Lyons Station Stagecoach Stop facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Lyons Station Stagecoach Stop |
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| Location | 23287 N. Sierra Highway, Newhall, California |
| Reference no. | 688 |
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The Lyons Station Stagecoach Stop was once a busy place. It was a tavern and a stop for stagecoaches. This important spot was located near Newhall Avenue and Sierra Highway in Newhall, California. Today, it is part of the city of Santa Clarita in Los Angeles County.
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History of Lyons Station
The original building was called Hart's Station. It was located north of the San Fernando Mission. This spot was on the Fort Tejon Road. This road was a main route connecting Los Angeles to the Gold Rush areas. It was also part of the inland path to Sacramento and the San Francisco Bay Area. Many early California stagecoach lines used it as a regular stop. It helped travelers during the 1853 Kern River gold rush.
How Lyons Station Got Its Name
In 1855, brothers Sanford and Cyrus Lyon bought Wiley's Station. They renamed it Lyons' Station. The Lyon brothers owned the adobe building and the land around it. They farmed, raised sheep, and ran the watering place for travelers. Even though the brothers owned it, some news reports still called it Hart's Station. This was true even in 1858.
A Funny Story About Molasses
In 1856, a man named Harris Newmark visited the station. He wrote about his trip in a book. He said he stayed the night at Lyons' Station. Sanford Lyon was making supper. He was trying to pour thick molasses from a barrel. It was very slow. Sanford sat down to chat and forgot about the molasses. It kept pouring slowly. Soon, the molasses overflowed the pitcher! It spread all over the dirt floor. When Sanford saw it, he had a big mess to clean up!
Over the years, Lyons' Station became more than just a stagecoach stop. It also had a general store and a post office. A telegraph office was added in 1861. This was after the telegraph line reached Los Angeles. By 1860, about twenty families lived in the area around the station.
From Stagecoach Stop to Oil Town
Around 1867, Lyons Station got a new name: Petroleopolis. This happened because Sanford Lyon became involved in the early oil industry. A Petroleopolis Post Office was open from 1867 to 1871. Sanford Lyon was even the postmaster starting in 1869.
In 1874, the Los Angeles Petroleum Refinery Company built an oil refinery at Lyons Station. On September 6, 1876, the Southern Pacific Railroad line opened. It connected Los Angeles to Northern California. This railway also linked Southern California to the eastern U.S. The refinery at Lyons Station did not do well. It closed in 1875. In 1877, its parts were moved. They went about a mile west to Andrews Station. A bigger refinery was being built there, right on the railroad line.
Remembering Lyons Station Today
The place where Lyons Station once stood is now a California Historical Landmark. It is number 688. You can find the marker in front of the Eternal Valley Memorial Park. It is at 23287 North Sierra Highway in Newhall. This is near California State Route 14 and Newhall Avenue.
The marker tells us:
- NO. 688 LYONS STATION STAGECOACH STOP - This site was the location of a combination store, post office, telegraph office, tavern, and stage depot accommodating travelers during the Kern River gold rush in the early 1850s. A regular stop for Butterfield and other early California stage lines, it was purchased by Sanford and Cyrus Lyons in 1855, and by 1868 at least twenty families lived here. Eternal Valley Memorial Park has called their final resting place "The Garden of the Pioneers.
