Mission Bells

California's Heritage

When you drive the 101 from Los Angeles to San Francisco, you can't help noticing the bells lining the road at regular intervals.

It turns out they're made to replicate the bells of El Camino Real, the "King's Road", which began as a meandering dirt path linking the Spanish missions -- and would later become the 101.

With time, most bells disappeared -- but the California Department of Transportation began reinstalling them in the 1990s. The L.A. Times has the full story.
See Caltrans' site for more.

photos L.A. Times & Caltrans