Tulare County is centrally located within the State of California in the San Joaquin Valley.  Also included is the mountainous eastern area with Kings Canyon National Park and Sequoia National Park.  Mount Whitney, the highest peak in the continental US is located within the county. Visalia is the seat of the County

Rain falls mainly between October and April with very rare snowfall in the valley.  Over 200 inches may fall in a year in the Sierras. In the Tulare area average rainfall is 10.5 inches per year.  In the same area the average temperature is 62.9

Tulare County was created in 1852 when Siskiyou and Sierra Counties were also created.  Tulare County was massive ranging from Mariposa County on the north to Los Angeles County on the South.  On the west it went from the summit of the Coast Range Mountains to the Sierra Nevadas on the east.  Most of the eastern county is made up of mountains.  In 1856, Fresno County was carved out of Tulare, Mariposa and Merced counties.  Once again, in 1861, a portion of the eastern county was taken and parceled out, along with parts of Fresno, Mariposa and Calaveras Counties, to form Mono County.  Kern County, which was begun as Buena Vista County in 1855, was officially named in 1866.  In 1864, Coso County was created from all the parts of Tulare County east of the Sierras, along with a portion of Mono County.  The name was changed to Inyo County in 1866.  In 1872, boundaries were changed once again in the south.  The county line of Fresno-Tulare was changed again in 1874, moving to township and section lines.  Before, it had been following ridges.  In 1893, Kings County was made from Tulare’s western side.  Even with all the carving out and re-alignment, Tulare County continues to be enormous.  If the state of Connecticut was cut out and placed in Tulare County, it would have a little bit of room left over!

The county is among the top producers of agricultural products in the country.  The western portions of the county have very fertile soil and the land is used extensively for farming.  Packing and shipping firms abound here due to the agricultural emphasis in the economy.  While agriculture remains the top economic factor in the western portion of the county, the eastern portion relies more heavily on recreation and tourism for its economy.  This is the area of mostly public lands with the National parks, National Forest and several large wilderness areas.