Santa Fe Grade Road near Firebaugh in Fresno County is an approximately 0.3-mile rural roadway built on a repurposed railroad grade. Santa Fe Grade Road begins at Shaw Avenue and continues northwest as a public highway to the end of the asphalt. The grade was constructed by the San Francisco & San Joaquin Railroad during the 1880s but was found to be consistently flood prone. The grade was later sold to the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad in 1898 which later abandoned it to Fresno County. Part 1; the history of Santa Fe Grade Road The origin of Santa Fe Grade Road lies in the 1880s when San Francisco & San Joaquin Valley Railroad president Claus Spreckels was attempting to acquire right-of-way. Spreckels' line was in competition with the Southern Pacific Railroad to build a line in western San Joaquin Valley. Any prospective westside line would have to cross the properties owned by the so-called "Cattle King of California" Henry Miller....
Elkhorn Road is an eight-mile rural highway fronting Elkhorn Slough in Monterey County. This highway was developed during the early 1870s as a frontage Southern Pacific Railroad when the line was extended south of Pajaro to Salinas. The Elkhorn Road corridor would act as the primary highway between Pajaro and Castroville until a bridge over Elkhorn Slough replaced the Moss Landing ferry in 1884. During 1946 the Elkhorn Road bridge at Elkhorn Slough was removed and replaced with the modern crossing via a tidal gate. The modern corridor has since remained largely unaltered and is now mostly used for visitation to the Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve. Part 1; the history of Elkhorn Road Elkhorn Road is named for and fronts Elkhorn Slough. This seven-mile-long slough is named for the one abundant Tule Elk which once resided along the estuaries of Monterey Bay. Elkhorn Road itself was developed during the early 1870s when the ...