Rancho Guajome Adobe is a historic 19th-century

hacienda A ''hacienda'' ( or ; or ) is an estate (or '' finca''), similar to a Roman '' latifundium'', in Spain and the former Spanish Empire. With origins in Andalusia, ''haciendas'' were variously plantations (perhaps including animals or orchards ...

(and now a

historic house museum A historic house museum is a house of historic significance that is preserved as 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 variety of ...

) in Rancho Guajome Adobe County Park, on North Santa Fe Avenue in

Vista Vista may refer to: Software *Windows Vista, the line of Microsoft Windows client operating systems released in 2006 and 2007 * VistA, (Veterans Health Information Systems and Technology Architecture) a medical records system of the United States ...

San Diego County, California San Diego County (), officially the County of San Diego, is a county (United States), county in the southwest corner of the U.S. state of California, north to its Mexico-United States border, border with Mexico. As of the 2020 United States Cen ...

. Built in 1852–53, it is a well-preserved but late example of Spanish-Mexican colonial architecture, and was designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...

in 1970. It is also a

California Historical Landmark A California Historical Landmark (CHL) is a building, structure, site, or place in the U.S. state of California that has been determined to have statewide historical landmark significance. Criteria Historical significance is determined by meetin ...

and on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

Description

Rancho Guajome Adobe is located in the northwestern part of Vista, on the south side of North Santa Fe Avenue. It is located just east of Guajome County Park, a larger park on the north side of the road. The adobe complex includes the main house, around which are arrayed a number of outbuildings. The main house is a large, rambling, 20-room, Spanish Colonial-style hacienda with two

courtyard A courtyard or court is a circumscribed area, often surrounded by a building or complex, that is open to the sky. Courtyards are common elements in both Western and Eastern building patterns and have been used by both ancient and contemporary a ...

s, and an

arcade Arcade most often refers to: * Arcade game, a coin-operated video, pinball, electro-mechanical, redemption, etc., game ** Arcade video game, a coin-operated video game ** Arcade cabinet, housing which holds an arcade video game's hardware ** Arcad ...

veranda A veranda (also spelled verandah in Australian and New Zealand English) is a roofed, open-air hallway or porch, attached to the outside of a building. A veranda is often partly enclosed by a railing and frequently extends across the front an ...

. The arches on the veranda are not original to the house, however; they were added in the 1920s during the height of

Mission Mission (from Latin 'the act of sending out'), Missions or The Mission may refer to: Geography Australia *Mission River (Queensland) Canada *Mission, British Columbia, a district municipality * Mission, Calgary, Alberta, a neighbourhood * ...

and

Spanish Colonial Revival architecture The Spanish Colonial Revival architecture (), often known simply as Spanish Revival, is a term used to encompass a number of revivalist architectural styles based in both Spanish colonial architecture and Spanish architecture in general. Thes ...

. The outbuildings include stables, a blacksmith shop, chapel, and carriage house. and

History

The

adobe Adobe (from arabic: الطوب Attub ; ) is a building material made from earth and organic materials. is Spanish for mudbrick. In some English-speaking regions of Spanish heritage, such as the Southwestern United States, the term is use ...

was built in 1852 and served as the headquarters of

Rancho Guajome Rancho Guajome was a Mexican land grant in present-day San Diego County, California, given in 1845 by Governor Pío Pico to Indian brothers Andrés and José Manuel. The name comes from a Luiseño phrase involving the word "frog", likely ''wakh ...

, a

Mexican land grant In Alta California (now known as California) and Baja California, ranchos were concessions and land grants made by the Spanish and Mexican governments from 1775 to 1846. The Spanish concessions of land were made to retired soldiers as an indu ...

Abel Stearns Abel Stearns (February 9, 1798 – August 23, 1871) was an American trader who came to the Pueblo de Los Angeles, Alta California in 1829 and became a major landowner and cattle rancher and one of the area's wealthiest citizens. Early life Stea ...

had given the rancho to Ysidora Bandini (sister of his wife Arcadia Bandini), as a wedding gift when she married Lieutenant Cave Johnson Couts in 1851. It was built with the profits from the cattle boom of the 1850s, when many California ranchos supplied the Gold Rush miners and associated new American immigrants with meat and leather.Historyandculture.com: Guajome adobe
. accessed 9.6.2012 Couts was appointed sub-agent for the native

Luiseño people The Luiseño or Payómkawichum are an Indigenous people of California who, at the time of the first contacts with the Spanish in the 16th century, inhabited the coastal area of southern California, ranging from the present-day southern part of L ...

(San Luis Rey

Mission Indians Mission Indians was a term used to refer to the Indigenous peoples of California who lived or grew up in the Spanish mission system in California. Today the term is used to refer to their descendants and to specific, contemporary tribal nations ...

) in 1853. He used their labor to improve his properties in the area, including this one and nearby Rancho Buena Vista and Rancho Vallecitos de San Marcos. Rancho Guajome 1-1

Ownership of the rancho eventually passed from the Couts family to Mrs. Ida Kunzell Richardson and her two children, Belda and Earl (born in 1919 and 1920, respectively, during her 7-year marriage to Fred C. Wehmeyer). Ida petitioned for a divorce from Wehmeyer in 1923 and it was finalized in 1925. Sometime in the 1920s Ida, Belda and Earl Richardson moved into the Rancho Guajome Adobe and the family lived with Cave Couts, Jr. until his death in 1943. Cave Johnson Couts III, son of Cave Johnson Couts, Jr., died in 1948 (5 years after his father). This left Ida Richardson and both of her children with a life estate on the ranch as provided for them in the will of Cave Couts, Jr. in exchange for her years of faithful service as his housekeeper and companion. Mrs. Richardson's son, Earl "Sonny" Richardson, ran the ranch until the County of San Diego purchased it for just over $1,000,000 as a result of condemnation proceedings finalized in 1973. Beginning in the 1970s, the county undertook a major rehabilitation of the property, which was completed in 1996. It is now the centerpiece of a county park in size. Guided and self-guided tours are available, and the park facilities are available for special events.

References

External links

San Diego Parks - Rancho Guajome Adobe
* {{Clear G Houses completed in 1853 Houses in San Diego County, California Historic house museums in California Museums in San Diego County, California Parks in San Diego County, California California Historical Landmarks National Historic Landmarks in California Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in California National Register of Historic Places in San Diego County, California History of San Diego County, California Vista, California

Description

History

See also

References

External links