Laurel, California should not be confused with Laurel, Oakland, California.
| Laurel | |
| Settlement Type: | Ghost town |
| Pushpin Map: | USA California |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location within the state of California |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | United States |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Name1: | California |
| Subdivision Type2: | County |
| Subdivision Name2: | Santa Cruz |
| Unit Pref: | Imperial |
| Population As Of: | 2000 |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Timezone: | Pacific (PST) |
| Utc Offset: | -8 |
| Timezone Dst: | PDT |
| Utc Offset Dst: | -7 |
| Coordinates: | 37.1167°N -121.9653°W |
| Postal Code Type: | ZIP codes |
| Blank Name: | FIPS code |
| Blank1 Name: | GNIS feature ID |
Laurel is a ghost town in Santa Cruz County, California, United States, in the Santa Cruz Mountains. It is in a valley at an elevation of 900feet above sea level.[1]
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. Rather than wind around the steep slopes, a series of tunnels bored through successive ridges. Laurel sat in a narrow valley between the two longest tunnel segments, both over a mile long.
The longest and highest of the tunnels began northwest of Laurel at Wrights Station (sometimes designated "Wright's Station" or simply "Wrights"), about a mile east of Patchen. From Wrights Station it went through a 62000NaN0 tunnel to a point just north of Laurel.
During the construction of the Summit tunnel (which leads to Wrights), a strong flow of natural gas was encountered, and an explosion followed, which resulted in the death of 32 Chinese workers. The main leak was subsequently stopped, but gas continued to escape in small quantities. The extent of the supply was unknown.[2]
At Laurel, the rail line entered another long tunnel, continuing to the southwest and emerging just north of Glenwood. That tunnel cut through a ridge, 500feet below today's State Highway 17.
The railroad was completed in 1880 from Los Gatos to Felton, and on south to Santa Cruz.[3] 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.[4] 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.