As you drive Highway 101 from
Ventura up through Paso Robles and beyond you will notice a re-occurring sign
on the side of the road. It looks like a shepherd’s crook with a bell on it and
a brown sign that only says El Camino Real, “The Kings Highway.” They are
peppered along a nearly 600-mile route in California. Why?
At the same time that our
early forefathers, the American colonists, were rebelling against England on
the East Coast, here on the West Coast a handful of Spaniards and Mexicans
established a series of churches (missions) and forts (presidios) up the
California coast which was at that time part of Spain. The first was in 1769 at
San Diego where they established a fort and the very first California mission –
though there were many others already in New Mexico and Texas. A footpath,
called the El Camino Real was created to connect each of the subsequent
missions as they were constructed. Each mission was situated in areas where
large populations of native Indians lived and where the soil was fertile enough
to sustain crops, typically near water sources. As time progressed and more
missions were built the footpath became a roadway wide enough to accommodate
horses and wagons. It was not, however, until the last mission in Sonoma was
completed in 1823, that this little pathway became a real route. Each mission
was designed to be a day’s travel from the next, well at least in theory, all
linked by El Camino Real. Ultimately El Camino Real linked all of California’s
21 missions, pueblos and four presidios from San Diego to Sonoma.
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| Installing one of the early bells |
So when California was just
52 years old (it became a state in 1850) a plan to mark the original route was
developed in 1902 by the General Federation of Women’s Clubs in Los Angeles – I
guess they had some free time. The design, chosen by Mrs. A.S.C. Forbes, used a
mission bell supported by a staff in the shape of a Franciscan walking stick. In
1904 the El Camino Real Association was formed in order to preserve and maintain
California’s historic road. The first bell was placed in 1906 in front of the
Old Plaza Church in downtown Los Angeles and it was made of cast iron, weighed
100 pounds and stood 11 feet off the ground by iron tubing. Eventually, there
were approximately 158 bells installed along the Camino Real by 1915. As I
mentioned, the bells were made of cast iron but all that did was encourage
theft and the number of original bells plummeted to about 75, therefore new
bells of concrete were made and installed and frankly who wants to steal a hunk
of concrete?
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| Mrs. Forbes |
At any rate, Highway 101 loosely follows this original footpath so
as you make your way to Santa Barbara, Ventura, Monterey or any place else
along the Central Coast, you’re driving a piece of history. You may not
remember the King of Spain for whom the road was named, or Mrs. Forbes who
designed the bells, and certainly you have no idea of the names of all the
volunteers who cast, created and installed the bells, but you are nonetheless a
continuum of the historical chronicle of people using the King’s Highway. For
more stuff on California and the Central Coast check out either of my travel
books, Moon California Wine Country, and California Road Trip.
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| CLICK HERE |
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| CLICK HERE |
