Pío Pico State Historic Park is the site of El Ranchito, also known as the Pío Pico Adobe or Pío Pico Mansion, the final home of

Pío Pico Don (honorific), Don Pío de Jesús Pico IV (May 5, 1801 – September 11, 1894) was a California politician, ranchero, and entrepreneur, famous for serving as the List of governors of California before 1850, last governor of Alta California und ...

, the last

governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

Alta California Alta California (, ), also known as Nueva California () among other names, was a province of New Spain formally established in 1804. Along with the Baja California peninsula, it had previously comprised the province of , but was made a separat ...

under Mexican rule and a pivotal figure in early California history. Located in

Whittier, California Whittier () is a city in Los Angeles County, California, and is part of the Gateway Cities. The city had 87,306 residents as of the 2020 United States census, an increase of 1,975 from the 2010 United States census, 2010 census figure. Whittier ...

, at 6003 Pioneer Blvd. near Whittier Blvd. and

Interstate 605 Interstate 605 (abbreviated I-605, officially known as the San Gabriel River Freeway and locally referred to as The 605) is a major north–south auxiliary Interstate Highway in the Greater Los Angeles urban area of Southern California. I ...

, it is

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 ...

No. 127, listed as "Casa de Governor Pío Pico". Just west of the park is the San Gabriel River. Across the river is the city that bears his name—

Pico Rivera Pico Rivera is a city located in southeastern Los Angeles County, California. The city is situated approximately southeast of downtown Los Angeles, on the eastern edge of the Los Angeles basin, and on the southern edge of the area known as the ...

. The park consists of the adobe and about three acres of surrounding land.

History

Starting in 1848, after the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...

, Pío Pico began acquiring the

Rancho Paso de Bartolo Rancho Paso de Bartolo also called Rancho Paso de Bartolo Viejo was a Mexican land grant in present-day Los Angeles County, California given in 1835 by Governor Jose Figueroa to Juan Crispin Perez. The name refers to a San Gabriel River ford ca ...

, and built a home in 1853. The home was damaged by the flooding of 1867, which set the San Gabriel River to its present course, and was nearly destroyed in 1882 by flooding. The structure was completely redone into its current form, adding American-style elements into the traditional

Californio Californios (singular Californio) are Californians of Spaniards, Spanish descent, especially those descended from settlers of the 17th through 19th centuries before California was annexed by the United States. California's Spanish language in C ...

design. In 1892, Pio Pico was evicted from the property by Bernard Cohn, an American lawyer. When taking what he thought was a

loan In finance, a loan is the tender of money by one party to another with an agreement to pay it back. The recipient, or borrower, incurs a debt and is usually required to pay interest for the use of the money. The document evidencing the deb ...

from Cohn in 1883, Pico, who could not read or write English, had conveyed the

deed A deed is a legal document that is signed and delivered, especially concerning the ownership of property or legal rights. Specifically, in common law, a deed is any legal instrument in writing which passes, affirms or confirms an interest, right ...

for the property, and courts ruled with Cohn. Pico died a pauper two years later at his daughter's home. By 1898 the City of Whittier began buying up parts of the property to construct a water pumping facility. In 1907, local Whittier citizens, led by

Harriet Williams Russell Strong Harriet Russell Strong ( Harriet Williams Russell; July 23, 1844 – September 6, 1926) was an American social activist, inventor, businesswoman, conservationist, and leading figure of the early woman's movement. She has been inducted int ...

, were able to have the site made a historic monument. Strong, who had known Pico since 1867, purchased the property and had it restored in 1909. The property was conveyed to the

State of California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

in 1917 and designated one of its first State Historic Parks in 1927. The State of California did further renovations in 1944. The Adobe was seriously damaged in the

1987 Whittier Narrows earthquake The 1987 Whittier Narrows earthquake occurred in the southern San Gabriel Valley and surrounding communities of Southern California, United States, at on October 1. The moderate magnitude 5.9 blind thrust earthquake was centered several miles ...

, forcing closure. While funds were being raised for restoration, the additional damage was caused by the

1994 Northridge earthquake The 1994 Northridge earthquake affected Greater Los Angeles, California, on January 17, 1994, at 04:30:55 PST. The epicenter of the moment 6.7 () blind thrust earthquake was beneath the San Fernando Valley. Lasting approximately 8 seconds ...

. Finally, in 1996 a

Los Angeles County Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles and sometimes abbreviated as LA County, is the most populous county in the United States, with 9,663,345 residents estimated in 2023. Its population is greater than that of 40 individua ...

proposition A proposition is a statement that can be either true or false. It is a central concept in the philosophy of language, semantics, logic, and related fields. Propositions are the object s denoted by declarative sentences; for example, "The sky ...

earmarked US$2.5 million for the park's restoration. Restoration of the structure began in 2000 and the historic landscape in 2002, with the park re-opened on 20 September 2003. At the re-opening ceremonies, the

Battle of Rio San Gabriel A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force c ...

, which occurred nearby during the

, was re-enacted.

Proposed for closure

Pio Pico State Historic Park was one of the 48

California state parks California State Parks is the state park system for the U.S. state of California. The system is administered by the California Department of Parks and Recreation, a department under the California Natural Resources Agency. The California State ...

proposed for closure in January 2008 by California's Governor

Arnold Schwarzenegger Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger (born July30, 1947) is an Austrian and American actor, businessman, former politician, and former professional bodybuilder, known for his roles in high-profile action films. Governorship of Arnold Schwarzenegger, ...

as part of a deficit reduction program. None of the proposed closures occurred then, however, the park was again targeted along with some seventy state parks for closure in 2011 by Governor

Jerry Brown Edmund Gerald Brown Jr. (born April 7, 1938) is an American lawyer, author, and politician who served as the 34th and 39th governor of California from 1975 to 1983 and 2011 to 2019. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic P ...

. The Friends of Pio Pico and the City of Whittier together raised $80,000 to keep the park from closing.

California Historical Landmark

Marker No. 127 at the site reads: *''NO. 127 CASA DE GOVERNOR PÍO PICO - Following the Mexican War, Pío Pico, last Mexican governor, acquired 9,000-acre Rancho Paso de Bartolo and built here an adobe home that was destroyed by the floods of 1883-1884. His second adobe casa, now known as Pío Pico Mansion, represents a compromise between Mexican and American cultures. While living here the ex-Governor was active in the development of American California.''

Appearances in popular culture

The historic park was featured by

Huell Howser Huell Burnley Howser (October 18, 1945 – January 7, 2013) was an American television personality, actor, producer, writer, singer, and voice artist, best known for hosting, producing, and writing ''California's Gold'' and his human interest sh ...

in ''California's Golden Parks'' Episode 127.

References

External links

Pio Pico State Historic Park
official website.
About the Pio Pico State Historic Park
California State Parks. {{Protected areas of California, SP Adobe buildings and structures in California Buildings and structures in Whittier, California California State Historic Parks Museums in Los Angeles County, California Historic house museums in California Parks in Los Angeles County, California History of Los Angeles County, California History of Los Angeles Houses in Los Angeles County, California California Historical Landmarks Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in California Buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in Los Angeles County, California San Gabriel Valley Protected areas established in 1927