DEDICATIONS BY MONTEREY VIEJO CHAPTER 1846

 

PLEYTO
Located along the south banks of the San Antonio River, at the junction of Pleyto Road and the road to Bradley, the town of Pleyto lies under the waters of Lake San Antonio.
As early as 1796 the area was known as Pleito or El Pleito, Pleito, a spanish legal term meaning "litigation" or "dispute". May have been applied dut to a dispute between the San Miguel an San Antonio missions over property rights. Another theory is the Indian Rancheria of April, located near the Pleyto Bridge, was a metting place where Indian diagreements or lawsuits were settled.
On JUly 16, 1849, the land was granted to Jose Antonio Chavez as Ranch San Bartolome. Twelve years later the Ranco known by then as Pleyto was purchased by W.S. Johnson. In 1869, William Pinkerton Sr. bought 15,100 of the ranch. It was Pinkerton who laid out the town.
A Post Office was opened on December 14, 1870 under the name of "Pleito". The Coast Stageline which maintained stables here, listed the stop as "Plato Ranch" per it's 1871 timetable. By 1884, the Post Office name was changed to "Pleyto". Despite the changeable name, the town boasted a store, hotel, blacksmith shop, dance hall and school. The Post Office closed for the last time on February 14, 1939, and the town receded into memory. By 1964 when the San Antonio Dam was completed, few vestiges of the pioneer settlement remained.
Dedicated October 24, 1998 year of our order 6003, by the ancient and honorable order of E Clampus Vitus, Monterey Viejo Chapter 1846
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