Viejo, a road between Los Angeles and the Mission Santa Clara de Asis began to be used for travel north and south along the western San Joaquin Valley. It crossed over the pass and turned westward up Cuddy Canyon, (avoiding the Cañada de las Uvas) and then descended San Emigdio Creek into the San Joaquin Valley. Old Tejon Pass In 1806, Father Jose Maria Zalvidea, diarist for the expedition of First Lieutenant Francisco Ruiz into the San Joaquin Valley, named the canyon, creek, and pass which had been discovered in 1776 by the explorer priest, Father Francisco Garces. He recorded the name as "Tejon" (badger)—after a dead badger found at the canyon's mouth. This original Tejon Pass (later called "Old Tejon Pass"), was situated 15 miles to the northeast of what is now Tejon Pass. The old pass went through the Tehachapi Mountains, at the top of the divide between Tejon Creek Canyon in the San Joaquin Valley and Cottonwood Creek Canyon in Antelope Valley. Before 1854, the main route of travel into the San Joaquin Valley had come directly north from Elizabeth Lake (originally Laguna de Chico Lopez) across the Antelope Valley, over this original Tejon Pass, and down into Tejon Canyon, and then proceeded west along Tejon Creek—into the lands of the Rancho Tejon, that had been granted in 1843. This route to the pass diverted from the El Camino Viejo at Elisabeth Lake, and from 1849 to before 1854 it was the main road connecting the southern part of the state to the trail along the eastern side of the San Joaquin Valley to the goldfields to the north. 19th century Castaic Pass In 1843, Rancho Castac was established in La Cañada de las Uvas. During that same year, the first grant of Rancho Los Alamos y Agua Caliente included the pass, which was now called Portezuela de Castac (Castaic Pass). Fort Tejon Pass After the establishment of Fort Tejon and the Stockton - Los Angeles Road, the Portezuela de Castac began to be called the "Fort Tejon Pass." The rather poor wagon route of the old Tejon Pass route was generally abandoned, and eventually the Fort Tejon Pass took the shortened name it has today. In 1858 the Butterfield Overland Mail stagecoach line ran through the pass on the Stockton - Los Angeles Road. The Butterfield Overland was discontinued in 1861 but was replaced by the