Map of Wagon Road Route from Placerville to Carson Valley

Cartographer: Surveyed by W. H. Henderson, County Surveyor of El Dorado County; drawn by George H. Baker

Year: 1855

This narrow strip map follows the freight and emigrant wagon road that climbs the Sierra Nevada from Placerville, passing mile-posts 1 through 46 along the South Fork of the American River and Silver Creek before topping the summit near Slippery Ford and descending to Carson Valley. Solid black lines trace the engineered road; dotted lines show earlier mountain tracks such as the “Old Emigrant Road.” Landmarks—including Sugarloaf Rock, Cottage Rock, Tragedy Springs, and Lake Bigler (early name for Lake Tahoe)—anchor the traveler’s progress, while miniature hachures render granite ridges and deep canyons that dictated the road’s sinuous course. Small grid blocks depict Placerville, Coloma, Georgetown, and Diamond Springs, highlighting the route’s importance to Gold-Rush commerce. The map served teamsters and stage operators seeking reliable mileage counts and water stops on the principal crossing of California’s central Sierra before the arrival of the railroad.