Santa Clarita History

Santa Clarita is an area with quite a bit of historical significance. One of the first oil fields in California, the Pico Oil Field, was first drilled in the 1870’s and helped start one of the largest oil companies in the world – Standard Oil of California, now Chevron. Gold was also first discovered in California in the Santa Clarita area, in Placerita Canyon in 1842. The valley is also important as a transportation corridor. The original 1875 Southern Pacific Railroad line still runs through here, today as the Antelope Valley Metrolink line. The construction of that line helped Los Angeles grow from a small town to the metropolis of today.

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