Many Irvine street names provide a glimpse into our past. For instance, Jamboree Road was built and named for the 1953 Boy Scout Jamboree that brought 50,000 Scouts to The Irvine Ranch. Michelson Drive is named for Nobel Prize-winning physicist Albert Michelson, who, in 1931, measured the speed of light in Irvine.
And Jeffrey Road is named after George Jeffrey, an Irvine Ranch bean farmer. In 1897, the Scottish native settled on the ranch and leased land from Irvine Company. In 1922, Jeffrey won a seat on the Orange County Board of Supervisors and oversaw the construction of many vital roadways, including Pacific Coast Highway, Irvine Boulevard and Ortega Highway. Today, Jeffrey Road serves numerous villages in Irvine’s central core – and is home to the beautiful Jeffrey Open Space Trail.
To learn more, visit the Irvine Historical Museum, 5 San Joaquin. Open 1-4 p.m. Tuesdays and Sundays.
Ellen Bell is an Orange County historian and author of “Irvine: Images of America.”
