The Santa Paula Hardware Company Building, located in

Santa Paula, California Santa Paula (Spanish for " St. Paula") is a city in Ventura County, California, United States. Situated amid the orchards of the Santa Clara River Valley, the city advertises itself to tourists as the "Citrus Capital of the World". Santa Pa ...

, and more commonly referred to as the Union Oil Company Building, is significant for its historical importance as the birthplace of the

Union Oil Company Union Oil Company of California, and its holding company Unocal Corporation, together known as Unocal was a major petroleum explorer and marketer in the late 19th century, through the 20th century, and into the early 21st century. It was headqu ...

on October 17, 1890. Originally, the Santa Paula Hardware and Post Office were downstairs, and the Union Oil Company offices were upstairs. The building continued to serve as a field division office after the main headquarters moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

in 1900. The Ventura County Cultural Heritage Board designated the building County Landmark #36 in December 1977. The building is a

California Historical Landmark A California Historical Landmark (CHL) is a building, structure, site, or place in California that has been determined to have statewide historical landmark significance. Criteria Historical significance is determined by meeting at least one of ...

(#996) and is listed on 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 ...

(NPS-86002619).

California Oil Museum

In 1950, the Union Oil Museum was established, and in 1990, for its Centennial Celebration, the building was restored to its original appearance and reopened as the California Oil Museum. The exhibits include oil and gas industry equipment, such as an 1890s iron and timber operating drilling rig, historic gas pumps and product containers, a recreated 1890s period Union Oil Company corporate headquarters office, and a 1930s period apartment. The building is leased to the city of Santa Paula by

Chevron Chevron (often relating to V-shaped patterns) may refer to: Science and technology * Chevron (aerospace), sawtooth patterns on some jet engines * Chevron (anatomy), a bone * '' Eulithis testata'', a moth * Chevron (geology), a fold in rock la ...

References

External links

Official California Oil Museum website
Petroleum museums Museums in Ventura County, California Industry museums in California Santa Paula, California Buildings and structures in Santa Paula, California Commercial buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in California National Register of Historic Places in Ventura County, California California Historical Landmarks Queen Anne architecture in California {{California-struct-stub

California Oil Museum

See also

References

External links