Castaic Junction, California

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Castaic Junction, California
Valencia, CA, Castaic Junction, View N from CA 126, 2012 - panoramio.jpg
Castaic Junction as viewed from SR 126
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Castaic Junction
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Castaic Junction
Location in California
Coordinates: 34°26′35″N118°36′39″W / 34.44306°N 118.61083°W / 34.44306; -118.61083 Coordinates: 34°26′35″N118°36′39″W / 34.44306°N 118.61083°W / 34.44306; -118.61083
Country Flag of the United States.svg United States
State Flag of California.svg  California
County Flag of Los Angeles County, California.svg Los Angeles
Elevation
310 m (1,017 ft)
Time zone UTC-8 (Pacific (PST))
  Summer (DST) UTC-7 (PDT)
Area code(s) 661
GNIS feature ID270336 [1]

Castaic Junction is an unincorporated community located in Los Angeles County, California. [1] It is located at the crossroads of Interstate 5 and State Route 126 near the confluence of Castaic Creek and the Santa Clara River.

Contents

Places in Castaic Junction carry a Valencia zip code (91355), and it is adjacent to the City of Santa Clarita.

Six Flags Magic Mountain theme park is just south of the junction.

History

Castaic Junction was the official southern end of the Ridge Route. The name dates to 1887, before highways were built, when a railroad siding was set up at the junction. [2]

The community had an Art DecoModerne style train depot, serving the railroad line that ran along the Santa Clara River between Saugus and Piru. The depot was demolished around 1990. [2] [3]

Just beyond the north end of the Magic Mountain parking lot is the site of the adobe ranch house for the historic Rancho San Francisco, a Mexican land grant that encompassed the Santa Clarita Valley from Piru to Canyon Country. [4]

According to local legend, icon James Dean ate his last meal at the Tip's Restaurant formerly at the crossroads of Highway 126 and The Old Road before he drove on north. [5] [6]

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 "Castaic Junction". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey.
  2. 1 2 "SCVHistory.com AP2221 – Castaic – Castaic Junction Train Siding" . Retrieved 6 February 2016.
  3. "Castaic Area History". Archived from the original on 23 September 2015. Retrieved 6 February 2016.
  4. "SCVHistory.com – Rancho San Francisco: A Study of a California Land Grant, by Arthur B. Perkins" . Retrieved 6 February 2016.
  5. "SCVHistory.com – Castaic Junction: James Dean's Last Stop Before Immortality?" . Retrieved 6 February 2016.
  6. "SCVHistory.com LW2148 – Castaic Junction – Tip's Restaurant Matchbooks" . Retrieved 6 February 2016.