Museums and Parks / South Yuba River SP
 South Yuba River State Park: |
| Historical Sites
RANCH HOUSE #2 The original ranch house was thought to have been a stage stop, with rooms for travelers to stay in if they wished. The first ranch house burned down in 1919. A second one was built on the same spot, in order to use the cellar structure of the original ranch house.
The store and gas station were located at the front of the building. The left side and front of the store had windows that raised. These were used to expose the fruit and vegetables to the customers. The area on the right side of the building was the garage. Since Alfred did not work on cars he used this area for storage. Outside the front door was a roof with gas pumps. FAMILY SWIMMING HOLE Alfred was very enterprising, not only did he develop the gas station/store, he also developed the Kneebone swimming hole, about 1/4 mile upstream. It was advertised as a swim resort. It had a dance pavilion, five change houses and five small cabins. They had their first open house in 1927 which featured a 2 piece band and served a camp stew. The first open house was so successful they had another one in 1928. There was a charge of 50 cents for cars to go to the swim hole. There was no charge to swim. The Kneebone children sat at a table at the end of the barn and collected the 50 cents, they then opened a locked gate to let the cars through. The swim hole closed about 1935 when some illegal hydraulic mining fouled the swim hole. Virginia Turnpike (1856-1901) Many features of this 14-mile toll road may still be found in the immediate vicinity of Bridgeport. Excelsior Mining Ditch (1855-1961) This former mining and irrigation ditch is now the site of a wheelchair accessible trail whose gentle configuration provides the wilderness trail experience to 6,000 visitors annually. Hoyt's Crossing (ca. 1850) Located near the upstream end of Miner's Tunnel. Illinois Crossing (1854) Site of a ferry that operated until the first bridge was built by I.L. Cooper, 1854. Miner's Tunnel (ca. 1872) A 600 foot hard rock tunnel used to divert heavy water flows from the parallel section of river which was high in gold rich gravel's. |
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