The Casa de Rancho Cucamonga, commonly known as the John Rains House, is a historic house located at 8810 Hemlock St. in Rancho Cucamonga, California. (search for "8810 Hemlock St") The house was built in 1860–1861 after John Rains purchased the

Rancho Cucamonga Rancho Cucamonga was a Mexican land grant in present-day San Bernardino County, California, given in 1839 to the dedicated soldier, smuggler and politician Tiburcio Tapia by Mexican governor Juan Bautista Alvarado. The grant formed parts of pr ...

land grant in 1858 from the Tapia estate. The brick house featured its own cooling system, which used ducts to send creek water under the house. John Rains was a prominent businessman and socialite who opened California's first commercial winery, and his house hosted lavish parties for other local elites. Rains' fortunes soon took a turn for the worse, though; he had to mortgage the house after several business failings, and in 1862 he was murdered. Maria Merced Williams, Rains' wife, who had originally inherited the property from her father, attempted to regain ownership after Rains' death but the rancho was gradually parceled out until she lost the entire property in the 1870s due in part to Rains arranging through his personal attorney to have only his name listed on the deed to all the properties. Through this lawyer the properties were signed over to his brother-in-law who gained his property from marrying Merced William's sister who had received it as the other half of the inheritance. . The house was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

on April 24, 1973. It is currently open to the public as a

historic house museum A historic house museum is a house of historic significance that has been transformed into a museum. Historic furnishings may be displayed in a way that reflects their original placement and usage in a home. Historic house museums are held to a ...

and is a branch site of the San Bernardino County Museum.

References

Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in California Houses completed in 1861 National Register of Historic Places in San Bernardino County, California Historic house museums in California 1861 establishments in California Houses in San Bernardino County, California Museums in San Bernardino County, California {{SanBernardinoCountyCA-NRHP-stub