Beale’s Legacy Cut Off at the Pass

It was cut from the earth with picks and shovels and bare hands, a triumph of human endurance and engineering over sheer geology.

But today, Beale’s Cut, the historic mountain pass between the San Fernando and Santa Clarita valleys, is a third full of mud and rock, thanks to El Nino-powered storms, and has been rendered impassable once more.

Who will reclaim this legendary site? Not the city of Santa Clarita, arguably made possible in the 20th century because of the foresight of U.S. Army Lt. Edward Fitzgerald Beale in 1863.

Not Los Angeles County, whose vast territory includes the pass. Not the state, which declared it a historic landmark in 1992.

And maybe not even its sole owner, Honda Oil and Gas. The Houston company had planned to build a business park there and dedicate Beale’s Cut to the city. The oil company, however, has dwindled to six employees and has done nothing on the project since winning city approval five years ago.

A company employee reached late Friday declined to comment and said Honda CEO John Hoey was out of the country.

Local historians are aware of the mudslide and are discussing their options.

“Certainly Beale’s Cut needs to be preserved because of its significance to the Santa Clarita Valley and the region as a major transportation route,” said Leon Worden, first vice president of the Santa Clarita Valley Historical Society. “It has a colorful history and a colorful past and I am concerned that it be preserved and protected.”

Commuters whizzing through Newhall Pass, the region where the Golden State and Antelope Valley freeways intersect, probably don’t realize that the modern highway has its roots in the rutted cut to the northeast.

More than a century ago, U.S. soldiers under Beale’s direction excavated the 90-foot-deep, 240-foot-long gash in the mountain. The 13-foot-wide cut opened the route to Northern California. Beale’s Cut is just east of Sierra Highway, about two miles southwest of San Fernando Road.

Over the last few months, El Nino’s storms have quietly undone the work of Beale’s men and slowly begun returning the land to its natural state. Mud, rock and uprooted vegetation have filled one-third of the pass, and dirt along its northern face has caved in, Worden said.

“The cave-in occurred just after our last meeting, but at the next meeting I am sure we are going to discuss how to restore the site,” Worden said.

“I have not had the opportunity to talk to anyone from Honda Oil, but I would hope that they are interested in preserving it.”