January 18, 1986 — American Beauty Classics residential development under construction. Aerial view looking northwest.

The street at upper right is Soledad Canyon Road. The street under construction at lower left is Via Princessa. The first major cross street at left is Gregory Lane. The cul-de-sacs, coming down from Gregory, are Cynthia Court, Peajay Way and Madigan Drive.

The map at left covers the same area; it's out of proportion to the photograph because of the angle of the aerial view.

The side-by-side view at bottom (1986 and 2013) was compiled by Todd R. Wilson.

About the photographer: Photojournalist Gary Thornhill chronicled the history of the Santa Clarita Valley as it unfolded in the 1970s, '80s and '90s. From car races in Saugus to fatal car wrecks in Valencia; from topless beauty contests in Canyon Country to fires and floods in the various canyons; from city formation in 1987 to the Northridge earthquake in 1994 — Thornhill's photographs were published in The Los Angeles Times, The Newhall Signal, The Santa Clarita Valley Citizen newspaper, California Highway Patrolman magazine and elsewhere. He penned the occasional breaking news story for Signal and Citizen editors Scott and Ruth Newhall under the pseudonym of Victor Valencia, and he was the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff Station's very first volunteer — and only the second in the entire LASD. Thornhill retained the rights to the images he created; in 2012, he donated his SCV photographs to two nonprofit organizations — SCVTV and the Santa Clarita Valley Historical Society — so that his work might continue to educate and inform the public.