

Ontario, California

We have arrived in Ontario, California - just outside of Los Angeles.

Ontario is a city located in south west San Bernardino County, California, United States, 35 miles east of downtown Los Angeles. Located in the western part of the Inland Empire region, it lies just east of the Los Angeles county line and is part of the Greater Los Angeles Area. As of the 2010 Census, the city had a population of 163,924, down from 170,373 at the 2000 census, making it the county's fourth most populous city after San Bernardino, Fontana, and Rancho Cucamonga.

The city is home to the LA/Ontario International Airport which is the 15th busiest cargo airport in the United States. Ontario handles the mass of freight traffic between the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach and the rest of the country.^[2] It is also the home of Ontario Mills and former home of the Ontario Motor Speedway.

It takes its name from the Ontario Model Colony development established in 1882 by the Canadian engineer George Chaffey and his brothers William Chaffey and Charles Chaffey.^[3] They named the settlement after their home province of Ontario, Canada.

Los Banos, California

As we continue our walk across America, we have arrived in Los Banos, California.  Los Banos is a city in Merced County, California, near the junction of State Route 152 and Interstate 5. Los Banos is located 26 miles (42 km) southwest of Merced,^[3] at an elevation of 118 feet (36 m).^[2] The population was 35,972 at the 2010 census, up from 25,869 at the 2000 census. The city is served by Los Banos Municipal Airport for air transport access.


The Los Banos area was initially settled, according to Mexican land grant records, back in the 1840s. The first white settler in the area was Uriah Wood, who built his two room cabin in 1859.^[9] The original site of Los Banos was located several miles from the current town center, about a mile and half west of the railroad near present day Volta. The town was essentially a trading post and received its name when the Post Office was established and the Post Office Department designated the office "Los Banos" after the nearby creek. When the railroad arrived, Los Banos relocated to its present day site.^[10]
The first post office opened in 1873.^[3]
Land and water rights were important to early Los Banos residents. But those rights were recognized only when the land and deed were registered. Sometimes those rights depended on fleet footedness, as it did in the "race" between Los Banos residents Uriah Wood and Henry Miller. Wood, whose homestead resided off of Badger Flat Road, raced Miller to the land office in Stockton to insure his claim to the land would be recognized. After crossing the San Joaquin River, Wood paid the ferryman $5 to hold the boat on the east side of the river to insure he would gain sufficient distance from Miller to insure he would reach the land office first. Wood did and the seven sections that he registered cost him only .45¢ an acre.^[10]
The centerpiece of downtown Los Banos is the newly created Miller Plaza which honors early California rancher, Henry Miller. The 10-acre (40,000 m²) half-oval public plaza features a monumental scale bronze arrangement of Miller with cattle. At one time in the late nineteenth century, Miller was the largest land owner in the United States. His company, the Miller & Lux Corporation, was headquartered in Los Banos on a site currently housing the Mexican restaurant España's and the Canal Farm Inn.
Los Banos has a long history of Portuguese and Spanish immigrants, as do many of the nearby towns on the west side of the San Joaquin Valley. This is reflected both in local restaurants and in several festivals and parades that take place during the year. Los Banos is locally known for its annual May Day Fair during the first week of May.
Los Banos is home to The Randall Fawcett House which is a Frank Lloyd Wright designed Usonian home.^[11]
A member of the Manson family, Susan Atkins attended Los Banos High School, before joining the family.