The Pacific Coast scenic tour : From Southern California to Alaska, the…
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The Pacific Coast scenic tour by Henry T. Finck is a travelogue and regional guide written in the late 19th century. It proposes a grand circuit from Southern California to Alaska, with side trips by rail through the Canadian Rockies, Yellowstone, and the Grand Canyon, blending lyrical praise of scenery with practical timing and route advice. Expect vivid portraits of climate, landscapes, and developing towns, plus observations on agriculture, industry, and the
best seasons to see each place at its finest. The opening of the book sets out the author’s aim to paint the “local color” of the whole Pacific slope, especially the overlooked Oregon and Washington, and to coach travelers on timing—“following spring northward” so waterfalls, peaks, and coasts reveal their best. He begins with the rail approach from the East, a dramatic desert storm, and first impressions of Los Angeles: rapid growth, electric lights and streetcars, boosterism, and a land boom that later collapses but leaves lasting improvements. Finck dwells on Southern California’s dry, equable climate, its near-constant sunshine and sea breezes, and the centrality of irrigation—wells, windmills, artesian belts, river ditches, tunnels beneath streambeds, and future reservoirs. He surveys prolific crops (especially oranges, olives, figs, walnuts, raisins), curiosities like ostrich farms and pampas plumes, and the promise and perils of viticulture amid a mysterious vine disease—while arguing California wines can excel if carefully made. He contrasts this sanitarium-like region with Florida and Mediterranean resorts, imagines “rural cities” of small irrigated homesteads, and notes real drawbacks: pests, the Santa Ana winds, dust, and treeless stretches. The narrative then turns to the home of the orange—Anaheim and especially Riverside—with model groves, the prized Washington navel, windbreaks, manure, and the showpiece Magnolia Avenue, plus a sharp aside on prohibition. Finally, the route drops toward San Diego through wildflowered hills, pauses at Lake Elsinore and Temecula Cañon, and reaches the mild, ocean-washed world of Coronado, the Sweetwater Reservoir, and a brief foray over the border to Tia Juana with its saloons and customs post. (This is an automatically generated summary.)
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About this eBook
| Author | Finck, Henry T., 1854-1926 |
|---|---|
| Title | The Pacific Coast scenic tour : From Southern California to Alaska, the Canadian Pacific Railway, Yellowstone Park and the Grand Cañon |
| Original Publication | London: Sampson Low, Marston, Searle and Rivington, 1891. |
| Credits | Peter Becker, A Marshall and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive) |
| Language | English |
| LoC Class | F850.5: United States local history: Pacific States |
| Subject | Alaska -- Description and travel |
| Subject | Pacific States -- Description and travel |
| Category | Text |
| eBook-No. | 77884 |
| Release Date | Feb 8, 2026 |
| Copyright | Public domain in the USA. |
| Downloads | 270 downloads in the last 30 days. |
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