Old Santa Susana Stage Road facts for kids
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Old Santa Susana Stage Road
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A mosaic plaque was built in 1939 to commemorate the historic road.
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| Nearest city | Chatsworth, California |
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| Built | 1861 |
| Architectural style | None |
| NRHP reference No. | 74000517 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | January 10, 1974 |
The Old Santa Susana Stage Road, also called the Santa Susana Wagon Road, was a very important path for early travelers. It connected the San Fernando Valley and Simi Valley near Chatsworth, California. This historic road goes through the Santa Susana Pass. Today, you can find parts of it in the Santa Susana Pass State Historic Park.
This road was a key link between the Los Angeles Basin and inland Ventura County. From 1861 to 1876, it was the main route for stagecoach travel between Los Angeles and San Francisco. A stagecoach is like a big bus pulled by horses, used for carrying people and mail.
The Old Santa Susana Stage Road is now recognized as a special historic place on the National Register of Historic Places. Parts of it are also considered Historic-Cultural Monuments in Ventura County and Los Angeles. These parts are known as the Old Stagecoach Trail.
Contents
History of the Stage Road
Building the Road
In 1859, the California government decided to spend $15,000 to make an old wagon road through the Santa Susana Pass better. This was a lot of money back then! Los Angeles and Santa Barbara Counties also helped pay for the improvements.
In 1861, the American Civil War started. This war made it hard to send mail across the country using the usual routes. One important mail service, the Butterfield Overland Mail, had to change its path.
Mail Service and the New Route
To keep mail moving, the government asked the Butterfield Company to use the new wagon road over the Santa Susana Pass. This road would carry mail between Los Angeles and San Francisco. The very first mail stagecoach traveled through the pass on April 6, 1861.
This new route was different from the older ones. It started near the Cahuenga Pass and followed an old coast road. This road, called El Camino Viejo, went towards San Buenaventura (Ventura) and Santa Barbara. The stagecoach route then turned northwest across the San Fernando Valley towards the Santa Susana Pass.
The Devil's Slide
One part of the road on the San Fernando Valley side was very steep and dangerous. It was called the Devil's Slide. To get down safely, horses were often blindfolded so they wouldn't get scared. Chains were used to help the brakes on the stagecoaches work better. Passengers usually had to get off and walk down this very steep section.
Changes in Travel
The Santa Susana Pass stagecoach road was used as a main route from 1861 to 1875. It was an important way to travel between Los Angeles and San Francisco. In 1867, a man named William E. Lovett took over the mail contract. He carried mail and passengers through the Santa Susana Pass and also between Los Angeles and San Diego.
However, things changed in 1876. The Southern Pacific Railroad opened a tunnel through the Newhall Pass. This meant trains could now travel directly from Los Angeles north to San Francisco. Train travel was much faster and easier than stagecoaches. Because of this, trains quickly replaced stagecoaches for long-distance travel. After this, the road through Santa Susana Pass was mostly used for local trips.
New Roads and Landmarks
In 1895, a new wagon route was opened to avoid the difficult Devil's Slide. This new road was first called El Camino Nuevo, meaning "the New Road." Later, it became known as the Chatsworth Grade Road. This road was used until the current Santa Susana Pass Road was built in 1917.
Today, if you hike in the Santa Susana Pass State Historic Park, you can still see the deep ruts left by the wagon wheels on the Devil's Slide. In 1939, a special plaque was placed in the sandstone rock by the Native Daughters of the Golden West. This plaque helps us remember the historic Old Santa Susana Stage Road.
A part of the Santa Susana Pass stagecoach road was named a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument #92 on January 5, 1972. It was called 'The Old Stagecoach Trail'. In 1974, a large area of about 174 acres (0.7 km2) that included the stagecoach road was added to the National Register of Historic Places. The stage route was also made a Ventura County Historical Landmark on October 24, 1986.
See also
