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Fandango Pass
Fandango Pass
	East side of Fandango Pass above Surprise Valley
Elevation	6,135 ft (1,870 m)
Traversed by	CR 9
Location	Modoc National Forest,; Modoc County, California,; United States
Range	Warner Mountains
Coordinates	41°48′08″N 120°12′25″W / 41.8021136°N 120.206895°W
	Location in California
California Historical Landmark
Official name	Applegate-Lassen Emigrant Trail (Fandango Pass)
Designated	July 15, 1956
Reference no.	546

The Fandango Pass (previously Lassen Pass; variants Lassen Cut-off, Lassen Horn)^[2] is a gap in the Warner Mountains of Modoc County, California, USA. Located in the Modoc National Forest, its elevation is 6,135 feet (1,870 m) above sea level.^[2] It is approximately 5 mi (8.0 km) southwest of Fort Bidwell.^[3]

Fandango Pass was historically notable for its location as the convergence of two trails, the Applegate and the Lassen, that were traveled by emigrant pioneers between 1846 and 1850.^[1] The pass can now be traversed on a 10 mi (16 km) section of graded gravel, 1.5 lanes wide. It is closed during winter storms.^[4]

History

The mountain pass was located at a convergence of two trails, the Applegate and the Lassen, that were traveled by emigrant pioneers between 1846 and 1850.^[1] The Applegate Trail, originally intended as a less dangerous route to the Oregon Territory, was established in 1846 by the Applegate brothers and Levi Scott,^[5] and ran through today's U.S. states of Idaho, Nevada, California, and Oregon. The Lassen Horn Trail^[6] was established by Peter Lassen two years later and ran south at Goose Lake towards California Gold Rush mines and settlements.^[7] Though the pass was extensively traversed from 1848 until 1853, its importance declined after 1869 with the opening of the Cedar Pass wagon road.^[6]

To reach the pass, the emigrants had to cross or bypass Upper Alkali Lake in order to reach the Warner Mountains which is located to the west of the lake.^[8] The historic cutoff, part of the California Trail, required passing through Rabbithole Springs, crossing the Black Rock Desert and High Rock Canyon before finally arriving at Surprise Valley, a journey of approximately 100 miles (160 km) of desert travel. From here, the trail climbs steeply to reach the pass, gaining about 1,600 ft (490 m) in about 2 mi (3.2 km).^[8] From the summit, the trail descended steeply into the southeast end of Fandango Valley^[3] by Goose Lake on the Oregon-California border. The Fandango Pass trail section is visible on the eastern side of the summit.^[9]

Name

The pass, known initially as Lassen's Pass (1857 map) or Lassen Pass (1864 map),^[3] was named for Lassen by gold seekers in 1849 who followed the route made by Lassen the previous year.^[3]

One theory of the name change, from Lassen to Fandango, is that in the 1850s, an Indian massacre may have occurred in the area. The massacre involved a large emigrant train that had camped at the edge of the valley. While the party indulged in a fandango after finding game, grass, and water,^[10] it was attacked by Indians. Another theory suggests that Wolverine Rangers camping in the valley found it to be so cold that they burned their wagons for heat and danced a fandango. They named their camp site "Fandango Valley". Later pioneers who passed the area and saw burned wagons deduced that an Indian massacre had occurred.^[11]^[12]^[13] Fairfield describes an 1858 skirmish between Whites and Indigenous people that occurred near Fandango Valley that resulted in at least 17 Indigenous men being scalped by Whites.^[14]

While the valley, peak and pass were named Fandango in the 1870s, a 1949 map, nonetheless, showed the pass as being named Lassen Horn.^[3]

Landmark

On July 15, 1956, the Fandango Pass section of the Applegate-Lassen Emigrant Trail became California Historical Landmark No. 546. The plaque marker is located 10.8 mi (17.4 km) east of Highway 395 on Fandango Pass Road (County Road 9).^[1] A second marker is located off the road, placed by Trails West.^[8]