TROUT FARMER LEADS A HAPPY INDEPENDENT LIFE IN THE
HILLS
Early in the last century, my grandparents, Nick and Mary Pfeiffer,
lived along Stevens Creek and operated a trout farm. According to a
newspaper article of the time, the trout farm was a business
supplying fresh trout to restaurants and markets. Water was
diverted from the stream to redwood ponds which were screened at
both ends. Fish were raised from eggs obtained from Massachusetts
and Colorado. In addition to the commercial business, people were
encouraged to come to catch fish and my grandmother would cook them
and serve them with a meal in a dining room.
I do not know if the business was good or bad at the trout farm
but they lived there on the creek for some time while my mother and
aunt were young. They walked to Monte Bello School, hiked up the
canyon to look at the five-fingered ferns, and enjoyed life there
on the creek. Eventually, the property was lost through eminent
domain to the county when the dam was constructed, a source of some
bitterness in the family.
Present-Day view of area of the Trout Farm as seen from Cache.
View of Pfeiffer Trout Farm showing the chicken house, garden,
dining room, and trout ponds in the distance.
Entrance and Bridge over Stevens Creek.