Tag Archives: Passport 2 History

Marston House

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Marston House
San Diego
February 4, 2017

We visited the Marston House in February, using our Macy’s Museum Month discount pass. Entrance to the house itself is only with a guided tour, and tours run each half hour. We had just missed one tour by about 5 minutes so spent some time walking around the exterior, examining the house from the outside and enjoying the gardens. It was pleasant strolling, though not the season for roses. We also admired the walled laundry area, for hanging out the wash, and peeked into the cellar. Later, the docent told us it is a half cellar rather than a full one, because the house is built into a slope. The cellar housed the utilities and was used by the help.

When our turn to take the next tour came, we were the only ones on it. The docent was very well informed and very enthusiastic. He told us all about the Marston family members who had lived in the house, the architect, the furnishings, the original construction and various modifications of the house, and the recent history of preservation efforts. He also gave us a context for the architectural details, comparing the Marston House to the Gamble House in Pasadena. (We saw the outside of the Gamble House once, back in 2014, and would like to go back sometime and tour the interior; the Marston House experience has piqued our interest.)

The downstairs has beautiful woodwork. The redwood from the forests of northern California give the rooms a warm feel. The docent pointed out a nice detail—butterfly key joints between some of the boards lining the walls. The music room has hidden racks in the walls. Mr. Marston’s study has lovely built-in bookshelves, and he forbade the installation of a call button there to help maintain the contemplative atmosphere; most other rooms in the house are connected to the indicator in the butler’s pantry. Bob thought that the use of pocket doors gave the downstairs a very clean look and nice sense of flow from room to room.

The house is tastefully furnished with period pieces, though little that was owned by the Marstons remains. The Marston family used the house until the 1980s, when it was given to the City of San Diego. At that time, the furnishings were reclaimed by family members. Since then, the museum has worked to find replacements that fit the setting, even getting a period bathtub.

The tour provides access to the first and second floors of the house. The first floor was designed for entertaining and the dining room opens onto a sizeable patio. One famous visitor was Theodore Roosevelt, who came to dinner when the former president attended the Panama-California Exposition in 1915. The attic area was also finished and used as sleeping quarters by the family, but it is not currently open to visitors. A neat detail throughout the house is the raised thresholds and floor levels in the baths and closets. The docent kept reminding us to watch our step. He speculated that the architectural quirk was meant to make it easier to sweep the primary floor levels cleanly and to easily sweep out those smaller spaces, into the adjacent hallways or larger rooms, although no one knows for sure.

The house was completed in 1905. George W. Marston was a self-made man who came to San Diego and made his money in the retail industry, owning a successful local department store. The house was begun with a Tudor style in mind, but once Marston hired Irving Gill to finish the project, Gill altered it as much as possible to fit his vision of the Arts and Crafts Movement. The exterior retains some Tudor characteristics while hinting at the Prairie School. Inside, there are many typical Gill elements including coved floor to wall transitions in the public rooms, casement windows with transoms, and enclosed bathtubs.

Tickets for the tours are sold in the gift shop located in the adjacent carriage house/garage. The house is open Fridays through Mondays, except Christmas Day, from 10 to 5. Tours leave every half hour, last tour at 4 p.m. Regular admission costs $15 for adults, with discounts for seniors, active duty military, students, and children under 12. (The Macy’s discount gave us 50% off.) Being a mansion of a certain age, the museum is not readily accessible to those in wheelchairs.

While there are no dining facilities adjacent to the house, the area has many cafes, restaurants, and pubs. After our visit and a walk in the park, we enjoyed excellent craft beer at The Brew Project on Fifth Avenue, itself located in a 1902 Craftsman House. We enjoyed the brew pub and plan to go back and try it for lunch or dinner.

Leonis Adobe 2016

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Leonis Adobe
Calabasas
May 28, 2016

On this visit we took Margaret to visit the Leonis Adobe in Calabasas. We have been there before. The site is well laid out and maintained. In addition to the two historic dwellings – the adobe which dates from the mid-19th century and the Plummer House relocated from West Hollywood – there are livestock and plantings typical of what would have been found on the Leonis ranch in the 1880s.

Leonis_2016

The adobe is furnished with period furnishings and artifacts, some of which are original to the site. The costumed docents are quite helpful and generally well-informed. (Bob was able to explain to one docent that an unusual artifact in the pantry was a butter churn, of atypical design, because his mother had an antique one of the same type.)

As with many historical buildings, the adobe building is not completely wheelchair accessible. We took Margaret around the grounds and into the ground floor of the adobe. Bob went up the steps to see the second-story rooms while Meredith stayed downstairs with Margaret. Much of the site can be seen by a wheelchair patron though, including the outbuildings, with old wagons and farm equipment; the livestock and gardens, as well as the main part of the adobe and the Plummer House, so it was well worth the visit.

We purchased a small bag of hay in the gift shop when we arrived, and fed some of the sheep and goats. Margaret enjoyed both feeding and petting them. We admired the horses and longhorn cattle from a distance; visitors cannot get close enough to touch the larger animals.

Leonis_goat2

The Leonis Adobe Foundation put together the Passport 2 History program, and we have used that booklet and website as a guide to many of our outings. There are over 80 participating museums and historic sites throughout Central and Southern California. A few months ago we misplaced our physical passport, so we bought another one ($3) on this trip.

Admission is free, but donations are encouraged, and we made sure to drop a contribution in the box.

After we had seen all that we wanted to see, we went next-door to the Sagebrush Cantina for lunch. Meredith’s sister Kathleen joined us, and we had a nice time catching up. We all enjoyed our lunches. The menu is predominantly Mexican food, but there are other choices as well. Margaret enjoyed wild mushroom tacos with goat cheese.

Since our visit fell on Memorial Day weekend, we made it a point to stop at the Veterans cemetery in Westwood. After we dropped Margaret off, we stopped for flowers, then visited the grave of Meredith’s stepfather Eli. The entire cemetery had been decorated with miniature flags by each grave; quite a sight waving in the breeze!

VA_Westwood

Avila Adobe

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Avila Adobe
Downtown Los Angeles
September 3, 2015

Meredith saw the Avila Adobe on the same downtown L.A. trip with her niece and our youngest daughter that included the Chinese American Museum, Olvera Street, and the rest of the Pueblo area. (See the two posts immediately below.) This site also participates in the Passport 2 History program, so together with the Plaza Firehouse and the Chinese American Museum, written up below, Meredith was able to collect three stamps for our passport in a single outing.

Avila_front

The Avila Adobe is open seven days a week, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m, and admission is free. It was built in 1818 by Don Francisco Avila, who had served as the alcalde (mayor) of Los Angeles in 1810. It is the oldest residence still standing in Los Angeles and is well appointed with furniture and furnishings from the 1840’s which are typical of the upscale California ranchero of the time. A well-informed docent wearing period costume was stationed in the first room. She told us about the history of both the building and its contents. We walked through several rooms, then out into the courtyard which features a tree sized prickly pear cactus, then on into the visitor center and gift shop.

Avila_cactus

The adobe is located in the middle of Olvera Street, surrounded by shops and stalls and restaurants. Growing out from the front porch of the adobe, out onto a trellis over Olvera Street, is a set of lush grape vines. We did not notice them much at the time, but then saw an article in the Los Angeles Times about the vines a couple of weeks later, What to Do with Grapes from 150-Year-Old Vines at Olvera Street? Make Wine, Of Course. The city archivist, Mike Holland, had long been curious about the vines, and recently had U.C. Davis run a genetic analysis of them. They are identical to the Mission grapes of the Viña Madre, introduced by Spanish missionaries and grown at the San Gabriel Mission. That grape “is a first-generation hybrid between a native Southern California grape (Vitis girdiana) and the European grape (Vitis vinifera) variety Mission,” according to Jerry Dangl, lab manager at Davis. Because the vines are a genetic match to the San Gabriel Mission plants, presumably they grew from cuttings that came from the Mission. No one knows how old the vines are exactly, but they may date as far back as the building of the adobe itself in 1818 or soon thereafter. If we had known how historic the plants were, we would have looked more closely at them, but one can see a little bit of the leafy vines overhead, on the trellis in the background of the photo Meredith took of the girls by the fountain in front of the adobe.

Olvera

Chinese American Museum

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Chinese American Museum
Downtown Los Angeles
September 3, 2015

Meredith saw the Chinese American Museum with her niece and our youngest daughter, as part of their tour of the Pueblo area. (See the post immediately below.) The Chinese American Museum is open from 10 a.m to 3 p.m. daily except for Mondays, and admission is free. It is located in the historic Garnier Building, which dates from 1890 and is the last surviving building from Los Angeles’ original Chinatown. (We learned that the original Chinatown was largely demolished to make room for Union Station, and a new Chinatown grew up nearby.)

The museum makes good use of its small space. Our group started with the timeline display in the first room, with explanatory text and photos and representative artifacts. That timeline takes the visitor through a century and a half of Chinese immigration to the United States, chronicling both the milestones that immigrants attained and the hurdles they faced, such as the exclusionary legislation which drastically limited the numbers who could come to the U.S. The nadir of their experience may have been the Chinese Massacre of 1871, when a mob lynched 17 Chinese men and boys in old Chinatown, perhaps with the complicity of the police and leading Angelenos.

We went on into a room set up to look like typical 19th century stores one might have found in Chinatown, with a general store counter and shelves on the left side and an herbal medicine counter, shelves, and jars on the right side. Two smaller rooms with sample artifacts completed the museum displays.

Ch_Am_herbs

This museum participates in the Passport 2 History program, as do the Firehouse Museum (immediately below) and the Avila Abode (see the next post), both at the Pueblo also.

El Pueblo de Los Angeles

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Olvera Street and Los Angeles Pueblo
Downtown Los Angeles
September 3, 2015

Meredith took the day off work and traveled by the earliest Amtrak train north to Union Station in Los Angeles, to meet up with her niece from Seattle and our youngest daughter. They spent the day in downtown Los Angeles. The group walked around Olvera Street and the historic Pueblo area, then went on to the Fashion District. This post gives an overview of the day; separate posts will follow for the Chinese American Museum and the Avila Adobe.

The Pueblo area, including Olvera Street, is the original area of European settlement in Los Angeles. There are several small museums located in it, all of which offer free admission. There are several other historic buildings as well. Olvera Street is now a pedestrian zone with vendor stalls and small shops, offering souvenirs and Mexican themed merchandise. We have considered visiting the Pueblo area museums before but were intimidated by the fact that they are in downtown Los Angeles. That location is a fairly far drive from where Margaret lives, and we were also afraid that parking would be problematic. Recently we learned that Union Station is right across the street from the Pueblo, and we resolved that when one of us next had the opportunity to travel by train to LA, we would try to include a visit to those historic sites.

Niece and daughter met Meredith at Union Station, and the three of them took a brief walk around it. The station is a wonderful building dating from the 1930’s, worthy of study in itself.

Union_station

We then crossed Alameda Street, and walked around the central plaza in the Pueblo park, which has a very large bandstand and some impressively large ficus trees. We had arrived a little too early for the museums which open at 10 a.m., so we went northwest across Main Street to the oldest church in Los Angeles, Nuestra Señora la Reina de Los Angeles, dedicated in 1822 and rebuilt in 1861. The church was open, and a number of parishioners were in there praying, so we stopped in for a moment of quiet reflection. We walked back to the plaza and then started walking on Olvera Street, looking at the merchant displays.

Olvera

Halfway along Olvera Street, we stopped in at the America Tropical Interpretive Center. This two-room museum explains the historic, economic, and cultural background to the America Tropical mural painted by David Alfaro Siqueiros in 1932. Unfortunately the mural itself was closed to public view that day, due to some sort of problem with the protective shutters which cover it at night. The center gave us some very interesting information, however, about Los Angeles in the 1930’s and the painter’s life. Olvera Street was being revitalized at that time, and those who commissioned the mural were looking for an idealized tropical scene, to be painted on the second story exterior wall at the center of the street. Siqueiros, an ardent communist and labor organizer, instead painted a crucified Indian peasant surmounted by an American eagle, with revolutionaries on the right aiming rifles at the eagle. The mural was very controversial at the time, and within a few years had been covered with whitewash. In recent years, through the work of the Getty Conservation Institute, the whitewash has been carefully removed, and the mural can now be seen again. (Well, when the protective shutters can be reopened!)

We next saw the Sepulveda House. It is billed as the “only Eastlake Victorian building” in the Pueblo area. There had earlier been an adobe building on the location, which was demolished to widen North Main Street. In 1887, Señora Sepulveda used the condemnation funds to build a two-story Victorian business and residential block. The new house consisted of 22 rooms, with two commercial stores on the Main Street side and three private rooms on Olvera Street. We looked at the kitchen exhibit on the lower level, which re-creates the 1890’s kitchen for the boardinghouse portion of the building, and we then looked in the bedroom exhibit, with decor from the same era.

We then toured the Avila Adobe, which will be the subject of a separate blog post. We finished our walking tour of the merchant area on Olvera Street and went back to the plaza area. The girls decided to see the two small museums off the plaza before lunch, so we proceeded on to the Plaza Firehouse Museum.

Plaza_fire

The Plaza Firehouse is a red brick building which dates from 1884. It is the first building constructed by the City of Los Angeles for housing firefighting equipment and personnel. It was originally occupied by volunteer firefighters, and then by the new professional fire department starting in 1886. Horses were stabled on the ground floor, and the firemen slept on the second level. The horse stalls can still be seen, and a horse drawn hose wagon with harness is on display. There are numerous historic photos on the walls. Admission is free. This museum is one of three sites within the Pueblo which are part of the Passport 2 History program, which is one of our main go-to resources.

We then visited the Chinese American Museum, which will also be the subject of a separate blog post.

We went on to lunch from there, eating at the La Luz del Dia restaurant on the plaza. The prices were very reasonable, and the food was excellent. We ordered at the counter, and then food was carried to our table. Meredith particularly enjoyed the tamales. The girls enjoyed their food also and drank Mexican soft drinks.

There are several lots parking lots right around the Pueblo. Our daughter had driven her car, and she parked in the lot on the south west edge of the Pueblo for a flat five dollar price.

Some of the areas of Olvera Street are on multi levels without wheelchair ramps, but there are several wheelchair lifts. We did not have Margaret with us, so did not have to deal with accessibility challenges hands-on, but it appears that a wheelchair visitor could enjoy all or most of the Pueblo and Olvera Street attractions.

After lunch we drove down to the Fashion District and walked Santee Alley, a high energy marketplace with many small shops. Most were clothing or shoe stores, but there was a variety of other merchandise. Our niece bought a skirt she spotted, and Meredith and the girls enjoyed 10 minute mini-massages.

Santee_alley

Reyes Adobe

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Reyes Adobe
Agoura Hills
April 11, 2015

We decided after our recent art excursions with Margaret that it was time to take her to another historical site for variety. Using the Passport 2 History, we picked out the Reyes Adobe. As with many historical homes, it is only open on a very limited schedule, in this case the second and fourth Saturday of each month in the afternoon. This visit fell on a second Saturday, so the outing worked well with our schedule.

Reyes_gate

The Reyes family is one of California’s oldest. Juan Francisco Reyes was a soldier on the 1769 expedition led by Portola which also included Father Junipero Serra. A descendent of his, José Jacinto Reyes, married Maria Antonia Machado. Maria bought the land from her uncle, and one of her sons built this adobe home in 1850. It stayed in the family for many years, then was purchased in 1935 by Dr. Malcolm McKenzie. The McKenzie family made various repairs and restorations.
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The next owner made some modifications in the mid 20th century which were unfortunate from an historical perspective, and which have since been removed for the most part. She ultimately sold the land to developers, and the adobe remained vacant for several decades. It was nearly torn down but eventually rescued by the local historical society. After a long fundraising campaign, the adobe was restored and opened as an historical site in 2004.

There are some artifacts on display in an outbuilding which the McKenzie family built as a barn. We started there, chatted with the docents, and looked at photos, maps, and artifacts. We also watched a video about the history of the building and its site.

We proceeded with Hank, one of the docents, over to the adobe. (No one is allowed in the building without a docent.) He was very knowledgeable and told us a great deal about the Reyes family, adobe construction, and the history of the area – you name it, he knew about it!

Reyes_doorway

The building is not wheelchair accessible, because it has a very high (original) threshold. With our assistance, Margaret stepped up on the threshold and down into the first room, then we moved the wheelchair in for her to sit down. The first room was used primarily as a children’s bedroom and occasionally as a bedroom for visitors. It is outfitted with mid-19th century furnishings, including some artifacts which had belonged to the family. There is a high threshold between the children’s room and the main room or sala also, and we did not want to tire Margaret unduly, so Meredith and Margaret stayed in the bedroom and looked through the doorway into the main room, while Hank and Bob went into the sala and Hank explained some of the items in that room.

Admission is $3 for adults, $2 for seniors, and $1 for children. The building is situated in a nice park setting, and there is sufficient parking, which is free. In addition to the twice monthly openings, there is a three day festival there in the fall.

There is no café or restaurant on site; the park is located in a residential neighborhood. The adobe does not open until 1:00 so we had our lunch first. We had scouted out local restaurants on line ahead of time, and settled on the Rabbit Hole Café on Thousand Oaks Blvd, a vegetarian eatery. The interior is decorated with Alice in Wonderland prints. There are a number of vegan items on the menu, but the fare is not restricted to vegan items. The restaurant also offers many gluten free options. Margaret had a roasted vegetable shepherd’s pie; Meredith enjoyed a frittata; and Bob had a “chick’n” and brie sandwich. The staff was very pleasant and helpful, and we were quite happy with the food.

Over lunch, we brought Margaret up-to-date on our recent doings. She shared with us correspondence she had received recently from her brother, her cousin, and Bob’s aunt. We told her about the Padres games we had been to this past week, and then talk turned to baseball generally, one of Margaret’s favorite things.

After we had finished at the Adobe, we ran a quick errand, then met up with Meredith’s sister Kathleen for coffee. We had not seen Margaret since her birthday late last month, so we gave her some presents which she unwrapped there.

Old Town State Historic Park

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Old Town State Historic Park
Old Town, San Diego
March 21, 2015

We took a long two day hike recently, from our home to downtown San Diego and back, passing through Old Town and stopping briefly for some sightseeing. Old Town is a California State Park with dozens of small museums and historic buildings. We are not going to try a full write up here, but we do want to give a shout out to a few spots within the park. Visitors to San Diego should definitely put Old Town on their “must see” lists. For more information see the state park website or the Old Town business district website.

We walked into Old Town from the north and decided to stop in at the Casa de Estudillo, an adobe near the north end, facing the green. The San Diego History Center webpage about Old Town offers this write up of the Casa de Estudillo:

Construction of the most famous Old Town adobe began in 1827 and was completed in 1829 by Captain Jose Maria de Estudillo, commander of the San Diego presidio. When he died in 1830, the house passed to his son, Jose Antonio Estudillo, who served as revenue collector, treasurer, alcalde, and judge of San Diego under Mexican rule and later treasurer and assessor of San Diego County under American rule. He married Maria Victoria Dominguez and their family lived there until 1887. The original adobe home was restored in 1910 with funds provided by the Spreckels family, under the direction of Architect Hazel Waterman; it was donated to the State by Mr. Legler Benbough; furnishings were provided with the assistance of the National Society of Colonial Dames of America. For many years, the building was mistakenly known as “Ramona’s Marriage Place” from Helen Hunt Jackson’s novel. The museum now features furnished rooms and a working kitchen and large courtyard. Hours: 10-5 daily; Admission: free.

OldTown Oven

We rested in the courtyard, and took photos by the fountain and beehive oven. The fountain is a popular photo op; after taking Bob’s photo, Meredith volunteered to take photos of other visiting groups with their cameras.

OldTown Fountain

We then walked south through the main part of Old Town, which features many restaurants and shops, both kitschy tourist stops and nice boutiques. There are a number of restaurants we like in Old Town. This time we ate at Miguel’s Cocina. We each had taco plates and enjoyed them very much.

We also walked by the Whaley House Museum The Whaley House, built in 1856 by Thomas Whaley, is the oldest brick structure in San Diego and features authentic period furnishings. It is one of the San Diego County Passport 2 History sites.

At the south end of the park, beyond Miguel’s, we walked by the Sheriff’s Museum. We admired the old cars in the courtyard and made a note to go back and visit it another day. Apparently it offers exhibits from the entire 150-year history of the Sheriff’s Department.

Strathearn Historical Park

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Strathearn Historical Park
Simi Valley
January 17, 2015

When we were brainstorming something new to do on this visit, we read through the Passport 2 History booklet. This booklet, and the related website, list over 60 historic sites throughout Southern California, from San Luis Obispo County down to San Diego County. We knew from going to the Reagan library that Simi Valley is not a bad drive from Margaret’s home, so we picked this site.

StrathearnPark

There are about a dozen historic buildings located in the park, which covers a little over 6 acres. It is named for the Strathearn family, who bought the land in the late 19th century. The park is open on weekdays from 9 AM to 3 PM, but docent led tours of the interiors of the buildings are only available five days week in the afternoon, including Saturday and Sunday.

We timed our arrival for 1 PM on the dot, just as the park opened, and began our tour in the visitor center. There is a nice collection of artifacts on display in the visitor center, in glass cases grouped to show the Chumash era, the Spanish era, American frontier era, and the early 20th century. Meredith was rather disconcerted to see a collection of nondescript telephone books and a black standard rotary dial telephone on display. When the everyday objects of our childhood become museum pieces, we really start to feel old!

We sat with a couple other visitors and watched a video in the visitor center which gave an overview of history in the valley over those same periods. The substantive content of the video was quite informative. The production values left a bit to be desired but were adequate for the purpose.

A pair of Cub Scouts and their parents and siblings joined us, and we all headed out on a docent led tour of the various buildings and outdoor exhibits in the park. We particularly liked the original St. Rose of Lima church, the Simi Adobe / Strathearn House, and the antique car and carriages.

The church, like most of the buildings in the park, was relocated from its original location, in this case at Third and Pacific in the old town area of Simi. It was first built by Presbyterians in 1902 but was soon sold to the Catholic diocese and converted to a Catholic parish church, and it was used as such until 1964.

The Simi Adobe, which was later incorporated into the Strathearn House, is the oldest building in the park, and that combined building is one of the few which was originally located on the site. The adobe portion of the building was the headquarters for the Spanish era rancho and dates from about 1810. It is reduced in size from what it was originally; it is now just one story, and the room at the back end of it was destroyed in a fire and not rebuilt. In 1892 the Strathearns added a two-story Victorian frame house to the front of the adobe building. They used the adobe portion as their kitchen and dining room. The entire building is well outfitted with furniture and furnishings from the era. A small part of the floor and wall in one room of the adobe section have been removed and encased in glass, so that one can see the adobe wall and wood floor structure.

Bob went inside the Colony House, which dates from 1888 and was relocated from Second Street and Ashland. That particular building is not wheelchair accessible. It is a prefab building from the abortive “Simiopolis” development in the late 19th century. It was used for many years as a church and minister’s home. Although quite attractive in outward appearance, it is uninsulated and cannot have been very comfortable to live in.

One of the barn buildings contains several well preserved antique carriages, and we all enjoyed seeing a 1926 Model T kept in one of the garage buildings that date from the Strathearn family’s time. Margaret chuckled and called it a “bug eyed monster.”

Strathearn_ModelT

Other buildings we saw included the local library, built in 1930 and used until 1962; a barbershop; several barns and farm outbuildings with extensive period equipment displayed; and a former garage restyled as a general store and used as the park’s gift shop.

Admission is $3 for adults. Much but not all of the park is wheelchair accessible. Several buildings cannot be entered by wheelchair, although we could see into the library fairly well from outside. With help we lifted Margaret’s wheelchair up one step into the adobe. She could not go up to the Victorian era part of Strathearn House, however, nor could she enter the Colony House.

The park does not have a café or snack bar. We had stopped for lunch on our way to the park in any event, at a sandwich shop nearby that we found on Yelp, Old School Sandwiches & Salads. We all enjoyed our various sandwiches – roast beef, tuna, and chicken – and the two of us were impressed with the chili we had with our half sandwich combos. It seemed nicely made from scratch, with several types of beans and a nice blend of meat, vegetables, and mild spices. They use fresh bakery bread for their sandwiches and pride themselves on fresh and mostly local ingredients. We recommend them to anyone in the area.

Stagecoach Inn Museum

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Stagecoach Inn Museum
Newbury Park
September 21, 2014

We went west, into Ventura County, to see the Stagecoach Inn Museum in Newbury Park. As with some of our other recent outings, we found out about it through the Passport 2 History program and booklet. There are several different buildings on the grounds; the old inn is the main building. The original building was built in 1876, the nation’s centennial, and named the Grand Union Hotel. The building lasted nearly a century. The original porches were removed when it became a military academy in the 1930’s, and it was relocated to the current site in order to widen the Ventura Freeway. Unfortunately, the original building burned to the ground in 1970. It had been extensively documented and photographed, and there was a great outpouring of community support which enabled it to be rebuilt essentially as it was before. It reopened in 1976. It has been furnished with excellent period furniture and artifacts.

Stagecoach1

The three of us all toured the ground floor of that main building together with a docent who explained a number of the items to us. He showed us historic photos and explained the history of the area and its prominent families. In the kitchen, he turned us over to two junior docents, elementary school age girls who explained to us what the various kitchen items were and how they were used, including two butter churns, an ice chest, flat irons, and a telephone which had been on a party line. Margaret remembered that the family’s summer cottage on Pleasant Pond in Maine had a party line. She told us later over coffee that her family’s ring had been two long rings and one short. She said when you used the party line you could hear the sound of neighbors hanging up.

Since Margaret could not go up to the second floor of the main building, she and Meredith stayed downstairs and took a close look at six different antique dresses from the 1880s and 1890s that are displayed on dress forms down there. They were quite nice and had some intricate embroidery and other details. Bob toured the upstairs of the main building with a college student docent. The upstairs includes both a family wing and a guest wing. There is a bed up there with a turned wood bedstead. It is the only piece in the museum that was part of the collection before the 1970 fire; it had been removed for restoration. It is called the “Lincoln Bed” because the tradition is that it had belonged to Abraham Lincoln’s son or grandson.

We then went over to the carriage house where a different docent explained the two stagecoaches on display. One is an antique stagecoach which was actually used, although where it was used and by whom is not known. Next to it is a replica stagecoach which was built for and used in filming movies. It is designed to look like the classic red Wells Fargo stagecoaches. Outside the carriage house is a pony cart made to look like a miniature stagecoach.

Stagecoach2

We also looked into the blacksmith shop and walked down to the Newbury House. The latter building is a replica of the home in which the Newbury family lived, in what is now Thousand Oaks, near the current Performing Arts Center. The docent at that building explained that the Newburys had written many letters to relatives back East describing their home, and they documented it so well that the museum staff are confident the replica is very close to the original.

Finally, we walked over to the Timber School building, also a replica. The surrounding area used to be called Timberville, before it was renamed Newbury Park. The school building is a classic one room schoolhouse furnished with old wooden desks. It has been built to match the original schoolhouse, as depicted in a late 19th century photograph that hangs in the main building of the museum.

We enjoyed our visit. There is ample free parking, and admission was modest: $5 per adult, $4 dollars for seniors. Wheelchair access is limited. As noted, we did not take Margaret up to the second floor of the main building. There is no ramp access to get inside the Newbury House, the path down to the adobe is too steep for a wheelchair, and the threshold of the school building was a bit high. We were able to see into the schoolhouse and Newbury House, however, and there was plenty to see in the main building, carriage house, and blacksmith shed.

We ate before we went to the museum. We stopped at a small local Mexican restaurant called El Sancho Loco Taqueria in Newbury Park. The prices were quite reasonable, and the ingredients were fresh and of good quality. The food was plain. Margaret enjoyed her quesadilla, and Bob and Meredith enjoyed the daily special, two beef tostadas. It is a casual place, with ordering at the counter and food brought to the table. They were quite generous with the quantity of tortilla chips served on the side! The server was pleasant and helpful.

Leonis Adobe

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Leonis Adobe
Calabasas
July 12, 2014

We spent some time visiting family back East so did not make it up to Los Angeles for a month. In July, Meredith and our youngest daughter took Margaret to the historic Leonis Adobe in Calabasas; Bob missed this particular outing. We have all been to the adobe before. Meredith’s sister Kathleen first suggested it. It is a popular destination for school groups, which we think is how Kathleen first learned of it.

The adobe is named for Miguel Leonis who owned it from sometime in the 1870’s until his death in 1889. The buildings, exhibits, and animals recreate life on a California ranch in the 1880’s.

The adobe is the main building on the site. It is well furnished with period furniture and artifacts. Other buildings on site include the Plummer House, moved there from West Hollywood and known as the oldest house in Hollywood, as well as a windmill, a couple of barns, and other outbuildings. The barns house old wagons and carriages, blacksmith tools, and miscellaneous other items.

The Leonis Adobe grounds are also home to a selection of animals typical of livestock one would have found on a ranch in California in the 1880’s. On this visit we admired the horses and cattle, patted the goats, and visited the fowl.

Leonis photo_1

It was a hot day, and Margaret was dragging a bit. Since the buildings are authentic historic buildings, they are not air conditioned, so perhaps it would have been wiser to save this visit for the winter time. But we managed by using the shade and lingering in the interiors, out of the sun.

There is a large corps of interested and enthusiastic docents. It seems as if every time we turned around there was a docent eager to point something out or explain something. They wear period costumes but, as one docent was at pains to explain, they are not “in character;” that is, they do not pretend to be period characters on the ranch, they function as present day guides and resources. In addition to running a site which is a great destination in itself, the Leonis Adobe association sponsors the Passport 2 History program, a website and booklet with information on a number of historic sites throughout Southern and Central California.

The parking lot is fairly small, but seems to be adequate for the number of visitors. When we went there was a farmer’s market across the street and market shoppers were paying to park in the lot for the adobe, but since we were visiting it we did not have to pay.

Because these are historic buildings, wheelchair access to a few rooms is limited. The museum has made a real effort to add access through ramps where possible, and the docents are helpful.

We ate lunch at the Sagebrush Cantina, right next to the adobe. It is a large restaurant which serves mainly Mexican food. Margaret had a quesadilla; Meredith ordered a (sort of) health oriented soft taco choice. All of us enjoyed our food.