Hilmar is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

Merced County Merced County ( ), is a county located in the northern San Joaquin Valley section of the Central Valley, in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 281,202. The county seat is Merced. The county is named after ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, United States. It is located west-southwest of

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...

, spanning and at an elevation of above sea level. For census purposes, Hilmar is aggregated with a nearby community into the

Hilmar-Irwin Hilmar is an unincorporated community in Merced County, California, Merced County, California, United States. It is located west-southwest of Delhi, California, Delhi, spanning and at an elevation of above sea level. For census purposes, Hilm ...

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, such ...

, which had 5,164 residents as of the 2020 census. Hilmar began as a colony of Swedish immigrants as early as 1906. The first post office opened in 1920. It is the home of the

Hilmar Cheese Company Hilmar Cheese Company is a cheese and whey products manufacturer headquartered in Hilmar, California, United States. The privately owned company has over 1000 employees and specializes in the mass production of Monterey jack, pepper jack, colby, ...

which was founded in 1984 and began production in 1985. Hilmar has five schools within its district: Elim Elementary, Merquin Elementary, Hilmar Middle School, Hilmar High School, and Irwin Continuation School. Residents refer to the agricultural area as "Country Living at Its Best", and for people living outside the community, it is referred to as "100 Miles to Anywhere". Hilmar has the 14th largest community of Portuguese-American people, by percentage of population. In support of the Portuguese population, there is a Portuguese bakery and fish market, and the high school has a Portuguese club, S.E.C.A., and teaches the Portuguese language. Hilmar was the southernmost station of the

Tidewater Southern Railway The Tidewater Southern Railway was a short line railroad in Central California in the United States. For most of its history, it was a subsidiary of the Western Pacific Railroad. It was originally built as an interurban system, connecting to th ...

. The line terminating in the town was considered the main line of the railroad and was projected to continue south toward

Fresno Fresno () is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about and had a population of 542,107 in 2020, maki ...

Bakersfield Bakersfield is a city in Kern County, California, United States. It is the county seat and largest city of Kern County. The city covers about near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley and the Central Valley region. Bakersfield's populat ...

until the mid-1930s. The line into Hilmar was abandoned in the late 1950s.

References

{{authority control Unincorporated communities in Merced County, California Swedish-American culture in California Unincorporated communities in California