Skip to main content

November Bay Area Trip Park 9; Firebaugh's Ferry

Heading home from San Francisco it seemed somewhat passe to take another boring slog down CA 99 to Fresno. That being the case I decided on something I've been looking which proved to be far more entertaining; hunting down the location of Firebaugh's Ferry.  After getting over Pacheco Pass via CA 152 I took a southward turn on I-5 to Nees Avenue towards Firebaugh.  Firebaugh is a small city located in Fresno County along CA 33 on the western bank of the San Joaquin River.  The area was settled during the California Gold Rush with creation of Firebaugh's Ferry in 1854.


Firebaugh's Ferry was opened by Andrew Firebaugh who was a somewhat notable historical figure during the California Gold Rush.  Firebaugh was also the builder of the first toll road over Pacheco Pass which is followed roughly by modern California State Route 152.  Both Firebaugh's Ferry and the Pacheco Pass Toll Road were part of the Butterfield Overland Mail Route between St. Louis and San Francisco which operated from 1858 to 1861.

The location of Firebaugh's Ferry was located somewhere north of the 13th Street Bridge over the San Joaquin River.  The Ferry Dock was located somewhere between the 1885 Firebaugh Drawbridge and the 13th Street Bridge.


South of the 13th Street Bridge there is a plaque about Firebaugh's Ferry and Andrew Firebaugh located in Firebaugh City Park.




During the 1800s the San Joaquin River would have been infinitely more treacherous than it is today.  The San Joaquin River with in San Joaquin Valley was prone to flooding from water run-off from the Sierras and in some instances the extinct Tulare Lake via Fresno Slough.  The river was known to swell to huge widths with in San Joaquin Valley due to the flatness of the terrain.  Most early roads in Central California like the Stockton-Los Angeles Road generally flanked the foothills of the Sierras or the Diablo Range due to the chances of encountering an a river crossing which couldn't be passed.  Millerton to the east was example of a ferry that utilized higher elevations to make for an easier ferry crossing of the San Joaquin River.  Ever since the Friant Dam was built along San Joaquin River in addition to the Big Creek project flood waters have been largely controlled by impoundments.  Today the San Joaquin River is often low enough to be easily swam across or possibly walked.


Firebaugh's Ferry was replaced by the 1885 Firebaugh Drawbridge which used to be located on 12th Street.  1885 Firebaugh Drawbridge was replaced in 1948 but the ruins of the structure are still present on the west river bank.  Firebaugh as a settlement was large enough to warrant a permanent Post Office by 1865 and was incorporated into a city by 1914.  A map of Fresno County in 1891 shows an apparent bridge over the San Joaquin River in Firebaugh.

1891 Fresno County Map

A clear road over the San Joaquin River in Firebaugh without a ferry is shown on a 1896 map of California.

1896 Map of Central California

Andrew Firebaugh was part of the 1851 battle in the Mariposa War which led to the first European discovery of Yosemite Valley.  Apparently Andrew Firebaugh had some hand in founding Academy the first secondary school along modern CA 168 in eastern Fresno County in 1872.  Given that the Firebaugh was buried on Tollhouse Road I would speculate that he had something to do with the lumber routes that eventually became CA 168 as well.

After visiting the city and trying to track down the ferry location it was a short ride to the east on CA 180 back to Fresno.  Suffice to say the two day weekend trip to the Bay Area was a packed one, usually I try to space things out a little but it was a long overdue road trip.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Tulare Lake returns

During the winter of 2023 California experienced one of the wettest seasons in recent decades.  Enough snow and water were deposited into the Sierra Nevada Mountains that the runoff was enough to partially reform Tulare Lake within San Joaquin Valley.  Tulare Lake was once the largest lake west of the Mississippi River by surface area.  Tulare Lake has been largely dried for the past century due to irrigation divisions and upstream impoundments.  This blog will examine the history of Tulare Lake and its recent return.  Pictured as the blog cover is Tulare Lake from 19th Avenue in Kings County during early May 2023.  Tulare Lake can be seen near its maximum extent below on the 1876 P.Y. Baker Map of Tulare County .   Part 1; the history of Tulare Lake Tulare Lake is the largest remnant of Lake Corcoran.  Lake Corcoran once covered much of the entire Central Valley due to being it being located at a in natural low point from where mountain run-off would accumulate.  Lake Corcoran is thou

Former US Route 101 through Sargent

  Sargent is a ghost town and siding of the Southern Pacific Railroad located in southern Santa Clara County.  The original alignment of US Route 101 was aligned through Sargent via what is now known as Old Monterey Road.  Sargent was bypassed gradually due to shifts of the alignment of US Route 101 which occurred during 1941 and 1950.  Pictured as the blog cover is a view on Old Monterey Road which is now no longer accessible to the general public.  Below is a scan of the 1935 Division of Highways Map of Santa Clara County which depicts the original alignment US Route 101 through Sargent.   Part 1; the history of US Route 101 in Sargent Sargent lies on land which was once part of Rancho Juristac.  During 1856 James P. Sargent purchased Rancho Juristac and plotted what was known as Sargent Ranch.  By 1869 the Southern Pacific Railroad coast line reached the relocated town site of Gilroy.  The Southern Pacific Railroad coast line would be constructed through Chittenden Pass by 1871 whic

California State Route 60/Former US Route 60/70 through the Moreno Valley Badlands west to Riverside

This past month I drove California State Route 60 through the Moreno Valley Badlands westward towards the City of Riverside.  CA 60 through the Moreno Valley Badlands was once part of the corridors of US Route 60 and US Route 70. The present route of CA 60 is a 70 mile (76 counting multiplex) slice of former US 60 between downtown Los Angeles east to I-10 near Beaumont.  The vast majority of CA 60 aside from a small section in the Moreno Valley Badlands is presently a freeway grade. For me CA 60 holds some personal history as it was the route I used most frequently accessing work sites in the Inland Empire circa 2011-2013.  Despite what many others probably would say I always really enjoyed the Moreno Valley Badlands portion of CA 60.  Considering I frequently worked on US 60 through Arizona and New Mexico the route holds even more appeal.  I even have a CA 60 shield hanging up in my garage. Part 1; History of Roadways in the Moreno Valley Badlands CA 60 between B