Rancho Guajome Adobe in Vista, CA
I'm very interested in early California history. My book about ranchos of San Diego County led me to the Rancho Guajome Adobe County Park. This 7,000 square foot home was built in 1853. It is a pretty setting and a beautiful home. The home is nicely furnished with some furniture given by the former owners, as well as period pieces donated to give an idea what life in the home might have been like. The biggest surprise to me was a Mason & Hamlin organ. There is a huge adobe oven, well, cisterns, a school room, large church bell, blacksmith shop and lovely chapel. The rear of the home is a large courtyard with a tack room and stables. There is a nice video about the Luiseno people who still live in the area.
The walls of the home are several feet thick, so the rooms stay cool. Each room has a window on the garden courtyard and to the outside of the hacienda to allow a breeze to pass through. It was interesting to see how the two biggest problems of the area - extreme summer heat and lack of water - were solved in the construction of the house.
The parking lot is in front of the bathrooms. On the other side of the bathrooms is a building displaying farm equipment. This is the back of the property. In the same building, to the left is the entrance. Admission is $3 per person. The entrance has displays of the history of the Couts family, examples of the art and tools of indigenous peoples and more. We were grateful to be there when a docent was present. She introduced us to the property and gave us a good overview. There is a nice self-guided tour pamphlet available.
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