Castaic, California

Castaic, California, is an unincorporated community located in the northern part of Los Angeles County, California. Many thousands of motorists pass through Castaic daily as they drive to or from Los Angeles on Interstate 5. Castaic Lake is part of the California Water Project and is the site of a hydro-electric power plant. Castaic is located approximately northwest of the downtown Los Angeles Civic Center and directly north of the city of Santa Clarita, California.HistoryNameOn Spanish documents, the original spelling was Castec, which represented the Chumash Native American word Kashtiq, meaning "eyes". Castec is first mentioned on old boundary maps of Rancho San Francisco, as a canyon at the trailhead leading to the old Chumash camp at Castac Lake (Tejon Ranch).Modern Castaic began in 1887 when Southern Pacific set up a railroad siding on the line between Piru and Saugus Station, naming it "Castaic Junction". Between January and April 1890, the Castec School District adopted the new spelling, Castaic.