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Hinkley is an unincorporated community in the western Mojave Desert, in San Bernardino County, California, about 14 miles northwest of Barstow and roughly 120 miles northeast of Los Angeles. The settlement traces its name to 1882, when the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway was establishing its corridor across the Mojave; the place was first spelled "Hinckley" for a railroad figure. For generations Hinkley was a small, self-contained desert outpost with a school, a store, and a scattering of homes, sustained by the railroad and by agriculture at the desert's edge. The community became nationally known for the Hinkley groundwater contamination. From 1952 to 1966, Pacific Gas and Electric Company disposed of wastewater containing hexavalent chromium from a natural gas compressor station into unlined ponds near the community, and the contaminant entered the local groundwater. In the 1990s, residents — with the help of legal clerk Erin Brockovich — pursued claims against PG&E, leading to a $333 million settlement in 1996, at the time the largest such settlement in U.S. history. The episode became the subject of the film "Erin Brockovich." In the years that followed, many properties were acquired and residents moved away, leaving Hinkley a quieter, more sparsely populated community than it was a generation ago. Today Hinkley is a small desert settlement of fewer than 1,000 residents, with homes set on large, widely spaced parcels. The BNSF Railway's transcontinental line still runs through the area, and the open Mojave stretches in every direction. It is a place defined by distance, desert light, and railroad heritage rather than by the suburban rhythms of cities nearer the coast.

Population 900

County San Bernardino

Active Listings 122

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Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Hinkley located?

Hinkley is an unincorporated community in the Mojave Desert of San Bernardino County, California, about 14 miles northwest of Barstow and roughly 120 miles northeast of Los Angeles. It sits in the high desert west of the Interstate 15 corridor.

What county is Hinkley in?

Hinkley is in San Bernardino County, the largest county by area in the contiguous United States, in the high desert region of Southern California roughly midway between Barstow and the Antelope Valley.

Why is Hinkley well known?

Hinkley became nationally known for groundwater contaminated with hexavalent chromium from a Pacific Gas and Electric compressor station. The contamination, which occurred between 1952 and 1966, led to a $333 million settlement in 1996 and inspired the film Erin Brockovich.

What school district serves Hinkley?

Hinkley is served by the Barstow Unified School District, which operates elementary, middle, and high schools in the greater Barstow area. The community's longtime school closed, so students attend district schools in Barstow, a short drive to the east.

What is the population of Hinkley?

Hinkley has fewer than 1,000 residents, making it a small and sparsely populated desert settlement in western San Bernardino County. It is far smaller than its nearest neighbor, Barstow, which lies about 14 miles to the southeast.

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