The source of these photos — Gordon H. Hastings Jr. of Anaheim — says his grandparents took numerous auto tours (road trips) throughout the greater Los Angeles area between 1902 and 1918, including several in the Santa Clarita Valley.

The photo above dates to 1914, which we know from the expiration date of the automobile license. We don't know the reason for the oxen or the lumber; the Los Angeles Aqueduct was completed in 1913.

The photo below is believed to date to 1913. We don't know if it's there, but people often stopped for a picnic lunch on the Needham Ranch, which they reached as soon as they crossed over (or in 1913, through) the mountains separating the Santa Clarita and San Fernando valleys. The writing on the fence to the left of the tree appears to read, "American Dental Institute." It might be an advertisement.

These particular prints are 5x7-inch silver gelatin copy prints made by the source's grandfather in a darkroom in the early 1950s, from the original negative.