Historic Carmel Valley

Among the first European immigrants to settle and farm the fertile valleys of the Central Coast were Englishmen James Meadows and Edward Berwick, the Irishman William Hatton, and the Scottish William Martin. Hatton became a dairy manager for the Carmel Valley operations supporting the Hotel Del Monte and rose to become manager of the extensive Pacific Improvement Company operations in Carmel Valley, with his headquarters at a rebuilt Los Laureles ranch house. Chinese labor ditched and piped water from an early dam at Los Padres to the Hotel Del Monte and Monterey Peninsula cities.

From: The Guide to Historic Carmel Valley
http://www.thehistorycompany.com/carmelvalleydiningguide/guide_toc.html

Eschscholzia californica

The California poppy (Eschscholzia californica) is a perennial and annual plant, native to the United States, and the official state flower of California.

Eschscholzia californica was the first named member of the genus Eschscholzia, which was named by the German botanist Adelbert von Chamisso after the Baltic German botanist Johann Friedrich von Eschscholtz, his friend and colleague on Otto von Kotzebue’s scientific expedition to California and the greater Pacific in mid-1810s aboard the Russian ship Rurik.
From wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_poppy

the "Chinese Dam" constructed ca. 1880

The oldest dam on the river, which was used as a turnout for a water pipeline, is located approximately 2,000 feet downstream of San Clemente Dam. This first dam and associated pipeline was constructed ca. 1880 by Charles Crocker and the Pacific Improvement Company with a labor force that included approximately 700 Chinese workers. This small dam, which has been referred to as the "Chinese Dam" and "Old Carmel River Dam," was built using hewn and mortared granite blocks.
From wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carmel_River
Picture from San Clemente Dam Removal http://www.sanclementedamremoval.org/

the Penutian language family

The Ohlone languages comprise one branch of the hypothesized Penutian language family, within which they form a subgroup with the Miwokan languages (Central Sierra Miwok, Coast Miwok, Lake Miwok, Northern Sierra Miwok, Plains Miwok, Saclan, and Southern Sierra Miwok). Penutian also includes Klamath-Modoc, the Maiduan languages (Konkow, Maidu, and Nisenan), the Wintuan languages (Nomlaki, Patwin, and Wintu), and the Yokuts languages.

The Rumsen language was spoken on the Monterey Peninsula and along the lower Carmel River, around Salinas and Fort Ord, near Castroville, and from Carmel Valley to Point Sur. During the mission period, it was spoken at Mission San Carlos de Borroméo in Carmel.

http://linguistics.berkeley.edu/~survey/languages/rumsen.php

when large-scale pumping actually began, the river started running dry

Back in 1973, Cal-Am asked the PUC for permission to increase its pumping in Carmel Valley, from a rate of about 4,500 acre-feet per year, to 6,000 acre-feet per year. The PUC refused. After reviewing the available evidence, they found that the aquifer could only sustain pumping of 4,500 acre-feet of water per year.

This wasn't the answer that developers or the political leadership of the Monterey Peninsula wanted. They wanted enough water for unconstrained growth, and pumping it out of Carmel Valley was the easiest and cheapest way to get it. They needed help and, less than a year later, the State Department of Water Resources came riding to the rescue. Water Resources released a scientifically dubious report contradicting the PUC's finding and estimating that a whopping 15,000 acre-feet of water per year could be sustainably pumped from Carmel Valley. The PUC quickly capitulated and granted Cal-Am permission to pump more than 11,000 acre-feet per year.

But when large-scale pumping actually began, the river, embarrassingly for Cal-Am, started running dry right next to the pumps. This wasn't just an environmental problem; it was also a legal problem. It demonstrated that Cal-Am was capturing river water which they did not have a legal right to divert.

From: http://ventana.sierraclub.org/conservation/carmel_river/index.shtml

Picture from: GusC.A's photostream http://www.flickr.com/photos/38029403@N03/

Los Padres Dam

Drive up Carmel Valley Road, turn right onto Cachagua Road. Climb steeply over Tularcitos Ridge, then descend steeply to the Carmel River and Cachagua Creek valley. Near the bottom of the hill after 5.9 miles, turn sharp right onto Nason Road. Cross several speed bumps to County Park on the right, where the good pavement ends. Continue uphill past the ranger station and park in a dirt lot where there is a fence with locked vehicle gate. Enter the unlocked hiker's gate and walk on a dirt road .5 mile to Los Padres Dam.

From Rafting the Upper Carmel River: http://cacreeks.com/carmel3.htm
Photo of Los Padres Dam Spillway from tsallam's photostream http://www.flickr.com/photos/annevoi/with/4855467583/

Carmel Valley Ranch School

Nestled among the Sierra del Salinas of the upper Carmel Valley, is the site of the former Carmel Valley Ranch School, founded by Helen Lisle and Celinea "Bunny" Wells. Miss Wells and Miss Lisle were school teachers from New England, with an innovative approach to teaching. Their ideas was to start an eastern private school on a western ranch.

The plan was for the school to run from October to May, with the teachers accompanying the student by train from the east to California and back, allowing for special stops along the way, with their routes varying through the northern and southern United States. The parents liked this program because of the travel education it provided the children.

The first school sites was located near the present-day Carmel Valley Manor. In 1929, a new location was found. Mr. Russell Hastings had just purchased a ranch in upper Carmel Valley.

From: Hastings http://www.hastingsreserve.org/HistoryWebHNHR/CVRHistSun.html

Rumsen Ohlone

Rumsen is a member of the Costanoan, or Ohlonean, language family. Recognized as a distinct language family by the linguist Albert Gatschet in 1877, the Costanoan
languages are considered part of the broad Penutian family, which also includes Miwok.

Rumsen, now dormant, was one of eight distinct but related Costanoan languages spoken in north-central California in the region of the San Francisco and Monterey Bay areas.
Rumsen was spoken in the Monterey-Carmel region down the coast to Big Sur in the south and Soledad in the east. The last known native speaker of Rumsen, Isabelle Meadows, died in 1939.

From: Some Observations of Rumsen Ohlone Grammar http://kuscholarworks.ku.edu/dspace/handle/1808/5719

Picture of Rumsen Indian mortar hole from: tsallam's photostream http://www.flickr.com/photos/annevoi/

The Boronda Adobe

Following the general trend after secularization, during the large Cattle Ranch Era, the José Manuel Boronda family acquired the 6, 625-acre Rancho Los Laureles in Carmel Valley.
The Borondas were not the first grantees. The tract had first been bestowed on José Antonio Romero in 1835.
But, four years later, in 1839, it was re-granted to José Manuel Boronda and Vicente Blas Martinez, along with José Manuel’s son, Juan de Mata Boronda, who was about age 18 or 19 at the time.

The Boronda family, including José Manuel, his wife, Juana, and their 15 children, came to settle on the rancho. Thus, the Boronda family became the first permanent settlers in Carmel Valley.

From: www.nelshenderson.com

"The Boronda Adobe" -Carmel Valley- By Percy Gray (1869-1952)
http://www.trottergalleries.com/soldinventory.asp?new=&At=PercyGray&InvNo=451

Rancho Tularcitos

Rancho Tularcitos was a 26,581-acre Mexican land grant in present day Monterey County, California given in 1834 by Governor José Figueroa to Rafael Gomez. Tularcitos means "place of the little Tule thickets". The grant was in the upper Carmel Valley, along Tularcitos Creek, and was bounded on the west by Rancho Los Laureles.

http://en.wikipedia.org

Picture from: www.cavette.net
/wiki/Rancho_Tularcitos_28Gomez29

Rosie's Cracker Barrel

"Life in the Valley was a blast. I don't think I wore shoes. I'd spend a lot of time at Rosie's Cracker Barrel. We'd come in to buy breakfast and wipe the dust off the cereal box. We'd sit on the bench with Rosie; he was blind, so we told him what we were buying and how much money we were handing him.

"Sometimes we'd pull lemons from my mother's tree and then buy sugar and cups from Rosie on my mother's account, so we could set up a lemonade stand. It was the perfect upbringing."

It was built in 1927 as the real estate office for Robles Del Rio, the first subdivision in the valley. Rosie bought the structure in 1939, sold crackers out of the barrel, beans out of sacks, posted neighbors' mail between the shoestrings and pocket knives, stocked comics for kids, and ran a 6-stool bar in a back room for their parents.

From: http://montereypeninsula.blogspot.com/2008/11/rosies-cracker-barrel.html

From: http://www.montereyherald.com/ci_18903094?IADID=Search-www.montereyherald.com-www.montereyherald.com

Robles Del Rio Lodge 1928 - 2010

80-year-old Robles Del Rio Lodge in California's Carmel Valley Destroyed by Early Morning Fire

May 24, 2010--The landmark Robles Del Rio Lodge that had stood on its oak-shaded hilltop in Carmel Valley for more than 80 years burned to the ground early Sunday morning.

The lodge was built in 1928 by Frank Porter and had been the center of the community -- Carmel Valley Village was then called Robles del Rio -- and was the first lodge in Monterey County to feature a heated swimming pool, golf course and liquor license.

Bill Wood, a world-renowned hotelier, bought the lodge in 1939 and made it more exclusive. Visitors included Arthur Murray, Red Skelton, Doris Day and Tippi Hedren.

The Gurries family purchased the lodge in 1985 from Wood. In 1997 they won county approval to add 24 units. Financing fell apart, however, and the lodge was closed in February 2000.

Monterey County Herald http://www.hotel-online.com/News/PR2010_2nd/May10_Robles.html

Photo from: mas'sma1's photostream http://www.flickr.com/photos/36826169@N06/

Los Robles

Quercus lobata, commonly called the Valley Oak, grows into the largest of North American oaks. It is endemic to California, growing in the hot interior valleys and foothills. Mature specimens may attain an age of up to 600 years

Photo from Dry Crik Journal: http://www.westernfolklife.org/weblogs/artists/dofflemyer/2009/03/valley_oak.html

Rumsen Ohlone from San Francisco to Carmel to Pomona

In 1776, life changed drastically when the Hispanic Empire established the Mission in San Francisco. Within six weeks, all of the Ohlone that were living in what is now San Francisco were decimated, scattered, or brought into service at the Mission. The approximately 20,000 Ohlone people who had been living in the Bay Area at this time were reduced to less than 2,000 by 1810.

Their numbers continued to decline and in 1834, Mexico ended the Mission system and most of the remaining native people in San Francisco, including ancestors of the Rumsen Ohlone Tribe, moved south to Carmel.

When the United States defeated Mexico in 1848 and took control of California, the Ohlone were never recognized by the government. At that time, the murdering of native people was common and the Rumsen Ohlone fled to Southern California.

From Civic Center Blog: http://sfciviccenter.blogspot.com/2011/06/ohlone-tribe-returns-to-san-francisco.html

Scott Cabin & Scott Barn on Hastings Ranch

Historically a cattle ranch, much of the land was donated by the Hastings family. Most of the present buildings still in use were built between the 1860s and 1950s.

Hastings is a part of the UC Natural Reserve System... and has been a biological field station of the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology (MVZ), University of California Berkeley since 1937.

Located about 26 river miles upstream of the Pacific on the Carmel River watershed, Hastings includes the confluence of three seasonal creeks that feed into Finch Creek, and then the Carmel River. Immediately adjacent to Hastings are a complex of vernal pools and springs that support the endangered Red-legged Frog and one of the few coastal populations of the federally listed, endemic California tiger salamander (Ambystoma californiense) that have not hybridized with tiger salamanders introduced from Texas and other western states to much of the Sierra de Salinas. Most of Hastings has not been grazed for 60 years, and the reserve is home to several rare, unplowed native perennial grasslands. This area is of high conservation interest focused on the vernal pools and oak woodlands.

The Tack Room and Scott Cabin are historic buildings, dating from the 1860's and continue to be used for storing historic ranch items and field equipment.

From: Hastings Natural History Reservation http://www.hastingsreserve.org/HistoryWebHNHR/OverviewHNHR.html

The Lambert Ranchhouse

Born Joleen Lambert, she is part of one of the oldest ranching families in East Carmel Valley. As in any charismatic dynasty, being born a Lambert has a certain built-in prestige about it, not because they have airs or pretensions but because they are respectable folk who have made a name for themselves in horsemanship and hospitality and have that familial strain of uniqueness that draws people to them.

The Lambert ranchhouse on Tassajara was her childhood home. I only know it as it is now--quaint, but forlorn and lonely. In its heyday, it teemed with friends and family. Set in an oak- and madrone-lined valley beside a creek, it''s a white and green farmhouse that faces the road and the pastures beyond it. It''s an unpretentious and charming set-up that out-of-town vehicles take notice of as they pass on through to hunt or hike in the Ventana Wilderness or soak in the Tassajara hot springs.

Owned by the Lamberts for a good part of the 20th century, the ranchhouse was the social center for Jamesburg.

From: Monterey County Weekly http://www.montereycountyweekly.com/news/2001/apr/12/true-daughter-of-the-golden-west/

Missions of New Spain

Map of the route, Juan Bautista de Anza traveled in 1775-76 from Mexico to today's San Francisco, where he founded the Presidio of San Francisco.

The California Missions, after they were all established, were located about one day's horseback ride apart for easier communication and linked by the El Camino Real trail. These Missions were typically manned by two-three friars and three to ten soldiers. Virtually all the physical work was done by Indians coerced into joining the missions.
The padres provided instructions for making adobe bricks, building mission buildings, planting fields, digging irrigation ditches, growing new grains and vegetables, herding cattle and horses, singing, speaking Spanish, and understanding the Catholic faith—all that was thought to be necessary to bring the Indians up to be able to support themselves and their new church.
The soldiers supervised the construction of the Presidios (forts) and were responsible for keeping order and preventing and/or capturing runaway Indians that tried to leave the missions. Nearly all of the Indians adjoining the missions were induced to join the various missions built in California. Once the Indians had joined the mission, if they tried to leave, soldiers were sent out to retrieve them. Some have compared their Peon status as only slightly better than slaves.

From: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_California

Ohlone Map

The Ohlone are the original inhabitants of the Santa Cruz area, who over thousands of years developed complex cultures that were sustained through a deep relationship with the wildlife and natural resources of the land.

The Ohlone people and their ways of life were decimated first by the Spanish invasion and establishment of Mission Santa Cruz in 1791, and later by American settlement and genocidal Gold Rush-era policies toward Indians.

Contrary to popular belief, Ohlone people are very much still alive today, as is their deep relationship with the land of their ancestors.

From: Save the Knoll http://savetheknoll.org/about/

Middle and Lower Carmel River

Location map: Middle and Lower Carmel River based on aerial photography in 1945.

A narrow channel with well-vegetated banks developed on the lower 15 km. of the Carmel River by 1939, and by 1960 this condition had extended to the entire lower 24 km. of river channel. Noticeable die-off of riparian trees near water supply wells began in the 1960s and intensified during the 1976–1977 drought. Substantial bank erosion occurred during the winters of 1978 and 1980 along reaches which had suffered loss of bank-stabilizing riparian trees.

From: The Role of Riparian Vegetation in Channel Bank Stability http://publishing.cdlib.org/ucpressebooks/view?docId=ft1c6003wp;chunk.id=d0e21500;doc.view=print

Carmel Valley Historic Resources

Carmel Valley Historic Resources Checklist:

Lambert Ranch House 1924 Tassajara Road
Scott Cabin 1860s Carmel Valley Road
Scott Barn 1860s Carmel Valley Road
Carmel Valley Ranch School 1929 Carmel Valley Road
Carmel River Dam 1883-84 Carmel Valley Road
San Clemente Dam 1924 Carmel Valley Road
Church Homestead 1890s Tassajara Road
Tassajara Hot Springs Resort 1880s Tassajara Road
Jamesburg School-Bell Ranch 1891 Carmel Valley Road
Jamesburg School-Boronda Creek Ranch 1920s Cachagua Road
Tregea Ranch structures 1860s & up Carmel Valley Road
Search Ranch House 1840s Tassajara Road
Prince’s Camp Tavern 1890s Nason Road
Miller Camp 1890s Tassajara Road
The Rock House 1920s Nason Road
The Parrott Ranch Wood Frame House1870s Cachagua Road
The Parrott Ranch Adobe & Stone Structures1820s Cachagua Road
Burritt Cahoon Home 1890s Carmel Valley Road
Arnold Cabin 1900 Carmel Valley Road
Hatton Dairy Barn 1890 6540 Carmel Valley Road
Ichxenta N/A San Jose Creek
Tucutnut N/A Mouth of Potrero Canyon
Socorronda N/A Mid-Carmel Valley
Echilat N/A San Francisquito Flat
Sepponet N/A South of Tularcitos Guard Station
Site of Descanso Oak N/A Carmel Valley Road
Site of Bradley Sargeant Adobe 1850s Portrero Canyon
Indian Dam Site N/A Carmel River
Site of Inesimo/Meadows Adobe 1835 Mid-Carmel Valley
San Francisquito Adobe Site 1835 Rancho San Carlos
Old Carmelo School 1917 North of Schulte Road
Meadows Home 1880 North of Schulte Road
Farm Center 1869 Robinson Canyon Road at Carmel Valley Road
Carmel Valley Rock and Sand Company Conveyor 1890 Behind Farm Center
San Carlos Ranch House 1924 San Francisquito Flat
Colton Home 1885 Holt Ranch
Wright Cabin 1860s Robinson Canyon
Los Laureles Lodge 1870 Upper Carmel Valley
Boronda Adobe pre-1834 Boronda Road
Del Monte Milk Barn 1890 Carmel Valley Village
Robles del Rio Lodge 1926 Robles del Rio
Rosie’s Cracker Barrel 1927 Robles del Rio
Bridge #501 1947 Schulte Road at Carmel River
Bridge #507 N/A Boronda Road at Carmel River
Bridge #508 1946 Esquiline Road at Carmel River
Bridge #523 N/A Robinson Canyon Road at Garzas Creek
Cooper Barn 1875 Garland Park
Chalk Rock House c. 1925 27200 Los Arboles Drive
Berwick Manor and Orchard 1850-1899 Route 2
Carmel Valley Airpark 1941 Ford Road
Boronda Road Tree Grove 1874 Boronda Road

FROM: MONTEREY COUNTY REGISTER OF HISTORIC RESOURCES
AS OF JUNE, 2009
http://publicagendas.co.monterey.ca.us/MG75670/AS75689/AS75695/AI83873/DO83876/DO_83876.PDF
Photo from The Monterey Explorer: http://www.flickr.com/photos/26134119@N00/with/3991329091/