Lathrop (/ˈleɪθrəp/, LAY-thrəp) is a city located 10 miles (16 km) south of Stockton in San Joaquin County, California, United States.

[9][12][13] On September 6, 1869, four months after the golden spike ceremony at Promontory Summit, the San Joaquin Railroad Bridge at Mossdale Crossing in Lathrop was finished by Western Pacific.

[14] This completed the last westbound link of the transcontinental railroad to the Pacific coast,[15] with the first through train arriving that evening,[16][17] making Lathrop an important division point and rail stop.

[10] That, along with the railroad deciding to move its roundhouse and machine shops to nearby Tracy, California around the same time, caused Lathrop to enter into a period of economic and population decline until World War I.

Field's bodyguard, United States Marshal David Neagle (formerly assigned to Tombstone, Arizona), shot and killed Terry.

Neighboring cities and towns include Stockton, Manteca, Ripon, French Camp, and Tracy.

[26][27] In April 2014, electric car maker Tesla announced that it would be opening a warehouse in Lathrop, in a 430,000 sq ft (40,000 m2) building that was once a Chrysler distribution center.

The company also operates a factory assembling Tesla Megapack lithium-ion battery containers in the former J.C. Penney distribution center,[28] and has become Lathrop’s largest employer.

[25] Mossdale Village,[29] located west of I-5 and east of the San Joaquin River, consists of 2375 units and has historical significance.

The development abuts, and is named after, the site of the San Joaquin Railroad Bridge at Mossdale crossing,[17] which was the final link to the Pacific coast for the Transcontinental Railroad, actually completed on September 6, 1869,[14] four months after the official celebration and driving of the golden spike at Promontory Utah.

[15] Stanford Crossing, located west of the I-5 freeway and east of the San Joaquin River, is a master planned community consisting of 2167 lots.

[30][31] The community’s name pays homage to Leland Stanford, and his role in the completion of the transcontinental railroad at nearby Mossdale Crossing.

The City of Lathrop is served by the San Joaquin Regional Transit District and the Altamont Corridor Express commuter rail train at Lathrop/Manteca station.