1893 NEWSPAPER REPORT

An 1893 newspaper report points out the dire need for improved transportation routes in and out of Simi Valley. The report is included in Simi Valley: A Journey Through Time (1997), page 391. As reported: “Simi Valley citizens want a safe outlet. Last Saturday F.J. Fitzgerald and George Wood started to Fernando with four horses and a light wagon. (There was a) runaway and smashup near the hotel but they patched matters up and proceeded towards the beautiful hill that is a credit to both counties…They got over and back as far as the hill and owing to getting stuck in one of the holes, some of which are 3 and 4 feet deep, they were compelled to camp…Four horses could not get them out. C.B. McCoy played the Good Samaritan…It is almost impossible for a Simi person to get out of this valley either by the River or the Santa Susana Pass and we think the time is ripe for something to be done. This portion of the county is filling up rapidly. We expect to poll 100 votes next election, and we are entitled to a little consideration.”.

In 1893, outside of cities, government was not in the road business. That was one reason for the early success of the railroads. But Simi had neither. By 1899 both Los Angeles and Ventura counties had invested in road improvements over the pass. Devil’s Slide, on the Los Angeles County side was abandoned and a new route was built on the Ventura County side.

Mike Kuhn

2-10-04