Blue Canyon was possibly named for the blue smoke of the camps when extensive lumbering occurred there in the 1850s. It might otherwise have been named after a miner from that same period named "Old Jim Blue".[3]
The Blue Canyon post office operated from 1867 to 1927. The Blue Cañon post office operated from 1936 to 1942 and from 1948 to 1964.[2]
History
Following the California Gold Rush of 1849, a miner named Jim Blue prospected for gold in the Canyon and established a small mining camp.
In 1859, the Towle Brothers built and operated a lumber mill in Blue Canyon. In 1866, tracks from the first Transcontinental railroad reached Blue Canyon from Sacramento, followed by daily scheduled train service. The post office was established the following year. Railroad support services were established including a train station, hotel, worker housing, lunch counter, cookhouse, turntable, water and fueling facilities.
By the 1870s, water from a natural spring in Blue Canyon was being shipped to hotels in Sacramento. A fire train was permanently assigned and kept under constant steam.
In 1882, the population was 162. There were two hotels and a one room school with 22 students in attendance.
In 1907, Blue Canyon became a railroad crew change location resulting in a population increase as train crews were assigned there.
During prohibition, Blue Canyon became a location for bootleggers, resulting in increased tourism.
In 1926, double tracking of the railroad was completed, eliminating Blue Canyon as a crew change location. The population decreased significantly as workers were transferred.
By 1936, the last active mine in the area had closed.
In the 1950s, diesel locomotives replaced steam engines. In 1964, railroad support services were shut down as they were no longer needed. The population decreased to a near ghost town and the post office closed permanently.[4]
Climate
Blue Canyon has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate (Csb) according to the Köppen climate classification system. Summers are generally warm with cool nights, while winters are moderately cold and extremely snowy, despite no month having an average low temperature below freezing.
Climate data for Blue Canyon, California (Blue Canyon–Nyack Airport), 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1943–present
^ abDurham, David L. (1998). California's Geographic Names: A Gazetteer of Historic and Modern Names of the State. Clovis, Calif.: Word Dancer Press. p. 452. ISBN1-884995-14-4.
^Signor, John R. (1985). Donner Pass, Southern Pacific's Sierra Crossing. Golden West Books, San Marino CA. Pages 34-36, 48, 61-67, 100. ISBN0-87095-094-0
