In 1769 the first Franciscan Mission, San Diego De Alcala, was
established in San Diego. It was later linked to 21 other
missions,2 pueblos, and 4 presidios along the El Camino Real
(King’s Highway). El Camino Real stretched 700 miles from San Diego
to Sonoma. The missions, the majority of which were founded by
Father Junipero Serra, were built so that a traveler could reach
the next mission in the series in a single day walk. Over the years
El Camino Real was replaced by route 101, 82 and I-5 (to name a
few).
An effort to mark the old El Camino Real was addressed in 1892
by Anna Pitcher of the Pasadena Art Exhibition Association. By 1904
the El Camino Real Association was established to select a marker
design to mark the route of El Camino Real. The design was a cast
iron bell suspended from an 11 foot bent guide post. The first bell
was placed in 1906 in front of the Old Plaza Church in downtown LA.
By 1915 approximately 158 bells had been installed.
However, over the years many bells were lost to theft, vandalism
and general disrepair. Between 1926 and 1931 the CA State
Automobile Association and AAA of So. Ca. assumed responsibility
for the maintenance and replacement of many of the bells on state
owned property. By 1949 there were approximately 286 bells.
But again, vandalism took its toll and only 75 bells remained by
the 1960‘s. It wasn’t until 1974 that the bell design was changed
to deter vandals and thieves. The new bells, under the adoption of
CalTrans, were made of concrete, rather than cast iron. Later an
“Adopt A Bell” program was started (under the “Adopt A Highway”
program) so that anyone could adopt (and maintain) a bell along the
old highway. Within a few years, the design was changed back to
iron, but painted green.
In 2000, CalTrans received a federal grant to restore the bell
marker system on state highways. Bells would be placed every mile
or 2 from each other from SF to Orange County this would add 555
bells to the route. (SD County wasn’t included in the grant since
El Camino Real is not on the state highway system within our
county.) 2006 marks the 100th anniversary of the El Camino Real
bells. For more history about the Bells of El Camino Real, read the
book: California’s El Camino Real and Its Historic Bells by
Max Kurillo and Erline Tuttle. Replica bells may also be purchased
at www.californiabell.com.
