Running Springs History

The mule drawn Log Hauler or “slip tongue” depicts the rich history of logging in the Running Springs area, which in 1890 was first named “Hunsaker Flats”. Immigration to the valley below and the orange groves of Redlands set the stage for the logging industry for box crates and building lumber in the San Bernardino Mountains.

The Highland Lumber Company, and later the Bookings Lumber Company, conducted substantial logging operations from Fredalba to Green Valley Lake. They even operated a narrow-gauge railway for transporting logs to the mill located in what is now Fredalba and Smiley Park, directly south of Running Springs. Umber was precariously hauled down the “City Creek Toll Road,” later named Highway 330.

The logging industry gave way to property investors and in the late 1920’s the first community subdivisions for vacation properties and camps arose. With the continued population growth of Southern California, these beautiful San Bernardino Mountains have provided unsurpassed opportunities for recreation and year-round living. Come and discover the majesty of the Running Springs Area, the “Gateway to the San Bernardino’s!”