Skip to main content

East Westfall Road (Mariposa County)

By

East Westfall Road is an approximately four-mile rural cutoff located in Mariposa County.  This corridor was commissioned in 1895 as a direct link between Triangle Road southeast to Chowchilla Mountain Road at the property of Joe Westfall.  While seemingly obvious it isn't clear exactly who East Westfall Road is named after.  Amusingly Fremont Westfall who namesake of West Westfall Road was known to have resided for a time next to Joe Westfall along what is now modern East Westfall Road.  




Part 1; the history of East Westfall Road

On May 7, 1895, W.B. Duncan would petition the Mariposa County Board of Supervisor to construct what is now East Westfall Road.  The corridor was intended to begin at the property of Joe Westfall at the road to Wawona (Chowchilla Mountain Road) and terminate at the road to Darrah and Snow Creek (Triangle Road).


Joe Westfall's property was located next to the residence of Fremont Westfall.  It is unclear if the two were related as the Mariposa County genealogy report contradicts itself.  Joe appears to have for a time have at the very least employed Fremont. 

Unlike East Westfall Road the namesake for West Westfall Road is clearer as it was named for Fremont Westfall.  Westfall was born in Kansas in 1861 and would later move to the Mariposa area in 1882.  Westfall was mostly known for supplying the Grub Gulch mine in what is now Madera County and raising cattle in the White Rock area.  It is highly likely East Westfall Road was named in honor of Joe Westfall given Fremont was far more for his ranching endeavors. 

East Westfall Road can be seen branching northwest (blue pin) of Chowchilla Mountain Road on the 1912 United States Geological Survey map of Mariposa.  Clark's Mill is shown to have once been present on East Westfall Road. 




Part 2; a drive on East Westfall Road 

Westbound East Westfall Road (yes, that is a mouthful) begins at Chowchilla Mountain Road.


The two-lane asphalt surface on East Westfall Road gives way to dirt a short distance from Chowchilla Mountain Road.  










The dirt segment of East Westfall Road is winding but largely with minimal gradients.  The dirt segment appears to have been top layered over an asphalt surface which is something of a rarity for Mariposa County. 











East Westfall Road resumes a second asphalt segment which continues to Triangle Road.  






Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Crescent City Connection (New Orleans, LA)

By
The Crescent City Connection is a massive dual-span steel truss bridge that spans the lower Mississippi River at downtown New Orleans, about 95 river miles upstream from the mouth of the great river at the Head of Passes Light. If counted as a single bi-directional highway bridge, the parallel spans combine to form the single busiest bridge on the Mississippi River and its importance as a linchpin in the region’s transportation network cannot be overstated. While there have been various schemes over the years to construct bridges downriver from Algiers Point, this bridge has been the southernmost bridge on the Mississippi River since its initial construction in the 1950s. The years immediately following the end of World War II were a transformational period in the history of New Orleans. Already one of the great economic and cultural centers of the American Deep South, it was recognized at this time that major changes and improvements to the city’s transportation infrastructure would b...
Post a Comment
Read more

Old US Route 99 through Tipton, Tulare, and Tagus Ranch

By
This summer I had a look into the alignment history of US Route 99 through the Tulare County communities of Tipton, Tulare, and Tagus Ranch.  While this slab below might seem like much it is one of the few remaining reminders of how US Route 99 was during the 1920s in Tulare County. This blog is part of the larger Gribblenation US Route 99 Page.  For more information pertaining to the other various segments of US Route 99 and it's three-digit child routes check out the link the below. Gribblenation US Route 99 Page Part 1; the history of US Route 99 in Tipton, Tulare, and Tagus Ranch Tipton and Tulare were both founded in 1872 as sidings of the Southern Pacific Railroad.  The Southern Pacific Railroad laid the groundwork for development of southern San Joaquin Valley.  Previous to the Southern Pacific Railroad travel via wagon or foot in Central California tended to avoid San Joaquin Valley in favor of the Stockton-Los Angeles Road.  The Stockton Los Ange...
Post a Comment
Read more

Former US Route 101 and California State Route 41 through Paso Robles

By
Paso Robles is a city located on the Salinas River of San Luis Obispo County, California.  As originally configured the surface alignments of US Route 101 and California State Route 41 converged in downtown Paso Robles.  US Route 101 originally was aligned through Paso Robles via Spring Street.  California State Route 41 entered the City of Paso Robles via Union Road and 13th Street where it intersected US Route 101 at Spring Street.  US Route 101 and California State Route 41 departed Paso Robles southbound via a multiplex which split near Templeton.   Pictured above is the cover of the September/October 1957 California Highways & Public Works which features construction of the Paso Robles Bypass.  Pictured below is the 1935 Division of Highways Map of San Luis Obispo County which depicts US Route 101 and California State Route 41 intersecting in downtown Paso Robles.   Part 1; the history of US Route 101 and California State Route 41 i...
Post a Comment
Read more