CHATSWORTH
an event viewed as the endof Mexican jurisdiction over California .
Two years later in 1847 , the Americans arrived in the Chatsworth area and Captain John C . Fremont , representing the U . S . Government , signed a treaty with the Californians .
The treaty was signed at a house in the Valley , which no longer exists . However , a replica of the house , called “ Campo de Cahuenga ”, remains and can still be seen . You can find it at 3919 Lankershim Blvd . in North Hollywood .
In 1848 , gold was discovered In California , and on September 9 , 1850 California became the 31st state to join the union ..
Around this time , farming became prevalent in Chatsworth , though it took several years before homesteaders started to arrive . It wasn ’ t until the Homestead Act of 1862 , signed by President Abraham Lincoln , that brought them flocking to this desirable land . One stroke of his pen gave early homesteaders just the nudge they needed ; the only caveat was they had to agree to stay on the land and improve it for five years .
Families began to filter in , but the population in the northern part of the
Valley remained sparse until former California Senators Charles Maclay and George Porter purchased it in 1874 .
Maclay devoted much of his land parcel to forming the City of San Fernando . Porter held the land immediately west of San Fernando . He sold a portion of his parcels to farmers and ranchers , and several hundred acres to his cousin Benjamin F . Porter . Ben Porter ’ s land parcel would later become the communities of Chatsworth , Porter Ranch and Northridge .
Settlers eventually began moving to Chatsworth . Its ample farm and ranch land , along with its close proximity to the Santa Susana Stage Coach Relay Station , drew them to the area . The Stage Coach Trail was in use from 1861 to 1895 .
The Relay Station provided fresh horses for the stage coaches and a rest stop for passengers , before the steep climb over the Stage Coach Trail through the Simi Hills known as the " Devil ' s Slide " , between Chatsworth and Simi Valley .
In 1876 , the Southern Pacific Railroad established a route from Los Angeles to San Francisco through the San Fernando tunnel , limiting the Stage Coach trail use to local traffic .
It was in 1888 that Chatsworth , originally named Chatsworth Park , became a town .
In 1893 , the Southern Pacific Railroad completed a spur from Burbank to Chatsworth , replacing the stagecoach as the main source of transportation to and from Chatsworth . A depot stop made it easier for farmers and ranchers to get their products to market . The Chatsworth Station remains still today , but now serves as a stop for Amtrak , Metro trains and MTA buses .
In 1899 , Chatsworth became a railroad boom town , as quarry operations began in what is now Santa Susana Pass State Historic Park , and the Southern Pacific Railroad began blasting three tunnels through solid rock from Chatsworth to Simi Valley . The tunnels were completed in 1904 , with a new coastal route established from Burbank to Chatsworth to Ventura and Santa Barbara .
Although welcomed , the growing population required a large supply of water . The opening of the Owens Aqueduct on Nov . 5 , 1913 remedied that problem . The aqueduct , built by William Mulholland , connected water in the Eastern Sierra ’ s Owens Valley to a reservoir west of San Fernando . Its opening ensured that the City of Los Angeles would have a steady water supply .
Chatsworth and many Valley towns were not part of the City of Los Angeles ; therefore , their water fees were higher . To access this water system at a
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