Natividad
Unincorporated community
Gilroy to Salinas via San Juan road map, 1916
Gilroy to Salinas via San Juan road map, 1916
Natividad is located in California
Natividad
Natividad
Location in California
Natividad is located in the United States
Natividad
Natividad
Natividad (the United States)
Coordinates: 36°43′58″N 121°35′48″W / 36.73278°N 121.59667°W / 36.73278; -121.59667
CountryUnited States
StateCalifornia
CountyMonterey County
Elevation
[1]
164 ft (50 m)

Natividad (Spanish for "Nativity") is an unincorporated community and ghost town in Monterey County, California.[1] It is located 5 miles (8 km) northeast of Salinas,[2] at an elevation of 164 feet (50 m).[1]

Natividad was named for the Rancho La Natividad Mexican land grant which included the community. It was the site of a significant battle of the Mexican-American War in 1846.[3] A post office operated at Natividad from 1855 to 1908.[2] Natividad was a bustling station for stage coaches in the 1850s until traffic was re-routed through Salinas.[2] The town declined after the completion of the Southern Pacific Railroad through Salinas in 1872, and its last remaining building, a saloon, was demolished in 1964.[4]

The Battle of Natividad of the Mexican-American War was fought just north of the townsite. A historical marker commemorates the battleground.[5]

References

  1. 1 2 3 U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Natividad, California
  2. 1 2 3 Durham, David L. (1998). California's Geographic Names: A Gazetteer of Historic and Modern Names of the State. Clovis, Calif.: Word Dancer Press. p. 929. ISBN 1-884995-14-4.
  3. ↑ Gudde, Erwin Gustav (1998). California Place Names. University of California Press. p. 256. ISBN 978-0-520-21316-6.
  4. ↑ "Natividad Historical Marker". HMDB.org. Retrieved October 22, 2023.
  5. ↑ "Battle of Natividad Historical Marker". HMDB.org. Retrieved October 22, 2023.


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