to
Update
is an important commercial and cultural center in the south central San Joaquin Valley and is the county seat of Kings County, California. It is the principal city of the Hanford-Corcoran, California Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA Code 25260), which encompasses all of Kings County, including the cities of Hanford and Corcoran. The ZIP Code is 93230 (93232 for post office boxes). The city of Hanford is surrounded by communities that do not fall within the city limits but use the same zip code. These communities include Grangeville, Hardwick and Home Garden.
The population was 41,686 at the 2000 census. However, the California Department of Finance estimates that the population had grown to 52,687 as of January 1, 2009.
Hanford is located at (36.3275, -119.6457). It is situated in the south central portion of California's San Joaquin Valley, SSE of the city of Fresno, at an elevation of above sea level. The terrain is level. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 13.1 square miles (33.9 km²), all of which is land not covered by water. The only natural watercourse is Mussel Slough, remnants of which still exist on the city's western edge. The Kings River is about north of Hanford. The People's Ditch, an irrigation canal dug in the 1870s, traverses Hanford from north to south.