Skip to main content

Round Mountain Road


Round Mountain Road is an approximately 19-mile highway located in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains northeast of Bakersfield.  Round Mountain Road begins at China Grade Loop at the Kern River near the site of Gordon's Ferry and terminates at Granite Road.  The Round Mountain Road corridor incorporates parts of the 1850s-era stage route known as the Stockton-Los Angeles Road in the form of Gordon‘s Ferry and Posey Station.  Modern Round Mountain Road emerged following the discovery of the Kern River Oil Field during 1899 and the Round Mountain Oil Field during 1927. 


Part 1; the history of Round Mountain Road and the Stockton-Los Angeles Road

The Stockton-Los Angeles Road came into use after the 1853 Kern River Gold Rush began.  The Stockton-Los Angeles Road was a replacement of the earlier El Camino Viejo.  Unlike the El Camino Viejo the Stockton-Los Angeles Road avoided the dense Tule Marches in San Joaquin Valley.  The Stockton-Los Angles Road stayed close to the Sierra Nevada Mountain foothills near the new claims on the Kern River watershed.  The corridor of Stockton-Los Angeles Road was also part of the 1858-61 alignment of the southern Butterfield Overland Mail Route.  

The formation known as the China Grade was used by the Stockton-Los Angeles Road to descend the Kern River Bluff to Gordon's Ferry at the Kern River.  From Gordon's Ferry the Stockton-Los Angeles Road followed the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains to reach Posey Station (also known as Poso Flat) at Poso Creek.  The Stockton-Los Angeles Road can be seen utilizing China Grade and Gordon's Ferry to reach Posey Station on the 1857 Britton & Rey's map of California

The popularity of the Stockton-Los Angeles Road began to decline rapidly as the Central Pacific Railroad through San Joaquin Valley was built through the 1870s.  Farm diversions for irrigation in San Joaquin Valley and the presence of various rail sidings along the Central Pacific Railroad spurred infrastructure development which made development through previous wetlands easier.  

During the 1870s Chinese settlers in the Bakersfield area improved the route of the Stockton-Los Angeles Road down the Kern River Bluff.  These settlers used the Kern River Bluff to search for watercress along the Kern River in the vicinity of location of Goron's Ferry.  In time the route down the Kern River Bluff came to be known as the China Grade in reference to the settlers who improved it.  In 1899 the Kern River Oil Field was discovered north of the Kern River Bluff and the China Grade an important access route to reach it.  

The 1898 Walkup Map of Kern County depicts the waning years of the Stockton-Los Angeles Road between Gordon's Ferry and Posey Station.  The Stockton-Los Angeles Road can be seen crossing the Kern River from the China Grade at Township 29, Range 28.  The Stockton-Los Angeles Road is shown continuing north to the vicinity of Posey Station via Granite Station.  From Granite Station the Stockton-Los Angeles Road is shown continuing north to the Tulare County line by way of the outskirts of Woody.  Much of the Stockton-Los Angeles Road north of the Kern River is displayed as a trail denoting the declining importance of the corridor.  




During the 1910s the China Grade was improved by Kern County and a bridge was installed at Gordon's Ferry to permit east access the Kern River Oilfield and the so-called "Oil City."  Below the China Grade (now part of Alfred Harrell Highway) can be seen snaking down the Kern River Bluff in a 1910-1915 era photo from the Antique Collection of Michael J. Semas Facebook Page.


Round Mountain Road can be seen connecting the Oil City near Gordon's Ferry to Granite Road on the 1917 California Automobile Association Map.  Much of the previous routing of the Stockton-Los Angeles Road between Gordon's Ferry and Posey Station appears to have been repurposed for oil exploitation.  


The original Kern River Bridge at Gordon's Ferry can be seen below in a photo dated to 1918.

The Round Mountain Oil Field was discovered during 1927 which led to a further reemergence of the Round Mountain Road corridor.  Production in the Round Mountain Oil Field peaked during 1938 when 5,453,194 barrels were pumped.  Discoveries of new wells in the Round Mountain Oil Field continued until 1974.  

Round Mountain Road and the 1,612-foot-high peak of Round Mountain can be seen linking Oil City to Poso on the 1935 Division of Highways Map of Kern County.  




Part 2; a drive on Round Mountain Road

A plaque pertaining to the history of Gordon's Ferry can be found on China Grade Loop approaching the Kern River and beginning of Round Mountain Road.  Gordon's Ferry was an overhead cable driven ferry which was part of the Stockton-Los Angeles Road and saw use as part of the Butterfield Overland Mail Route from 1858-1861.  



China Grade Loop crosses north over the Kern River and intersects Round Mountain Road.


Round Mountain Road northbound begins with a right-hand turn from China Grade Loop.  Traffic is advised Round Mountain Road is prone to flooding. 


Round Mountain Road initially follows the Kern River eastward and the Oil City to Choctaw Valley as a two-lane roadway.  East of Choctaw Valley Road, Round Mountain Road narrows to a wide single-lane roadway.




























Round Mountain Road turns north from the Kern River and ascends to a bluff overlooking Ming Lake of Hart Memorial Park.  Lake Ming was completed during 1959 when Hart Memorial Park reached it's present size. 






Round Mountain Road ascends to a bluff located at approximately 1,400 feet above sea level and approaches Round Mountain.  





















Round Mountain Road descends through the oil wells of the Round Mountain Oil Field to Poso Creek.  At Poso Creek the grade of Round Mountain Road expands back to two-lanes. 
























Round Mountain Road follows Poso Creek to a terminus at Granite Road (former California State Route 155).









A historic plaque pertaining to Posey Station can be found at the intersection of Round Mountain Road and Granite Road.  Posey Station was one of six stagecoach stations on the Butterfield Overland Mail Route located in Kern County.  Posey Station was located on what is now Round Mountain Road approximately 1.5 miles east of Granite Road along Poso Creek. 

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

US Route 62 and US Route 180 in the Guadalupe Mountains

US Route 62/US Route 180 between El Paso, Texas and Carlsbad, New Mexico passes through the Guadalupe Mountains.  The Guadalupe Mountains comprise the highest peaks of Texas which are largely protected as part Guadalupe Mountains National Park.  The automotive highway through the Guadalupe Mountains was constructed in the late 1920s as part of Texas State Road 54.  US Route 62 was extended from Carlsbad through the Guadalupe Mountains to El Paso during 1932.  US Route 62 was joined in the Guadalupe Mountains by US Route 180 in 1943.  The Guadalupe Mountains comprise a portion of the 130 mile "No Services" zone on US Route 62/US Route 180 between El Paso-Carlsbad. Part 1; the history of US Route 62 and US Route 180 in the Guadalupe Mountains The Guadalupe Mountains lie within the states of Texas and New Mexico.  The Guadalupe Mountains essentially is a southern extension of the larger Rocky Mountains.  The Guadalupe Mountains is the highest range in Texas with the peak elevati

Former California State Route 215

  California State Route 215 was a short-lived state highway which existed in the Los Angeles Metropolitain area after the 1964 State Highway Renumbering.  California State Route 215 was aligned from US Route 60 at 5th Street in Pomona north to US Route 66 near Claremont via Garey Avenue.  California State Route 215 came to be after California State Route 71 was bisected in Pomona due to relinquishment of a portion of Garey Avenue due to the opening of a portion of the Corona Freeway (now Chino Valley Freeway) during 1958.  California State Route 215 was deleted by the Legislature during 1965. The history of California State Route 215 The initial segment of what was to become California State Route 215 was added to the State Highway System as part of the 1909 First State Highway Bond Act.  The First State Highway Bond Act defined what would become  Legislative Route Number 19  (LRN 19) as running from Claremont to Riverside.  The segment of LRN 19 between Claremont and Pomona would in

Paper Highways; unbuilt California State Route 100 in Santa Cruz

This edition of Paper Highways examines the unbuilt California State Route 100 in Santa Cruz. The History of Unbuilt California State Route 100 The route that became CA 100 was added to the State Inventory in 1959 as part of the Freeway & Expressway System as Legislative Route 287 .  According to CAhighways.org the initial definition of LRN 287 had it begin at LRN 5 (CA 17) and was defined over the below alignment to LRN 56 (CA 1) through downtown Santa Cruz. -  Ocean Street -  2nd Street -  Chestnut Street For context the above alignment would required tearing down a large part of the densely populated Santa Cruz.  A modern Google imagine immediately reveals how crazy an alignment following Ocean Street, 2nd Street, and Chestnut Street would have been. LRN 287 first appears on the 1960 Division of Highways State Map . In 1961 the definition of LRN 287 was generalized to; from LRN 5 via the beach area in Santa Cruz to LRN 56 west of the San Lorenzo River.