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1902 Map of Santa Cruz

Name: 1902 Topographic Map of Santa Cruz
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1906
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1906

About this map

The Santa Cruz Mountains and the emerging Santa Clara Valley communities define this early 20th-century landscape. On the bayside, the Southern Pacific RR connects established towns like Menlo Park and Palo Alto, where Stanford University is already a prominent landmark, to growing fruit-growing districts near Sunnyvale and Cupertino. To the west, the coast remains relatively isolated, dotted with landings and points such as Pigeon Point L.H. and the settlement of Pescadero.

Industrial and conservation interests appear side-by-side in the rugged interior. The map identifies California Redwood Park (the state's first redwood park) alongside active lumber operations like Blooms Mill. In the San Lorenzo Valley, the rail line threads through Boulder Creek and Ben Lomond down to Santa Cruz, passing specialized sites like the Asphalt Bed near the coast. This era records the transition from a timber-driven economy to one centered on valley agriculture and early coastal tourism.