Lucia (California)

Lucia is a hamlet found along the southern half of Big Sur.[1][2] It is located 22 miles south of Big Sur valley and 38 miles north of Hearst Castle.[3] Lucia Lodge is a seaside lodge that provides accommodations to travelers.[3][4][5] A small store and restaurant previously existed there as well, prior to a fire in August 2021.[3][6][7][8][5] Situated in an area that is mostly uninhabited,[1] Lucia is located miles away from any other business.[5] Due to the remote location, prices may be inflated.[6]

View of Lucia Lodge

History

The Harlan family originally pioneered and settled on the land in 1865.[9] In 1885, Wilber Judson Harlan homesteaded in Big Sur and filed his claim of 167 acres in the San Francisco Land Office.[9][10] He married Ada Dani, daughter of setters Elizabeth and Gabriel Dani, who settled on the land in 1876.[9][10]

On March 8, 1900, the Lucia Post Office was opened at the home of Elizabeth and Gabriel Dani.[11] Their eighth child, Violet Lucia Dani (1878-1947) was the first postmaster.[11] In 1906, Ada Harlan was the second postmaster. She was succeeded by daughter Lulu May Harlan who served as the third postmaster until the post office was discontinued in 1932.[11] Mail was carried in by horseback from Jolon to Gordo then finally to Lucia.[11] When Violet Lucia Dani was postmaster, the post office served about 65 local residents.[11] George Harlan with his horse Trixie transported mail from Jolon to Luci Post Office from 1922 to 1934. The Harlan house burned down on December 12, 1926.[11]

The lodge was initially established by the Harlan family in the 1930s.[12] In 1936, the Lucia Post Office reopened at the newly constructed Lucia Lodge but subsequently closed again in 1938.[11] In 1937, the Lucia store opened coinciding with the opening of Highway 1.[5] Lucia also had a gas station as well.[13]

The Benedictine Order of Camaldolese monks acquired the Dani's Lucia Ranch property in 1958.[11] Soon after, the Dani house burned down.[11] The hermitage was known as the Immaculate Heart Hermitage.[11]

Lucia Lodge also had a restaurant that opens to the ocean.[12] It opened lunch and dinner year round, and breakfast only in the summer.[6] In August 2021, the restaurant burned down.[7][8] The general store was partly burned, but the cabins located 100 yards north of the restaurant remained intact.[7][8]

Lucia Lodge

The Lucia Lodge consists of ten cabins situated on a 300-foot cliff overlooking the Pacific Ocean.[3][4] The fifth generation Harlan descendants still operate the cabins.[12][5] The Honeymoon Cabin (Unit 10) has exceptionally good views.[6] The rooms do not have televisions or telephones.[3][12] It is rumored that the lodge is haunted.[14]

In 2019, the Netflix series Ratched, a prequel to One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest, was filmed on site at the lodge.[8] The lodge saw a spike in bookings following the release of the series.[14]

References
  1. Jensen, J. (2018). Road Trip USA Pacific Coast Highway. Road Trip USA. Avalon Publishing. p. 151. ISBN 978-1-64049-383-4. Retrieved 2021-11-21.
  2. Brown, A.M. (2009). Monterey and Carmel: Including Santa Cruz and Big Sur. Moon Handbooks Series. Avalon Publishing. p. 166. ISBN 978-1-56691-995-1. Retrieved 2021-11-21.
  3. Brown, A. (2004). Writers' and Artists' Hideouts: Great Getaways for Seducing the Muse. Linden Publishing. p. 84. ISBN 978-1-61035-116-4. Retrieved 2021-11-21.
  4. Heid, A.E. (2013). Hiking and Backpacking Big Sur: A Complete Guide to the Trails of Big Sur, Ventana Wilderness, and Silver Peak Wilderness. Wilderness Press. p. 30. ISBN 978-0-89997-727-0. Retrieved 2021-11-21.
  5. "Lucia Lodge, Big Sur, California". Lucia Lodge. 2021-08-10. Retrieved 2021-11-21.
  6. Thornton, S. (2016). Moon Monterey & Carmel: Including Santa Cruz & Big Sur. Moon Handbooks. Avalon Publishing. p. 162. ISBN 978-1-63121-244-4. Retrieved 2021-11-21.
  7. "Fire destroys restaurant at the historic Lucia Lodge in Big Sur". Monterey County Weekly. 2021-08-11. Retrieved 2021-11-21.
  8. "Fire burns through restaurant, store at historic Lucia Lodge on southern Big Sur Coast". The Mercury News (in Kinyarwanda). 2021-08-18. Retrieved 2021-11-21.
  9. Coventry, K. (2002). Monterey Peninsula: The Golden Age. Images of America. Arcadia. p. 122. ISBN 978-0-7385-2080-3. Retrieved 2021-11-21.
  10. To Designate the Big Sur National Scenic Area and Other Miscellaneous Bills: Hearing Before the Subcommittee on Public Lands, Reserved Water, and Resource Conservation of the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, United States Senate, Ninety-ninth Congress, Second Session, on S. 767 ... S. 2159 ... H.J. Res. 666 ... July 31, 1986. S. hrg. U.S. Government Printing Office. 1987. p. 136. Retrieved 2021-11-21.
  11. Norman, J.; Society, B.S.H. (2004). Big Sur. Images of America (in German). Arcadia. p. 108. ISBN 978-0-7385-2913-4. Retrieved 2021-11-21.
  12. Steakley, D. (2011). Photographing Big Sur: Where to Find Perfect Shots and How to Take Them. The Photographer's Guide. Countryman Press. p. 94. ISBN 978-1-58157-941-3. Retrieved 2021-11-21.
  13. Woolfenden, J. (1981). Big Sur: A Battle for the Wilderness, 1869-1981. Boxwood Press. p. 59. ISBN 978-0-910286-87-9. Retrieved 2021-11-22.
  14. Coleman, Mary (2020-10-15). "Lucia Lodge seeing spike in business following release of 'Ratched' – KION546". KION546. Retrieved 2021-11-21.

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