VISALIA

city, seat (1853) of Tulare county, south-central California, U.S. It lies on the Kaweah River delta in the San Joaquin Valley, 42 miles (68 km) southeast of Fresno. Founded in 1852 by Nathaniel Vise, it developed as an agricultural (olives, grapes, cotton) and livestock-shipping centre, now supplemented by light manufacturing. It is the seat of the College of the Sequoias (1925). Sequoia and Kings Canyon national parks lie to the east and northeast. Inc. town, 1874; city, 1923. Pop. (1993 est.) city, 82,154; Visalia-Tulare-Porterville MSA, 334,462.