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We've been invited to visit and paint at this special place: the Scarlett/McGrath Ranch in Oxnard. The owner has animals you may see, including Belgian draft horses. Significant buildings besides the Queen Anne Victorian house include the following: a barn constructed between 1929 and 1934 located approx 260 feet east of the farmhouse, and a small brick building that appears to have historically functioned as a tank house and is currently in use as a residence, and a turn of the century former tractor shed/current garage approx 130 feet northeast of the farmhouse.Tues, March 3, 12 to 4pm
Location: 5011 West Gonzales Road, Oxnard
**We will not be going inside. No restroom.
For parking, enter thru the second gate labeled 'Deliveries.' Please do not block views of the house.
[Photo credit: Stephen Schafer]
[Tour the house https://www.behance.net/gallery/174401071/Scarlett-McGrath-House-Oxnard-CA]
Here's the county landmark description:
VC LMK No. 144. Also listed in the National Register.
Scarlett/McGrath Ranch House
Description: This 2-1/2 story Queen Anne/Eastlake residence was built in 1889 for one of the first settlers and prominent ranchers of the Oxnard Plain, John Scarlett. The house was built on a portion of the Mexican land grant "El Rio de Santa Clara o la Colonia" given to eight Santa Barbara presidio soldiers in 1837. In 1932, the ranch was purchased from the Scarlett heirs by the Dominick McGrath Estate.
Here's a little background on the local McGrath family:
On The Oxnard Plain since 1868, The McGraths have been farming on the coast of Southern California for five generations. The farmland is rich with the deepest topsoil and even richer in family traditions dating back to Dominick, the family patriarch…. By the time Dominick had lived out his life, over 700 acres were acquired. But it was his four sons – Hugo, Robert, Frank and Joseph – who built the ranches to more than 5,000 acres between Ventura and Port Hueneme along the coast. It was in the draw of cards in 1948 when all the ranches were divided by the four sons.
In the decades following son Robert McGrath's acquisition of Scarlett Ranch, the property was passed down through the McGrath family. Ventura County Superior Court Judge Charles McGrath (grandson of Robert McGrath, and great-grandson of Dominick), and his wife Beverlee McGrath moved to the property in 1970. In addition to raising four children on the property, Beverlee was an actress, singer, and a lobbyist and activist for animal rights. She continues to reside on the property, which is still farmed by the McGrath family (Ventura County Star Free Press 1967).
Ownership of Scarlett Ranch appears to have transferred from the Scarlett family to the McGrath family in 1932. The McGrath family owned the 1,453-acre ranch immediately west of Scarlett Ranch. The McGraths's, specifically Dominick McGrath and his wife Bridget, were Ventura County pioneers. Natives of Derry Shanogue Longford County, Northem Ireland, Dominick and Bridget made their way to Ventura County by way of Alameda County. Dominick lived and worked in Connecticut and New York City prior to landing in Alameda County. There he worked on a ranch, eventually acquiring a stake. He ultimately purchased 1,000 head of sheep, with which he produced the wool, hides and mutton that made him a wealthy man (Bodle 1977; Leonard and Bodle 1972). Along with William I. Rice and John Scarlett, Dominick McGrath was one of Rancho La Colonia's early settlers, purchasing what was later referred to as Home Ranch from Thomas Bard in circa 1878.
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5011 W Gonzales Rd, Oxnard, CA 93036-2736, United States
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