Castro Adobe

The Rancho San Andrés Castro Adobe is a historically and architecturally significant house located in the Pájaro Valley, California. The two-story Rancho San Andrés Castro Adobe is a historic rancho hacienda that was built between 1848 and 1849.^[2]

Jose Joaquin Castro Adobe
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
California Historical Landmark No. 998
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Nearest city	Watsonville, California
Coordinates	36°56′46″N 121°48′40″W
Area	less than one acre
Built	1848–1849
Architect	José Joaquín Castro
Architectural style	Monterey Colonial
NRHP reference No.	76000531[1]
CHISL No.	998
Added to NRHP	December 12, 1976

History

Photograph from the 1930s of the Historic American Buildings Survey (photographer unknown).

The house was built in 1848–1849 by Juan José Castro. His father Jose Joaquin Castro (1768–1838), came to California as a 6-year-old with his family from Sinaloa Mexico on the 1775–1776 Anza Expedition. Jose Joaquín Castro received this Mexican land grant Rancho San Andrés in the area of present-day Watsonville, California. It had the first dance floor (fandango room) in Santa Cruz County, California, and one of the first indoor kitchens (cocina). It is the only two-story hacienda ever built in Santa Cruz County.^[3]

The house was added to the National Register of Historic Places listings in Santa Cruz County, California on December 12, 1976.^[1] It is California Historical Landmark number 998.^[4] The adobe was severely damaged in the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. One wall had completely collapsed, and the house needed seismic retrofitting before being safe for the public. Owner Edna Kimbro sold it to the state of California in 2002. Starting in August 2007, Friends of California State Parks volunteers and the California Conservation Corps began restoration by making 2,500 adobe bricks.^[5] Almost 100 members of the Castro family held a reunion at the site in 2008.^[6]

The Rancho San Andrés Castro Adobe Park Property is currently (2024) open to the public only by appointment, special event, or free scheduled open house tour. Tour registration is via the website.

The Castro Adobe in 2012.

References

1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
2. "Rancho San Andrés Castro Adobe". California Department of Parks and Recreation. Retrieved 7 July 2022.
3. Todd Guild (January 16, 2010). "Castro Adobe taking shape". Watsonville Register-Pajaronian. Archived from the original on July 15, 2011. Retrieved May 22, 2010.
4. "California Historical Landmark: Santa Cruz County". Office of Historic Preservation. California State Parks. Retrieved 2012-10-14.
5. Todd Guild (August 31, 2007). "Volunteers make 2,500 bricks from dirt, water and straw for Castro Adobe". Watsonville Register-Pajaronian. Archived from the original on July 15, 2011. Retrieved May 22, 2010.
6. Tarmo Hannula (October 13, 2008). "Castros reunite at historic adobe home". Watsonville Register-Pajaronian. Archived from the original on June 14, 2015. Retrieved June 4, 2015.

External links

• Office of Historic Preservation — entry #998
• Friends of Santa Cruz State Parks — website on the Castro Adobe
• Chronicling the Castro Adobe — a restoration blog