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Santa Fe Grade Road (Fresno County)

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Santa Fe Grade Road near Firebaugh in Fresno County is an approximately 0.3-mile rural roadway built on a repurposed railroad grade.  Santa Fe Grade Road begins at Shaw Avenue and continues northwest as a public highway to the end of the asphalt.  The grade was constructed by the San Francisco & San Joaquin Railroad during the 1880s but was found to be consistently flood prone.  The grade was later sold to the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad in 1898 which later abandoned it to Fresno County. 






Part 1; the history of Santa Fe Grade Road

The origin of Santa Fe Grade Road lies in the 1880s when San Francisco & San Joaquin Valley Railroad president Claus Spreckels was attempting to acquire right-of-way.  Spreckels' line was in competition with the Southern Pacific Railroad to build a line in western San Joaquin Valley.  Any prospective westside line would have to cross the properties owned by the so-called "Cattle King of California" Henry Miller.  Miller held a substantial amount of ranching land in the area around modern-day Los Banos and western Merced County.

According to the Los Banos Enterprise Miller had held a grudge against Spreckels due to the circumstances surrounding a previous banking loan.  Spreckels had been a San Francisco banker during the 1860s and 1870s.  During that time Miller sought a loan from Spreckels to replenish his depleted cattle herds around Los Banos.  Spreckels requested a form of security on the loan which was taken as an insult by Miller.  

When Spreckels approached Miller regarding granting a railroad easement the latter granted it in low lying flood prone terrain.  Miller waited until 1891 when approximately 100 miles of the overall San Francisco & San Joaquin Railroad had been constructed before granting another easement through his land to the Southern Pacific Railroad.  The land granted to the Southern Pacific Railroad was located on better terrain which rarely flooded.  By the time an easement had been granted to the Southern Pacific Railroad approximately thirty miles of San Francisco & San Joaquin Railroad had been graded in Merced County.  The grade spanned from the Stanislaus County line near modern day Newman southeast into the Kings County near Lemoore and the Tulare Lake basin.  

The Southern Pacific Railroad line between Gustine and South Dos Palos was completed by 1891.  From Newman the new Southern Pacific line crossed through Gustine, Ignomar and the original town site of Los Banos near modern day Volta.  From Volta the line crossed through the modern downtown area of Los Banos onward to South Dos Palos.

The San Francisco & San Joaquin Railroad shuttered development of their flood prone grade.  The company would relocate and construct their line mostly through eastern San Joaquin Valley between 1895 and 1898.  Following completion, the line was sold to the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad (ATSF) during late 1898.  

The ATSF would abandon the thirty miles of grade between Newman and South Dos Palos to Merced County.  Merced County would repurpose the so-called "Santa Fe Grade" as a public highway.

The entirety of Santa Fe Grade Road can be seen as a minor local highway on the 1935 Division of Highways Map of Merced County.  Santa Fe Grade Road north of California State Route 140 near Gustine is no longer a public road.  





The 1935 Division of Highways Map of Fresno County displays a southern portion of Santa Fe Grade Road south of the Merced/Fresno County line.  The Fresno County segment is shown to originate near Oxalis siding and terminate to the southeast near Mendota.  This portion is still signed as a public roadway a short distance north of Shaw Avenue.  




The Santa Fe Grade can be seen continuing southeast from Mendota into Kings County to a terminus near early California State Route 198 along Jackson Avenue (near Lemoore in Township 19 South, Range 19 East).  The portion of south of Mendota has largely been since razed with the exception of Santa Fe County Road between San Benito Avenue and Jefferson Avenue.  Santa Fe County Road is used in modern times as part of a cutoff between Mendota and Tranquility.  






Part 2; a drive on Old Santa Fe Grade Road

As noted in Part 1 the publicly accessible portion of Santa Fe Grade Road begins at Shaw Avenue.  Fresno County street blades are infamously shorthanded and do not include "Road, Avenue or Boulevard."



The active portion of Santa Fe Grade Road continues northwest and terminates a short distance beyond San Diego Avenue.  



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