USMC Camp Pendleton - The Ranch House

Ranch House reveals Pendleton's past By Cpl. Shannon E. McMillan | | January 14, 2010

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Many have driven up the pathway leading to the Camp Pendleton Rancho Santa Margarita Ranch House, but few know the history of one of the oldest structures on base. Starting Jan. 20, the Ranch House staff will conduct regular open house tours, in which docents will guide visitors through the historical site every Wednesday.

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Participants who venture to the Camp Pendleton Rancho Santa Margarita Ranch House will have the same opportunity to see for themselves, this courtyard that was enjoyed by generals, who were once residents of the property. Starting Jan. 20, the Ranch House staff will conduct regular open house tours, in which docents will guide visitors through the historical site every Wednesday.

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This passageway at Camp Pendleton’s Rancho Santa Margarita Ranch House was a milestone for engineers in the early 1800s. Many presidents and generals have passed through this gate. Starting Jan. 20, the Ranch House staff will conduct regular open house tours, in which docents will guide visitors through the historical site every month.

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MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. -- If walls could talk, the visitors of Camp Pendleton’s Rancho Santa Margarita Ranch House would be hearing the experiences of the old cattle ranchers’ way of life.The Rancho Santa Margarita Ranch House, known on base simply as “The Ranch House,” is located at the corner of Vandegrift boulevard and Basilone road.

 Many of the base’s occupants know of the Ranch House, but few are aware of its extended history and the important role it played in the development of Camp Pendleton.
Before Marines called this land their own, in 1810 the Pio Pico family began their stay on this land at what is currently the chapel on the Ranch House’s property while construction of the main house took place. Once completed, the family moved to the main structure and turned the other building into a winery. As time progressed, the winery became a tool shed. The property then went through several ownerships before the U.S. government took possession of the land in 1942. It was transitioned into a chapel for Women Marines a year later.
The Ranch House is the oldest structure on base, built with white adobe walls as thick as 9 feet. Its rooms are filled with historical artifacts from previous owners that provide an interactive immersion into California and American history. The house also reveals many special historical moments such as several U.S. presidential visits.
One room, known as “The Presidents Room,” is where several U.S. presidents have rested during their visit to Camp Pendleton. Several photographs of the presidents’ visits line the walls of the room, which include Richard Nixon, George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush.
The Ranch House is now a museum, but at one time it was the base generals’ residence.
Since the 1940s, every commanding general of Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton and their family have called the Ranch House home. However, in 2007, Maj. Gen. Michael R. Lehnert and his family were the last to reside there before the entire facility was opened to the public.

 Since then, tours of the Ranch House grounds have been available to patrons on a request only basis. Starting Jan. 20, the Ranch House staff will conduct regular open house tours, in which docents will guide visitors through the historical site every month.
“This will enable those who want to come and visit Camp Pendleton the opportunity to learn about a historic landmark,” said Faye Jonason, director, History of Museums, Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton. “Patrons will learn that the Ranch House is not only a historical significance to the U.S. military but to California as well.”
For more information about the Ranch House, or if interested in attending an open house, 
call (760) 725-3146.