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Old Don Pedro Road

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Old Don Pedro Road is an approximately five-mile-long single lane highway located in Tuolumne County.  The corridor is one of the oldest roadways in California as it once accessed the town site of Don Pedro Bar at the Tuolumne River.  The town of Don Pedro Bar was founded in 1848 by famous coastal wine industry figure Don Pedro Sainevain.  Ultimately Don Pedro Bar was flooded over and what is now Old Don Pedro Bar was severed when the original Don Pedro Dam arch concrete dam was completed in 1924.




Part 1; the history of Old Don Pedro Road

Old Don Pedro Road once accessed the site of Don Pedro Bar which was located along the Tuolumne River in what is now the Don Pedro Reservoir.  The road, town site and lake are all named after the famed California Gold Rush figure Don Pedro Sainevain.  An undated public domain photo of Sainsevain can be seen below.  


Sainsevain was born on November 20, 1818, in Béguey, France.  He would arrive in Santa Barbara of then Mexican Alta California during July 1839.  Sainsevian was a carpenter by trade and was sent to find his uncle in Los Angeles.  He would initially settle near downtown Los Angeles where he became a prominent figure in the coastal wine industry.  

Through the 1840s Sainsevain would diversify his business interests by way of becoming involved sawmills, flour mills, ship building and mining.  In 1848 would visit Coloma in the buildup to the larger California Gold Rush and would establish Don Pedro Bar on the banks of the Tuolumne River.  In 1849 Sainsevain would soon divest of his mining interests and would move to Stockton where he found a profitable business selling wine to Gold Rush miners.  

Sainsevian would be later involved in the construction of California's first State House and was a delegate at the California Constitutional Convention in Monterey.  He would remain successful in the California wine industry until leaving the state for France in 1883 following the death of his wife.  Sainsevain would die in France on October 4, 1904.  

Don Pedro Bar can be seen along the Tuolumne River northeast of La Grange on the 1873 Bancroft's map of California.  Don Pedro Road is shown along both sides of the Tuolumne River.


Don Pedro Road appears on the 1882 Bancroft's map of California.  The highway is shown to follow a course southeast from La Grange Road to the Don Pedro Bar town site much as it does in modern times.  


The site of Don Pedro Bar can be seen on the 1893 United States Geological Survey map of Sonora.  Don Pedro Road is shown to cross the Tuolumne River and connect to what is now Granite Springs Road.


The site of Don Pedro Bar would later be submerged during construction of Don Pedro Dam.  The original arch concrete dam was built near the town site along the Tuolumne River by the Modesto Irrigation District.  The dam was complete by 1924 and is 283 feet high. 

The original Don Pedro Dam can be seen in a 1925 era public domain photo.  


The 1935 Division of Highways map of Tuolumne County displays the completed Don Pedro Reservoir.  Despite Don Pedro Bar being flooded Don Pedro Road is shown to lie mostly above the reservoir waters.  


The site of Don Pedro Bar still appears on the 1944 United States Geological Survey map of Merced Falls despite under the waters of the Don Pedro Reservoir.  The map displays Don Pedro Road ending near the site of the Forty-nine Mine.


In 1961 bonds were issued to expand the existing Don Pedro Reservoir.  The expansion required a new dam to be constructed downstream from the existing arch concrete structures.  After delays construction of the New Don Pedro Dam would commence with the spillways on August 29, 1967.  The new dam was an embankment design which topped out on May 28, 1970.  Old Don Pedro Dam was covered by rising waters on April 12, 1970.  

New Don Pedro Dam would be completed and dedicated in 1971.  The structure is 585 feet high and has length of 1,900 feet.  The embankment dam shas an installed 203-Megawatt Capacity.  

Following the completion of New Don Pedro Dam what was Don Pedro Road was rebranded as "Old Don Pedro Road."  The name "Don Pedro Road" was reassigned to a roadway accessing Buzzard Point along the expanded reservoir.  The roadway to Buzzard Point was the previous access drive to the original Don Pedro Dam.  Old Don Pedro Road was further cut back to the vicinity of Copper Mountain.  The town site of Don Pedro Bar was further submerged north of Jenkins Hill.  

The expanded Don Pedro Reservoir can be seen on the 2012 United States Geological Survey map of La Grange.


Old Don Pedro Road can be seen terminating near the Don Pedro Reservoir on the 2012 United States Geological Survey map of Chinese Camp.  The publicly accessible part of the roadway has since been cut back to approximately 9575 Old Don Pedro Road. 




Part 2; a drive on Old Don Pedro Road

Southbound Old Don Pedro Road begins at La Grange Road (County Route J59) near Keystone siding of the Sierra Railroad.  



The only major point of interest along Old Don Pedro Road is a small dirt access drive for the Don Pedro Overlook Trailhead.  












Old Don Pedro Road continues south of the overlook trailhead for several miles.  The pavement and public roadway end at gate near Copper Mountain.  















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