Historic Fahey cabins, Tuolumne County, California

Sonora Pass Historic Sites

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Early Settlements

Preview of Early Settlements

Williams Ranch - the earliest settlers in the Twain Harte area with holdings that included Bald Rock.

Confidence Mine - discovered in 1856 but not developed into one of the richest quartz mines in the area until the 1860s.

The Excelsior Hotel - a popular stopping place for travelers in Sugarpine.

Strawberry - a favorite retreat for residents from below seeking to escape the summer heat and enjoy some great fishing.

Leland Meadow - claimed as pasture land by Gustavus Adolphus Leland, a baker and farmer from Jamestown.

Eureka Valley - site of a road house established by David Hayes and Jack Welch in 1864-1865.

Douglas Resort - a resort established in the 1920s and popular with travelers and early movie-making companies.

Learn more about these early settlements and others:
Early Settlements

Footprints of the Early Pioneers

The Walker River Emigrant Trail

Among the most interesting of Sonora Pass Historic Sites are the emigrant trails. The Walker River Emigrant Trail was opened in 1852 and used by emigrant wagon trains until 1854. It diverged from the main California Trail at Fort Churchill on the Carson River in Nevada and swept south to the Walker River, following it to its headwaters at the summit of the Sierra Nevada.

The trail passed through today's Emigrant Wilderness, crossing the crest of Sierra 8 miles south of today's Sonora Pass. Emigrants eventually arrived at Dodge Ridge and then following roughly the route of Highway 108 to Sonora. Few remnants of the trail remain, but there are places you can view its route.

Pickel and Leavitt Meadows

Pickel Meadow

The Walker River Emigrant Trail descended the slope behind the Marine Mountain Warfare Training Center at Pickel Meadow, forded the Walker River and headed up Pickel Meadow to Poore Lake. From there it crossed the ridge to the upper end of Leavitt Meadow before turning southwest into the high mountains.

Burst Rock

You can drive out the long, gravel road to Gianelli's Cabin and then hike a mile to the summit of Burst Rock. The emigrant wagons came up the back side of Burst Rock and down the ridges toward Dodge Ridge. Several babies were born to the emigrants near Burst Rock, prompting some to call it Birth Rock. One emigrant child arrived in the middle of a snow storm.

Strawberry Flat Ranch at Pinecrest

In 1853 when emigrants reached the area around today's Camp Blue (near Pinecrest) they found a small farm house called the Strawberry Flat Ranch established by Samuel Wood. There the destitute pioneers could purchase fresh vegetables and hay for their stock. The emigrant trail angled up from Camp Blue to the ridge north of Highway 108 and followed the ridge top down through today's Pinecrest School, past Long Barn. At Sugarpine it cut off along the route of today's Middle Camp Road down through Twain Harte.

Historical Society

Read a full history of emigrants who crossed Sonora Pass in Sonora Pass Pioneers, offered for sale by the Tuolumne County Historical Society.

Gold Rush Era Miners' Ditches and Reservoirs

During the Gold Rush miners desperately needed water in Sonora and Columbia. The Tuolumne County Water Company built a ditch up to the site of today's Lyons Reservoir where they constructed a dam to divert water into the ditch. Other ditches were run to the North Fork of the Tuolumne River near Long Barn.

The Columbia and Stanislaus River Water Company constructed an ambitious ditch that ran from above today's Donnell Reservoir, down the Middle Fork of the Stanislaus, through a tunnel near Spring Gap, and then down the South Fork of the Stanislaus.

Strawberry Lake (Pinecrest Lake) and several reservoirs upstream from Strawberry Lake were built to enhance the summer water supply through the ditches.

Ditches Still in Use

Many miles of the early ditches and flumes are still in use today. They can be seen flowing serenely through neighborhoods in Twain Harte and Confidence. The best place to see a flume is at Lyons Dam. Take the Lyons Dam Road off Highway 108 (just east of Sierra Village) to the parking area by the reservoir and walk down the road to the dam. A trail with railings leads down to the foot of the dam where you can see the flume winding away along the side of the canyon, much the way it appeared in the 1850s.

Remnants of Old Gold Mining Era Reservoirs

If you hike upstream from the eastern end of Pinecrest Lake you will soon come to the remnants of a crib dam that held back the waters of Big Dam Reservoir. Middle Dam was located, naturally, between the other two reservoirs. There is no established trail to follow, however.

Relief Reservoir Dam

Relief Reservoir was built during the early 20th century. A road was carved out of the mountainside leading from Kennedy Meadows up the canyon to the site of the dam. Equipment was dragged up this steep route using steam donkeys and winches. Today remnants of the machinery used in the construction of the dam can be found scattered along the trailside. Near the dam the old blasting powder storage vault remains built into the side of the mountain.

During the construction of the dam a small community of cabins for the workers was erected on the south slope of the mountain. Nothing remains of the settlement today. Proposals were made to build another dam in Kennedy Canyon and flood the entire valley, including Kennedy Lake; but the project never left the drawing table.

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The Sonora and Mono Wagon Road

The Sonora and Mono Wagon Road was constructed in 1863-1864 to connect Tuolumne County with the mining districts on the eastern side of the Sierra, particularly Esmeralda, Nevada, and scattered strikes in Mono County. Remnants of the old wagon road abound along Highway 108, although they are sometimes difficult to recognize. The best sections to view are at the higher elevations on the western slope of Sonora Pass.

Cow Creek to Niagara Creek

Cow Creek Road follows the route of the early wagon road. At one time a ranger station stood on the bank of Cow creek. At Niagara Creek the old road followed the campground road across the creek and then along the side of the mountain several hundred yards above the modern highway.

One of the most interesting sections of the old road is the rockwork embankment built up just beyond Niagara Creek. If you drive on Highway 108 one quarter mile east past the Niagara Creek bridge and then turn up a dirt road on your right, you will soon find a good example of the old road.

Donnell Reservoir

The Patterson Grade

Construction foreman John Danforth Patterson supervised the building of the steep grade from today's Donnell Vista down to the Clark Fork. Just a third of a mile east of the Vista a dirt road angles away from the highway. You can park there and walk down the old Patterson Grade that used to strike fear into many early motorists. Boulders and bushes have now made passage difficult in places.

Deadman Creek

One mile past Chipmunk Flat is perhaps the best place to view the old wagon road. A long turnout beside the highway marks the spot. The Forest Service used to maintain signs there about the Sonora and Mono Wagon Road. From the turnout you can see long stretches of the road on the hillside across the creek.

Near the Summit of Sonora Pass

Beyond the hairpin turn just above the last-mentioned turnout, remnants of the rock embankment of the old road appear in places on the left.

Sonora Pass

At the top of Sonora Pass is a marker attributing the discovery of the pass to Andrew Fletcher. Fletcher was the superintendent of the Columbia and Stanislaus River Water Company and the owner of a sawmill in Sugar Pine. According to the account, Fletcher and a companion, Joseph Spier, discovered the pass while on a fishing and hunting outing in 1862.

Old 19th Century Cabins

A number of old log cabins and wooden structures scattered about the back country have survived. Most were built by ranchers to use as outposts (Cow Camps) for the ranch hands who tended cattle on mountain ranges during the summer. Driving stock to the high country in the summer was a common practice even into the mid-20th century. Other cabins were hunting and fishing shelters. Most require several hours of hiking to reach, but a few stand in meadows at the ends of Forest Service roads.

Cooper Meadows - These early cabins can be seen by driving to Coyote Meadow off Herring Creek Road and then hiking 3.5 miles to Cooper Meadow.
Fahey Cabins - (shown here) Located on Wrights Creek along Forest Service Road 3N07, off the North Fork Road, 5 miles east of Long Barn. Other early buildings are farther out these roads. The Faheys were early cattlemen in the area.

Gianelli Cabin - The remnants of the Gianelli cabin are in a small meadow 12 miles east of Pinecrest off the Crabtree Road. The cabin was constructed by A. G. Gianelli, probably Antone Gianelli, in the early 1900s and used as a hunting outpost. Antone was a farmer and rancher living in the Summersville area. Antone, or Antonio as he was also called, was born in Italy and came to the United State in the 1860s. He and his wife Lilly raised five children.

Kennedy Lake Cabins - A rustic log cabin (shown left) is situated near Kennedy Lake in the Emigrant Wilderness, a full 6-mile hike from their primary camp at Kennedy Meadows. The Kennedy family, from Knights Ferry, grazed cattle in the mountains in the late 19th century.