Fall 2026

W E NEED A BETTER ROAD .” A YOUNG , DRAINED D R . J OHN L. D. R OBERTS REFLECTED ON HIS ORDEAL . H E HAD RUN ON PURE ADRENALINE FOR THREE DAYS STRAIGHT . F INALLY , HE HAD FINISHED TREATING THE LAST OF HIS PATIENTS . T HERE WAS NOTHING HE COULD DO FOR THE DEAD . T HROUGH HIS EXHAUSTION , D OC R OBERTS RECOGNIZED THAT A BETTER ROAD WOULD HAVE HELPED HIS EFFORTS , AND PERHAPS SAVED LIVES . B ORN IN 1862, J OHN L ORENZO D OW R OBERTS ARRIVED ON THE M ONTEREY P ENINSULA IN 1886 WITH A NEW MEDICAL DEGREE AND A SILVER DOLLAR IN HIS POCK - ET . A NATIVE OF N EW Y ORK , R OBERTS HAD RECENTLY GRADUATED FIFTH IN HIS CLASS AT N EW Y ORK U NIVERSITY M EDICAL S CHOOL . D AVID H OUGHTON , R OBERTS ’ UNCLE , HAD SUGGESTED THE M ONTEREY REGION AS ONE OFFER - ING OPPORTUNITY FOR A YOUNG PHYSICIAN . H OUGHTON OWNED A 160- ACRE RANCH IN WHAT IS NOW S EASIDE . S OON AFTER HIS ARRIVAL , THE ENTREPRENEURIAL R OBERTS OFFERED HIS UNCLE $5,000 FOR THE RANCH , ON THE CONDITION THAT HE COULD TURN IT INTO A TOWNSITE TO RIVAL P ACIFIC G ROVE . T ERMS AGREED TO , R OBERTS PRO - CEEDED TO DIVIDE THE RANCH INTO LOTS , AND BEGAN SELLING THEM . I N SIX MONTHS , R OBERTS PAID HIS UNCLE , HAD $3,000 IN THE BANK , AND HAD 1,000 LOTS LEFT TO SELL . T HUS S EASIDE WAS BORN . Bridging the Gap How Doc Rober ts’ Big Sur Coast Highway Came To Be B Y S COT T GA L E 114 C A R M E L M A G A Z I N E • F A L L 2 0 2 6