Atkinson Toll Road

The Atkinson Toll Road was built in 1873 by two gold mining brothers from Sacramento. Henry and Lemuel Atkinson mined gold in Julian and wanted a shorter route to their mines. A year later, the brothers sold the road to the county for $1,700 dollars. The rains made this road impossible to maintain. Joseph Foster, a member of San Diego County's 3rd District Board of Supervisors, was in charge of the road. He worked hard to keep the road in useable condition by covering it with straw. Local settlers presented the board of supervisors with a petition to build a road to replace the failing toll road, and a construction contract was awarded in December 1886 for the building of Mussey Grade Road as we know it today.