Timeline
1875 Henry purchased 46,000 acres known as the Rancho San Francisco for $90,000. He was told about the property by a friend Jose Manuel Soto. Soto had wanted to purchase it himself, but was strapped for cash. He suggested to Henry that Henry buy it and reserved the right to purchase part of the Rancho San Francisco at the original purchase price, but was never able to come up with the cash to do so.. To see these maps much larger and get the full story of the Rancho San Francisco
This is the original property map of the Spanish land grant Rancho San Francisco.
I took the above map, along with my Los Angeles and Ventura County Thomas Guides and was able to put together a map based on what part of Santa Clarita was part of the original land grant. Many thanks to my dear real estate colleague, Janis Stonerook from Realty Executives, Agua Dulce, CA for help with this puzzle. She is the land map expert from Santa Clarita to Palmdale.
Henry ordered the first heavy locomotive to be built in California. The “California” as it was known, set a speed record west of the Rockies of sixty-seven miles per hour.
Voters approved funds to purchase railroad stock. Henry started organizing and when the second San Francisco and San Jose Railroad Company was organized, Henry was elected Vice President.
