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| Landmark #975 | Los Angeles County | Visited: November 13, 2011 | Plaque? YES! 🙂 |
| What is it? | The Santa Fe Historical Park surrounds this marker to commemorate the arrival of SoCal’s first American immigrant settlers! |
| What makes it historical? | THE GUIDE SAYS: El Monte, on the bank of the San Gabriel River, played a significant part in California’s early pioneer history. It was first an encampment on the Old Spanish Trail, an extension of the trail from Missouri to Santa Fe. By the 1850s, some began to call El Monte the “End of the Santa Fe Trail.” Early in that decade a permanent settlement was established by immigrants from Texas, the first settlement in Southern California founded by citizens of the United States.
OTHER TIDBITS: Did you know El Monte isn’t named after mountains but after the meadow/marsh that distinguished it from the rest of the land?! Many people came here looking for gold in the mid 1800s, but most only found profit in farming! |
| How can I Help the Helpers? | HERE’S HOW:
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| Where is this place? | LISTED DIRECTIONS: Santa Fe Trail Historical Park Valley Blvd and Santa Anita Ave El Monte, CA 91731 ANNOTATIONS: 3675 Santa Anita Ave From Los Angeles: ~13mi (21km) — 0.3hrs |
| When should I go? | Swing by the exterior whenever you like, but since no one really knows if this park ever opens, your odds of getting in are pretty slim! |
