My husband and I are always up for a great road trip and some of our favorite places to go are the foothills and mountains near our Central California home of Madera. You can drive and enjoy the scenery of rich green pastureland and cattle in the winter, wildflowers in the spring, golden grasses and lakes in the summer and the fantastic colors of leaves changing in the fall.

They are all beautiful and interesting but something just as interesting is going and seeing historical places. This year with the COVID-19 pandemic, we have had to keep our trips closer to home so our passion for all things historic have been in our own backyard. A friend of my husband is part of the E Clampus Vitus “aka” the Clampers Grub Gulch Chapter #41-49 and he sold me a copy of the Clampers Book and brought me photocopies of their monuments in Madera County that weren’t included in the book.

I had always seen signs saying Historical Marker Ahead, but rarely did we stop to read some of them. We now search them out and read about what happened there. I have marked a few off the list, but there are many more to go. I have started calling out Historical Marker ahead when I see the signs and a lot of times we have been pulling over to read and take a picture of them.

Here are a few of the local destinations that we have visited this year.

Yosemite Stage Route

DEDICATED APRIL25,2009 BY E CLAMPUS VITUS CHAPTERS GRUB GULCH 41-49

JAMES SAVAGE 1852 AND DR SAMUEL GREG GEORGE 1855

Raymond & Knowles

We attend Raymond Community Church and get to see a lot of these great things a lot but if you have not been up that direction you are in for a treat.

Unfortunately the museum is closed due to the pandemic but the General Store is open and has the best Burgers 🍔 which are available for take-out. We have eaten them in our vehicle and at Footman Community Park just south of town on Road 600 & Road 606 near the Fire Station. Pick a cool day and the park is really nice under the oaks at their picnic tables.

Travel just over 2 miles Southeast of Raymond on Road 606 and you will find yourself at Knowles Junction (formerly Herbert)

RAYMOND GRANITE QUARRY HISTORY – excerpt from Sierra article

BY TONY KRIZAN COMMUNITY CORRESPONDENT APRIL 16, 2018

Soon after the coming of the railroad Frank Ducey, a contractor from Fresno, purchased a quarter section of land containing a portion of the quarry from Luke David. Later the quarry was purchased by F. E. Knowles and Able Hosmer. 

The Raymond Quarry, discovered in 1896, sits atop a hill, and as you enter the main gate, you are greeted by two massive stone bears, carved by local Knowles stone carver, Peter Bisson. The bears had originally graced the entrance to the Westin Saint Francis Hotel in San Francisco, evidenced by a chipped nose on one of the bears sustained in the 1906 earthquake. Those bears speak to the age of the quarry and it’s long history in Raymond and in California. 

During the period between 1890 to 1904, Raymond was known for large granite deposits in the area, and several granite companies operated in this vicinity, including the Knowles, Omega, and McGilvrays, which were later abandoned. 

But with the introduction of a railroad spur, built in 1890 by the Southern Pacific Railroad, Raymond granite could then be transported directly from the quarry to various destinations outside of the county. Granite profitability was then vastly increased, making it easy for the quarry to expand its operations.

Today the Alexander family owns and operates the quarry, and the Raymond Granite Company is a part of Cold Springs Granite, headquartered in Minnesota, which is one of the world’s largest manufacturing businesses that provides a range of natural stone products.

The Raymond Granite Company is the home of the iconic “Sierra White” granite, a light gray stone, peppered with black and white, that is seen throughout California on many stone buildings. Cold Springs also quarries the “Academy Black” granite, south of Clovis.

One of the first large customers of the quarry was the main US Post Office building in San Francisco featuring Sierra White granite, which can also be seen the in the foundations and walls of many significant buildings in the Central Valley and throughout the country including the new Madera County Court House, buildings in Washington DC, and the National September 11 Memorial & Museum at ground zero in New York. NASA has recently taken delivery of a huge garnet slab (first one of this size) 22 feet long, 16 feet wide and 3 feet tall and weighing in at 180,000 pounds. 

Today, plant operations in Raymond are handled by Rocco Millard, John Mansfield and Bob Nelson, and their combined service at the Raymond Quarry totals more than a half century. 

Further up the Mountains is Jones’ Store

Another great adventure we went on was up to Jones Store at Beasore Meadows. They have giant hamburgers that are really good and from what I hear the Pie and Ice Cream are to die for. Unfortunately we were too full from the burger to have some pie this trip so we will plan better for our next trip up the hill.

What a gorgeous area to spend part of the day. There are so many more things to go up there and explore. We are already planning our next trip which we want to make the loop called the Scenic Byway and find Globe Rock. Of course and eat that pie and ice cream.

These are only a few of the great historical areas to enjoy in Madera County. I want to go visit and take pictures of all the landmarks right in my own city of Madera and surrounding towns of Chowchilla, Coursegold and Oakhurst. Some of the markers I have visited and some I have not.

Every town has a history and sometimes we get so busy we don’t take time to appreciate it. I love that my husband and I have always shared a passion for all types of history and California is filled with some great places to see and fun things to do.

I encourage you to take some time, get in the car and ride to see some of these great places. Even if things are shut down due to the COVID-19 Pandemnic it’s good to get outside enjoy the sunshine and fresh air. It’s not always the destination but the journey.

I will be posting more of our 2020 journeys that we have made in neighboring Mariposa County and more Madera and Fresno County locations in the future. I am so glad that I was able to make another travel blog as part of my Travel, Fashion and Bipolar Disorder Journey that I call life.