About Corcoran

Even before Corcoran was "Corcoran", the small town has always been and remains today a major part of the State of California and the Central San Joaquin Valley. At the turn of the 20th Century Corcoran served as a junction for the San Francisco and San Joaquin Valley Railroad. The junction, a regular stop for four daily trains, consisted of a platform from which business transactions were handled for trains entering from the north, south and easterly directions.

Unsure of where the towns name came from, it has been narrowed down to two individuals prominently mentioned throughout history. General Corcoran, a San Joaquin Valley pioneer, operated a steamboat between Stockton and Tulare Lake. Thomas Corcoran a railroad superintendent worked for the Santa Fe Railroad, which eventually bought out both the San Francisco and San Joaquin Valley lines.

H. J. Whitley, a prominent land developer from southern California, took the lead in building Corcoran (the main street of the community is named in his honor). Liking what he saw during a visit to the area in 1905 (a blacksmith shop, small store, scattered homes and a lush, untapped vista with herds of grazing wild hogs, horses and steers) Whitley purchased 32,000 acres to start development and moved a member of his real estate firm, J. W. Guiberson, to the area. Guiberson became one of the many pioneers of the community, building the first home and business structure in Corcoran. His family also helped establish the first church in the community, an event which helped lead to the town's incorporation on August 14, 1914. The basis of Corcoran's economy then and now is agriculture. Initially, the most successful crops were grains, alfalfa and sugar beets.