Transportation in and out of the Santa Clarita Valley was greatly improved 160 years ago today when the San Fernando Hill Road was completed in accordance with the survey that the Board of Supervisors had ordered.  

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, consisting of B.D. Wilson, C. Aguilar, J.A. Morris, A. Ellis, and P. Sichel officially accepted General Edward Beale’s road over San Fernando Hill. 

Beale invested considerable resources and nearly two years of labor to carve through the towering sandstone walls, using only basic tools like picks and shovels. 

The result was a remarkable feat of early road construction—one that stood strong for over 80 years as a testament to pioneering infrastructure.

With its opening, toll rates were established: $2.75 for teams of twelve or ten animals, $2.50 for teams of eight, $2 for six, $1.75 for four, $1.37½ for two, and 75 cents for a single animal. Additional charges included 10 cents per loose animal, 25 cents for a man and horse or a pack animal, and 4 cents per sheep. A.P. Robbins was appointed as the toll collector by Mr. Beale.

Public reception of the new turnpike road was overwhelmingly positive. The Los Angeles Star, known for its critical stance on infrastructure projects, remained silent about its grade, suggesting general approval.

A small adobe toll house stood at the foot of the southern grade, where A.P. Robbins resided and managed toll collection.

Despite some challenging inclines, the new road eliminated the most perilous sections of the old pass. Although deep wagon ruts and winter mud persisted, travelers no longer faced the life-threatening drop-offs of the past. The level stretch through the deep sandstone cut made the journey significantly safer.

Traffic surged over the new road, driven by booming mining operations in the Kern River and Owens River regions, as well as increased settlement in the Tulare Valley. 

By 1863, due to conflicts with Native American tribes in Owens Valley, over a thousand men, women, and children were relocated to the Sebastian Indian Reserve under the protection of the Second California Volunteer Cavalry.

Fort Tejon was temporarily re-established for them, but by 1864, it was permanently abandoned.

That same year, General Beale resigned as General Surveyor of California and Nevada at the close of the Civil War. With the Indian Reservation project abandoned in 1862, he returned to his Ranchos Tejon, where he could witness the steady flow of traffic over the San Fernando Pass. His investment in the toll road was now yielding returns, a fitting reward for his vision and perseverance.

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Ed Note: Information for this article was extracted from Los Angeles Star publications, 1864.

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