Laurel, California

Laurel, California is a ghost town in the Santa Cruz Mountains, located in Santa Cruz County. The exact location of Laurel is latitude 370700N, longitude 1215755W; the decimal degrees are latitude 37.11667, longitude -121.96528. It is in a valley at an elevation of convert|900|ft|m above sea level. [ [http://lat-long.com/ShowDetail-51802-California-Laurel.html Laurel, California: Laurel, California Latitude and Longitude ] ]

History

A toll road was built from Los Gatos to Santa Cruz, passing through the eventual site of Laurel, and was utilized by stagecoaches. Then, a narrow gauge railroad was constructed over the mountains, to provide transportation for lumber and the numerous crops grown in the area. During the construction of the main railroad tunnel, a strong flow of natural gas was encountered, and an explosion followed, which resulted in the death of thirty-two Chinese workers. The main leak was subsequently stopped, but gas continued to escape in small quantities. The extent of the supply was unknown. [ [http://santaclararesearch.net/wrights.html WRIGHTS STATION, Santa Cruz Mountains, Los Gatos, Santa Clara County ] ]

The railroad was completed in 1880 from Los Gatos, along the Los Gatos Creek, to Wrights Station (sometimes designated "Wright's Station" or simply "Wrights"), about a mile east of Patchen. From Wrights Station it went through a convert|2|mi|km|0|adj=on tunnel to Laurel, then through other tunnels to Scotts Valley and Santa Cruz. [ [http://patchencalifornia.com/history.html Patchen, California - History of this early Santa Cruz Mountain town ] ] The railroad was later purchased by the Southern Pacific.

The area was seriously affected by the April 18, 1906 earthquake, largely because the San Andreas Fault passes through the mountains. There were numerous offsets and fissures, resulting in damage to the rails, bridges, and tunnels. Homes and businesses were damaged or destroyed as well. [Robert Iacopi, "Earthquake Country" (Menlo Park: Lane Publishing, 1964)] The railroad recovered from the disaster and operated until heavy rains in February 1940 caused major landslides; the Southern Pacific decided not to repair the damage. Completion of State Route 17, west of Laurel, that same year also contributed to the demise of the railroad and several small communities, including Laurel, that were located along the railroad right-of-way. Since then, some homes have been built around the site of Laurel, but the village itself no longer exists. Laurel Drive passes through the village's site.

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