A South Carolina-born blacksmith, Stephens led the first successful passage of wagons over the Sierra Nevada in 1844, without a single casualty. Stephens homesteaded 160 acres in what is now Cupertino, California. Eventually, his Blackberry Farm was sold to George McCauley and William McClellan. At the time Stephens wanted to leave because he felt the area was “too durn civilized”.
The Founding Of Cupertino, California
