History of Big Sur Coast

Ranchos and homesteads

Along with the rest of California, Big Sur became part of Mexico when it gained independence from Spain in 1821. On July 30, 1834, Mexican governor José Figueroa granted the 8,949-acre (36 km) Rancho El Sur in northern Big Sur to Juan Bautista Alvarado. Alvarado later traded his Rancho El Sur to his uncle by marriage, Captain John B.R. Cooper, in exchange for Rancho Bolsa del Potrero y Moro Cojo. The oldest surviving structure in Big Sur, the Cooper Cabin, was built in 1861 on the Cooper ranch.

In 1848, as a result of the Mexican-American War, Mexico ceded California to the United States. After passage of the federal Homestead Act in 1862, a few hardy pioneers moved into Big Sur, drawn by the promise of free 160 acre (0.6 km²) parcels. Among them were settlers like William F. Notley, who homesteaded at the mouth of Palo Colorado Canyon in 1891. He began harvesting tanoak bark from the canyon, a lucrative source of income at the time. Notley's Landing is named after him. Many other local sites retain names from settlers during this period: Comings, Gamboa, Pfeiffer, Post, Partington, Ross and McWay are common place names. Consistent with the Anglo-Hispanic heritage of the area, the new settlers mixed English and Spanish and began to call their new home "Big Sur."

Industrial era and gold rush

From the 1860s through the start of the 20th century, lumberers cut down most of the coast redwoods. Along with