California earthquakes

M3.1 earthquake 20km NNW of Tehachapi, CA

A magnitude 3.1 earthquake struck 20km NNW of Tehachapi, CA on Wed, Jul 11, 1956, 2:19 AM GMT-7 (09:19 UTC), 6 km (4 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M4.1 17km NW of Inyokern, CA. This one was a foreshock.

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Map

Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.

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The earthquake

Magnitude
3.1 (ml), minor
Local time
UTC
1956-07-11 09:19:39 UTC
Depth
6.0 km (3.7 mi), shallow
Epicenter
35.303° N, 118.517° W
Tsunami flag
No
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

Did you feel it?

No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.

How well it is located

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Location uncertainty
About 1.4 km horizontally, 31.6 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.11
Depth from
Operator assigned
Station coverage gap
73°
Stations used
10

Nearest places

Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 11 in the 60 days after this one and 5 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 4.117km NW of Inyokern, CA · 25640 days ago · 6 km deep · 72 km away
  2. 2.816km SSE of Arvin, CA · 25628 days ago · 1 km deep · 34 km away
  3. 3.311km E of Little Lake, CA · 25628 days ago · 0 km deep · 97 km away
  4. 2.812km N of Grapevine, CA · 25627 days ago · 6 km deep · 46 km away
  5. 2.623km SW of Bodfish, CA · 25619 days ago · 6 km deep · 17 km away
  6. 3.026km SSW of Bodfish, CA · 25611 days ago · 6 km deep · 10 km away
  7. 3.022km SW of Lamont, CA · 25611 days ago · 6 km deep · 55 km away
  8. 2.614km SSE of Bodfish, CA · 25606 days ago · 6 km deep · 22 km away
  9. 2.919km ENE of Arvin, CA · 25599 days ago · 6 km deep · 11 km away
  10. 2.43km S of Vincent, CA · 25585 days ago · 3 km deep · 100 km away
  11. 2.71km ENE of Vincent, CA · 25585 days ago · 2 km deep · 96 km away

Before

  1. 2.925km S of Bodfish, CA · 25641 days ago · 6 km deep · 7 km away
  2. 3.122km W of Johannesburg, CA · 25656 days ago · 6 km deep · 58 km away
  3. 3.322km N of Tehachapi, CA · 25658 days ago · 6 km deep · 5 km away
  4. 3.621km N of Tehachapi, CA · 25666 days ago · 6 km deep · 4 km away
  5. 3.05km E of Bakersfield, CA · 25668 days ago · 6 km deep · 42 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event ci3295327. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 8:25 PM UTC.