A 19th-century hacienda, Rancho Guajome Adobe, is located in Rancho Guajome Adobe County Park on North Santa Fe Avenue in Vista, San Diego County, California. In 1970, it was listed as a National Historic Landmark for being a well-preserved but late example of Spanish-Mexican colonial architecture, built-in 1852–53. It is also a California Historical Landmark and a National Register of Historic Places listing.
The adobe is surrounded by wetland and open space, home to various animals, including raccoons, ring-necked pheasants, white-tailed kites, least Bell’s vireos, and great horned owls. Take a walk! Hiking, biking, and horseback riding are available on the 112-acre park’s non-motorized multi-use pathways. The gardens, verdant lawn spaces, and day-use picnic tables offer a tranquil setting for a picnic.
The Rancho Guajome Adobe was constructed in 1852 as the headquarters of Rancho Guajome, a Mexican land grant. Abel Stearns gave the rancho as a wedding gift to his wife Arcadia Bandini’s sister in 1851.
This one-story adobe ranch house and its associated outbuildings are pristine and unspoiled examples of a large Spanish Colonial hacienda with a two-courtyard configuration. The main house’s thick-walled, red-tile roofed facade is 111 feet by 118 feet and is built around the four corners of a rectangle, providing a vast enclosed patio or inner courtyard. The 21 resident rooms open out into the balcony, which has a fountain in the middle and is covered with orange trees, shrubs, flowers, and vines, through an interior hallway or veranda. Click for more
The pantry, bakery, kitchen, and dining room are located in the west wing. In contrast, the main family living rooms are located in the middle or south half. An arcaded veranda runs the length of the south portion’s exterior wall, and its roof is topped in the center by a tiny frame lookout. Numerous bedrooms may be found in both the east and north wings. A gate or corridor on the north side, at the east corner, goes out to the vast carriage or outside courtyard, which is 118 by 85 feet on the outside. This yard is totally surrounded by adobe service facilities erected on three sides of the rectangle on the north side of the main house.
Located on the outer courtyard east wall is the main gate with big wooden doors. In an Indian invasion, this arrangement of two-enclosed courtyards provided an immediate defense. Unlike most other Spanish-Mexican ranches in the United States, the Rancho Guajome’s historic service structures have been preserved almost whole. The prison, blacksmith shop, horse stables, carriage house, and harness room are located around the perimeter of the outer courtyard. Most of the original tools and equipment remain in these structures. In addition, a family chapel, a servants’ residence, and many barns and sheds may be found outside the courtyard.
Looking for a unique location? Events like weddings, parties, and other social events can be held in the gardens and grounds. You may reach them at (760) 724-4082 for more information regarding reservations and such at 2210 N. Santa Fe Ave., Vista, CA 92083. A great place to also visit is