New Santa Cruz Local History Question

Mission San Juan Bautista

Most locals call the highest point on SR17 between Santa Cruz and Los Gatos "The Summit." What is its official name?
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[Answer to follow before the turkey left-overs run out!]
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    Here's the answer to the above question courtesty of Richard A. Beal's Highway 17: The Road to Santa Cruz,c1991.
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Patchen Pass is the actual name of the spot where Highway 17 crosses the Santa Cruz - Santa Clara County line. Most people refer to it as "the Summit."

In the late 1870s there was considerable controversy about the name - which was decided by Los Gatos Councilman, later mayor, Albert Smith. Local historians protested that the area had been designated as "Cuesta de Los Gatos" by the explorer Fremont. Cuesta de Los Gatos means "wildcat ridge" in Spanish. Smith ignored the advice and even though outside the Los Gatos city limits, he had signs made and installed them at the summit. Caltrans later removed them. Politicians, Caltrans, the U.S. Department of Interior and local newspapers had a field day arguing about the name for the next three years before Patchen Pass was offcially designated as the official name.

There is no town called Patchen. The name refers to a 1872 Post Office and stage stop, about a mile north of the summit on the Santa Cruz Turnpike at the Mountain Charlie Road fork. The post office was situated on the Fowler ranch, on the west side of the old highway at the junction. The building burned down in the 1950s. Across the highway was the stagecoach barn, which was torn down in 1949.

As the story goes, the [Post Office] inspector stepped out of a stage coach in front of the Fowler's place to encounter a man sitting on the doorstep busily sewing. 'What are you doing?' asked the inspector, seeking to estabish friendly relations with the natives. 'Patchin,' replied the old man, and that was that.

Another less colorful version stated the town was named after the famous race horse, George Patchen, but the Los Gatos Times Observer disputes the story in a 1978 article. In any case, the location of the post office was moved several times over the next 50 years.

There is a historical marker at the site of the former Post Office, at the intersection of the old Santa Cruz Highway and Mouintain Charlie Road.

Previous to the establishment of the post office, mail had been deposited in a hollow tree nearby and the customers all sorted their own mail.

German cabinetmaker John Martin Schulthesis (known as "Mart") and his wife Susan Byerly homesteaded land about a mile from the Post Office in 1852 and built the first permanent home in mountains - a log cabin. The Schulthesis house is believed to be the oldest building still standing [as of 1991] in the Santa Cruz Mountains and is located at the rear of 22849 Summit Road. The Schlthesis family bought more land and eventually owned 75 acres, mostly used for growing prunes. Susan was a well-known nurse and delivered many of the babies born in the area.

By 1885 Patchen consisted of a post office, store and a few hotels serving local summit resisents and travelers along the Mt. Charlie road. An Episcopal Church was built nearby in 1899 as a branch of the Los Gatos Church. In 1887 the Schulthesis family donated land for the Summit Opera House. The 40' x 75' Opera House was erected with volunteer labor in 1890 and used for community dances, classic music (Mark Schuthesis was Director of the orchestra) and, of course, recitals by opera singers.

Another prominent citizen in the Summit area was Lyman John Burrell, who arrived in 1851 from Ohio. He was married to Clarisa Wright and in 1856 planted an orchard and vineyard. Soon many other settlers followed his lead and raising fruit became a major industry. The Burrell land was right on the county line about 1.25 miles south of Wrights and at its height had a store, blackmith, Presbyterian Church, and several hotels. There is still a Burrell School on Summit Road.
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[From pp. 30-33 of Richard A. Beal's Highway 17: The Road to Santa Cruz,c1991]