Skip to main content

Yosemite Springs Parkway

By

Yosemite Springs Parkway is an approximately five-mile roadway located in the Sierra Nevada foothills of Madera County and serves as the main throughfare of Yosemite Lakes Park.  The corridor originates as the primary through road of Gold Rush era Long Hollow Ranch which connected the Fresno-Yosemite Road at Kelshaw Corners to River Road.  Upon Long Hollow Ranch being sold for subdivided development in 1970 the roadway was rebuilt to modern standards and rebranded by the name it currently carries.  




Part 1; the history of Yosemite Springs Parkway

The lands where Yosemite Springs Parkway now lie were once part of Long Hollow Ranch.  Said ranch came under the ownership of the Rivas family after the forced relocation of the local Chukchansi Yokuts onto what is now Picayune Rancheria during the late nineteenth century.  

Long Hollow Ranch was located near the community of Coarsegold largely in Township 8S, Range 20E.  The ranch property can be seen southwest of Coarsegold between the Fresno-Yosemite Road (pre-1939 California State Route 41 and now Road 207) and River Road (now Road 400) on the 1891 Thompson Atlas of Fresno County.  The Fresno River can be seen running west of the property whereas Coarsegold Creek can be seen running on the eastern boundary.  


Madera County would be formed in 1893 from what was Fresno County north of the San Joaquin River.  Long Hollow Ranch patriarch Jose Rivas would die in 1906 but the property would remain under the ownership his family.   What is now Yosemite Springs Parkway can be seen crossing Long Hollow Ranch as minor roadway on the 1912 United States Geological Survey map of Mariposa.  The exact date when the road was built is unclear, but it is shown to originate at the Fresno-Yosemite Road at Kelshaw Corners and connect to River Road.  Revis Mountain is shown on the Long Hollow Ranch property and is a misspelling of the Rivas family name.  


The Long Hollow Ranch Road can be seen connecting from California State Route 41 at Kelshaw Corners north to River Road on the 1935 Division of Highways map of Madera County.  It is unclear if the road through Long Hollow Ranch was ever named by the county.  


The Rivas family sold Long Hollow Ranch to James G. Jefferies during 1940.  The property was later sold to Eban Coe and later was purchased by attorneys from Beverly Hills who would unsuccessfully attempt to develop the property.  The attorneys were later bought out by Titan Group and Yosemite Lakes Incorporated.  During June 30, 1970, Madera County would approve the subdivision of Yosemite Lakes Park.  The Long Hollow Ranch Road would be repurposed as the main through route in the new community and rebranded as Yosemite Springs Parkway (source Yosemite Lakes Park history page).  Much of the homes comprising Yosemite Lakes Park were built during the 1970s and 1980s.



Part 2; a drive on Yosemite Springs Parkway

Southbound Yosemite Springs Parkway begins at Road 400.  Much of the road signs through what is now Yosemite Lakes Park are colored blue and contrast to the standard green stock seen elsewhere in Madera County.  


Southbound Yosemite Springs Parkway intersects Revis Road shortly upon entering Yosemite Lakes Park.  



Southbound Yosemite Springs Parkway passes by the community golf course, Blue Heron Lake and a gas station plaza before intersecting the opposite terminus of Revis Road.  















Southbound Yosemite Springs Parkway crosses Coarsegold Creek and terminates at California State Route 41.  







Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Old US Route 60/70 through Hell (Chuckwall Valley Road and Ragsdale Road)

By
Back in 2016 I explored some of the derelict roadways of the Sonoran Desert of Riverside County which were part of US Route 60/70; Chuckwalla Valley Road and Ragsdale Road. US 60 and US 70 were not part of the original run of US Routes in California.  According to USends.com US 60 was extended into California by 1932.  US 60 doesn't appear on the California State Highway Map until the 1934 edition. USends.com on US 60 endpoints 1934 State Highway Map Conversely US 70 was extended into California by 1934, it first appears on the 1936 State Highway Map. USends.com on US 70 endpoints 1936 State Highway Map When US 60 and US 70 were extended into California they both utilized what was Legislative Route Number 64 from the Arizona State Line west to Coachella Valley.  LRN 64 was part of the 1919 Third State Highway Bond Act routes.  The original definition of LRN 64 routed between Mecca in Blythe and wasn't extended to the Arizona State Line until 1931 acc...
3 comments
Read more

The last 1956-63 era California Sign State Route Spade?

By
Along southbound California State Route 170 (the Hollywood Freeway Extension) approaching the Hollywood Freeway/Ventura Freeway interchange a white California State Route 134 Sign State Route Spade can be observed on guide sign.  These white spades were specifically used during the 1956-63 era and have become increasingly rare.  This blog is intended to serve as a brief history of the Sign State Route Spade.  We also ask you as the reader, is this last 1956-63 era Sign State Route Spade or do you know of others?  Part 1; the history of the California Sign State Route Spade Prior to the Sign State Route System, the US Route System and the Auto Trails were the only highways in California signed with reassurance markers.  The creation of the US Route System by the American Association of State Highway Officials during November 1926 brought a system of standardized reassurance shields to major highways in California.  Early efforts to create a Sign State Route ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Paper Highways; Interstate H-4 through downtown Honolulu

By
The Hawaiian Island of O'ahu is home to four Interstate Highways; H-1, H-2, H-3 and H-201.  Had history gone slightly differently during the 1960s a fifth Interstate corridor on O'ahu could have been constructed through downtown Honolulu and the neighborhood of Waikiki.  The proposed corridor of Interstate H-4 can be seen above as it was presented by the Hawaii Department of Transportation during October 1968 .   This page is part of the Gribblenation O'ahu Highways page.  All Gribblenation and Roadwaywiz media related to the highway system of O'ahu can be found at the link below: https://www.gribblenation.org/p/gribblenation-oahu-highways-page.html The history of proposed Interstate H-4 The corridor of Interstate H-4 was conceived as largely following what is now Hawaii Route 92 on Nimitz Highway and Ala Moana Boulevard.   Prior to the Statehood the first signed highways within Hawaii Territory came into existence during World War II.    Dur...
Post a Comment
Read more