Page:Wawona Road (HAER No. CA-148) written historical and descriptive data.pdf/8

 to the cartel, as the Southern Pacific Railroad operated a branch line to this point, and the new rail link brought in many Yosemite-bound tourists.

The company maintained a series of stations on the road for servicing the stages; these were spaced at roughly 4-mile intervals. Within the park boundaries, the stations were Four Mile Station (the point from which the branch line to the Big Tree Grove departed), Wawona, Alder Creek, Eight Mile station, Eleven Mile Station (sometimes called "West Woods"), Chinquapin Flat, Grouse Creek and Fort Monroe. Each station had a water source, stables, corral, and a cabin for the keeper. 37 The company ran 6-horse stages at first, later switching to lighter 4-horse rigs. A snow plow was placed in service on the road in April 1876.38

By 1885, Washburn had convinced the Southern Pacific Railroad to extend service from their line at Berenda 22 miles towards Yosemite. The new terminus, Raymond, became the main departure point for Yosemite Stage & Turnpike Company coaches. Washburn and his partners added a hotel there as a part of their investment, and also operated a hotel in the Yosemite Valley. 39 The road now left Raymond in Madera County and continued northeast to Wawona, near which point it was joined by the existing Chowchilla Mountain Road. From Wawona, the road continued north into the Valley, a total distance of 73 miles from Raymond, 26 of which were in the present park boundaries.40

The Wawona Route, with its stunning view of the Valley from Inspiration Point, was soon considered the most scenic route to the Yosemite Valley, and Wawona (which was still outside the park boundary) became an important staging area. As many as 11 stages a day ran from Raymond to Wawona and on to the Yosemite Valley. The 71-mile trip to the Valley regularly took 16 hours, but the special and more expensive "Cannonball Stage," inaugurated in 1901, could convey a tourist in only 12 hours.41 The Washburns were by this point carrying the bulk of the Yosemite passengers in over the Wawona Road.

In 1881, Washburn and Bruce engaged Lyman, Otis and Ben Scribner to cut a hole through a giant sequoia at the Mariposa Grove. The 81 wide, 9' high and 26' long hole was Yosemite's second "tunnel tree," following the bore through the "Dead Giant" in the Tuolumne Grove in 1878. The "Wawona Tree" became one of the most famous sites in Yosemite, and tens of thousands of tourists and influential visitors passed through before it fell in 1969.42 Some time later, a second sequoia in the grove, the "California Tree," was tunneled through; it still stands, but the road has since been diverted away.

Big Tree Station was renamed "Wawona" in 1882 at Mrs. Washburn's suggestion. The name was believed to be a Mono Indian name for the giant sequoia, taken from the hoot of the great owl that was the guardian spirit for the tree. Today, some etymologists question this interpretation, but the name has persisted. The Indians had called the Wawona area "Pallahchun," meaning "a good place to stop," in reference to Clark's earlier lodgings.43

The Wawona Road was generally open from April to December, but was used year-round during occasional fair winters. It was apparently a profitable venture; tolls collected (including those on branch routes) from 1882 to 1898 totalled $221,254.78, offsetting construction costs of $76,750 and maintenance costs of $65,636.78.44

The Wawona Road holds the dubious reputation of being the scene of the first stage holdup in the Yosemite area. On 13 August 1883, a Yosemite Stage & Turnpike Company coach driven by Ernest Stevens was robbed by three masked men, who relieved the passengers of $2,000 in cash and jewelry. Henry