![California Landmark No](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a1/California_Landmark_No._576_Santa_Fe_and_Salt_Lake_Trail_Monument_-_panoramio.jpg)
The Santa Fe And Salt Lake Trail Monument was designated a
California Historic Landmark
A California Historical Landmark (CHL) is a building, structure, site, or place in California that has been determined to have statewide historical landmark significance.
Criteria
Historical significance is determined by meeting at least one of ...
(No.576) on May 17, 1957. Santa Fe And Salt Lake Trail Monument marks the place two Historic trail merged in
Cajon Pass
Cajon Pass (; Spanish: ''Puerto del Cajón'' or ''Paso del Cajón'') is a mountain pass between the San Bernardino Mountains to the east and the San Gabriel Mountains to the west in Southern California. Created by the movements of the San Andreas ...
in
San Bernardino County, California
San Bernardino County (), officially the County of San Bernardino, is a County (United States), county located in the Southern California, southern portion of the U.S. state of California, and is located within the Inland Empire area. As of the ...
. The
Old Spanish Trail (trade route)
The Old Spanish Trail ( es, Viejo Sendero Español) is a historical trade route that connected the northern New Mexico settlements of (or near) Santa Fe, New Mexico with those of Los Angeles, California and southern California. Approximately lon ...
and the
Mohave Trail
The Mohave Trail was a Native American trade route between Mohave Indian villages on the Colorado River and settlements in coastal Southern California.
History
Starting from Mohave villages along the Colorado River in the upper Mohave Valley, t ...
-
Mojave Road
The Mojave Road, also known as Old Government Road (formerly the Mohave Trail), is a historic route and present day dirt road across what is now the Mojave National Preserve in the Mojave Desert in the United States. This rough road stretched f ...
merged in Cajon Pass. The large white marker is just off the
Interstate 15
Interstate 15 (I-15) is a major Interstate Highway System, Interstate Highway in the western United States, running through Southern California and the Intermountain West. I-15 begins near the Mexico–United States border, Mexican border i ...
in Cajon Pass, was
U.S. Route 66
U.S. Route 66 or U.S. Highway 66 (US 66 or Route 66) was one of the original highways in the United States Numbered Highway System. It was established on November 11, 1926, with road signs erected the following year. The h ...
in the past. It was built by the Pioneer Society of San Bernardino to remember and honor the pioneers that came west. The marker is 12 feet tall and 7 feet square at the base. Cajon Pass was home to the Serrano Indian,
Native Californian
The indigenous peoples of California (known as Native Californians) are the indigenous inhabitants who have lived or currently live in the geographic area within the current boundaries of California before and after the arrival of Europeans. ...
s that lived in the nearby Atongaibit village, in what is now Hesperia.
In Summit Valley was the village of
Guapiabit, and in Cajon Canyon the village of Amuscopiabit. The pass was used by native in
prehistory
Prehistory, also known as pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the use of the first stone tools by hominins 3.3 million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use of ...
. The
San Andreas Fault
The San Andreas Fault is a continental transform fault that extends roughly through California. It forms the tectonics, tectonic boundary between the Pacific Plate and the North American Plate, and its motion is Fault (geology)#Strike-slip fau ...
runs through and made the
mountain pass
A mountain pass is a navigable route through a mountain range or over a ridge. Since many of the world's mountain ranges have presented formidable barriers to travel, passes have played a key role in trade, war, and both Human migration, human a ...
between the
San Bernardino Mountains
The San Bernardino Mountains are a high and rugged mountain range in Southern California in the United States. Situated north and northeast of San Bernardino and spanning two California counties, the range tops out at at San Gorgonio Mountain ...
and the
San Gabriel Mountains
The San Gabriel Mountains ( es, Sierra de San Gabriel) are a mountain range located in northern Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County and western San Bernardino County, California, United States. The mountain range is part of the Tr ...
in
Southern California
Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most po ...
. One side in the
Mojave Desert
The Mojave Desert ( ; mov, Hayikwiir Mat'aar; es, Desierto de Mojave) is a desert in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada mountains in the Southwestern United States. It is named for the indigenous Mojave people. It is located primarily in ...
and the other the
Los Angeles Basin
The Los Angeles Basin is a sedimentary basin located in Southern California, in a region known as the Peninsular Ranges. The basin is also connected to an anomalous group of east-west trending chains of mountains collectively known as the Tr ...
.
The Monument is specially dedicated to those that cross the pass on June 20, 1851 as part of the '49s. Sheldon Stoddard and Sydney P. Waite are two of the pioneers that crossed the pass in 1851. They were part of what is now called the
Death Valley '49ers
The Death Valley '49ers were a group of pioneers from the Eastern United States that endured a long and difficult journey during the late 1840s California Gold Rush to prospect in the Sutter's Fort area of the Central Valley and Sierra Nevad ...
that crossed the pass after surviving a wrong detour though
Death Valley
Death Valley is a desert valley in Eastern California, in the northern Mojave Desert, bordering the Great Basin Desert. During summer, it is the Highest temperature recorded on Earth, hottest place on Earth.
Death Valley's Badwater Basin is the ...
in 1949. In addition to building the monument, the Pioneer Society of San Bernardino built a log cabin, picnic tables and benches in the mountains and San Bernardino for the public to use.
Monument builders
The names of the Pioneer Society of San Bernardino members that built the monument in 1917 are on the monument: Sheldon Stoddard, Sydney P. Waite, John Brown, Jr., George Miller, George M. Cooley, Silas C. Cox, Richard Weir, and Jasper N. Corbett.
*Sheldon Stoddard (February 8. 1830– ) Survived the 1849 trip to California. Was a pioneer of San Bernardino. Cross the Mojave Desert a few more times.
* Sydney P. Waite: Survived the 1849 trip to California. Became lifelong friends with Sheldon Stoddard on the trip west. With Stoddard took wagon apart so they could be take over the rocky rough trip over Cajon Pass. Moved to near the San Gabirel Mission. Waite purchased the
Los Angeles Star
''Los Angeles Star'' (''La Estrella de Los Angeles'') was the first newspaper in Los Angeles, California, U.S. The publication ran from 1851 to 1879.
History Early history and background
The first proposition to establish a newspaper in Los A ...
. Became the first postmaster. Moved to San Bernardino in 1858.
*John Brown, Jr.: A pioneer of San Bernardino and a lawyer in San Bernardino. In 1872 John Brown made a quality pack trail toll (turnpike) road through Cajon Pass with dynamite. He fail to keep up the road and his partner John J. Driggers was taking to court in 1875, in Driggers v Lane. Secretary of the Pioneer Society of San Bernardino, planned the dedication. After Brown toll road land agreement ended, the county built an automobile road in 1915. This was part of the
National Old Trails Road
National Old Trails Road, also known as the Ocean-to-Ocean Highway, was established in 1912, and became part of the National Auto Trail system in the United States. It was long and stretched from Baltimore, Maryland (some old maps indicate Ne ...
. In the great flood of 1938 it was washed away.
*George Miller: Wrote a book about the trip ''A Trip to Death Valley" in 1919. This is about his 1869 trip to Death Valley.
* George M. Cooley: Pioneer of San Bernardino, opened a hardware store: Cooley-Betterly Hardware. He sold the store in 1925.
* Silas C. Cox: President of Pioneer Society of San Bernardino, planned the dedication.
*Richard Weir: Active in the Pioneer Society of San Bernardino. Died in San Bernardino in April 1932.
*Jasper N. Corbett (Jap Corbett), Came to California in 1856. Pioneer of San Bernardino, prospector. Born in 1843 in
Jackson County, Indiana
Jackson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2010, the population was 42,376. The county seat is Brownstown.
History
Jackson County was formed in 1816. It was named after General Andrew Jackson.
Jackson County was ...
. Worked on the old Moses Daley ranch. Married Miss Adelaide Daley. Active in the Pioneer Society of San Bernardino.
Stoddard-Waite Monument
The Stoddard-Waite Monument was designated a
California Historic Landmark
A California Historical Landmark (CHL) is a building, structure, site, or place in California that has been determined to have statewide historical landmark significance.
Criteria
Historical significance is determined by meeting at least one of ...
(No.578) on May 17, 1957. Stoddard-Waite Monument marks the place Sheldon Stoddard and Sydney P. Waite crossed the Cajon Pass in 1851. Stoddard and Waite built the Monument in 1912. A large dedication ceremony was held on May 18, 1913. The Marker was in the Elsie Arey May Nature Center, south of the I-15, on Cleghorn Road and is 16 miles North of San Bernardino on a dirt road. The Monument is now on private land. Located at: 34.303533 -117.466617.
Dedication May 18, 1913
At the dedication on May 18, 1913:
* Sheldon Stoddard at the age of 83 years. He had crossed the pass 60 years early as one of the original pioneers with his family.
* Sydney P. Waite a survivor of the Death Valley 1849 trip.
* Capt. Jefferson Hunt who made three trips over the pass one in 1847, second in 1849 and last in 1851.
* Mrs. (Nancy) Edward Daley, daughter of Capt. Hunt.
* Hattie Irene Knight unveiled the monument, she was the great-granddaughter of Sheldon Stoddard.
* Other original '49 pioneers: Mrs. Nancy Daley, Sarah A. Rathbun and Justis Morse.
*Several hundred old pioneers.
* Federal Judge
Benjamin Franklin Bledsoe
Benjamin Franklin Bledsoe (February 8, 1874 – October 30, 1938) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of California.
Education and career
Born in San Bernardino, California, Bledsoe re ...
gave the address.
* Judge J. W. Curtis, a grandson of Rev. I. C. Curtis, who came through the Pass in the early '60s spoke.
* Judge Rex B. Goodceli, grandfather came through the Pass in 1857, spoke.
* Attorney Grant Holcomb, grandson of pioneer
William F. Holcomb
William Francis "Grizzly Bill" Holcomb (27 January 1831 – 1909), was an American prospector and the first to discover gold in the region which became known as Holcomb Valley, near present-day Big Bear Lake, California. Holcomb Valley had the mos ...
, who came to San Bernardino in 1860 and discovered gold in Big Bear and
Holcomb Valley
Holcomb Valley, located in the San Bernardino Mountains about five miles north of Big Bear Lake, was the site of the most gold mines in Southern California. It was named after William F. Holcomb, who found gold there in 1860. That year started th ...
.
* Pioneer William Stephen.
* Attorney R. E. Swing.
* R.T. Roberds, Mary Crandall, ane Smithson, Jane Smithson and George Miller shared their crossing story.
* Pablo Belarde crossed in 1844 by a pack mule with New Mexico blankets, shared.
* Reverend Mark B. Shaw gave the invocation.
* Mary Harris managed the American flags on site.
* Also sharing was De La Montaigne Woodward, Henry M. Willis, Judge Benjamin F. Bledsoe, W.J. Curtis and Joseph E. Rich.
Rededication May 18, 2013
Stoddard-Waite monument was rededicated for its 100-year anniversary, by the San Bernardino Historical and Pioneer Society on May 18, 2013. The Stoddard and Waite families talked about there families past. Along with the rededication, the group walked to other historical sites, like on the old toll road to bridge piers for Crowder Canyon. Also talked about the history of the Inman Ranch. President Steve Shaw opened and gave a slide show “Old Pioneer Society,” Mike Hartless with the San Bernardino County Museum Association shared abouthe Indian village.
Markers
California Historical Landmark Marker #576 at the Santa Fe And Salt Lake Trail pass site reads:
*''Santa Fe And Salt Lake Trail 1849, Erected in honor of the brave pioneers of California, in 1917 by Sheldon Stoddard, Sydney P. Waite, John Brown, Jr., George Miller, George M. Cooley, Silas C. Cox, Richard Weir, and Jasper N. Corbett.''
The ''Stoddard-Waite Monument'' at the Elsie Arey May Nature Center, California Historical Landmark #578, reads:
*''Sheldon Stoddard, Sydney P. Waite came over this trail in 1849 helped erect this monument in 1912.
The California Historical Landmark book reports:
*''This monument marks the western extension of the Santa Fe Trail traveled by Sheldon Stoddard and Sydney P. Waite in 1849.''
Elsie Arey May Nature Center
San Bernardino County's Elsie Arey May Nature Center was on the
Pacific Crest Trail
The Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), officially designated as the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail, is a long-distance hiking and equestrian trail closely aligned with the highest portion of the Cascade and Sierra Nevada mountain ranges, which lie ...
in
Southern California
Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most po ...
's Cajon Pass. Elsie Arey May was teacher in San Bernardino County and helped at the San Bernardino County museum, as a member of the Museum Association.
[The San Bernardino County Sun, March 31, 1982, Page 17]
See also
*
Jedediah Smith
Jedediah Strong Smith (January 6, 1799 – May 27, 1831) was an American clerk, transcontinental pioneer, frontiersman, hunter, trapper, author, cartographer, mountain man and explorer of the Rocky Mountains, the Western United States, and ...
*
Henry Wade Exit Route
The Harry Wade Exit Route was discovered and made by Harry Wade from Illinois in 1849. Harry Wade, his wife and children were in the Bennett-Arcan party caravan emigrating west. At the direction of guide Jefferson Hunt the caravan took a poorly pl ...
*
*
Westward Expansion Trails
In the history of the American frontier, overland trails were built by pioneers throughout the 19th century and especially between 1829 and 1870 as an alternative to sea and railroad transport. These immigrants began to settle much of North Ame ...
*
Mormon Trail Monument
References
External links
A photographic report of Tehachapi and Cajon Pass (May, 2012)
*
{{Greater Los Angeles Area
California Gold Rush
History of Southern California
Mojave Desert
California Historical Landmarks
History of San Bernardino, California