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Photographer: Michael Kindig
Taken: November 9, 2010
Caption: Home for Conquistador, An Office for Leo
Additional Description: Built into the sloping hillside is a large, three-tier barn and stable complex. The lower level included a bullpen, corral, windmill, watering trough, and wash station. Adjacent to the lower porch, there are six stables. The stable was the central point of the working rancho. At the peak of operation, Leo had more than 600 head of cattle, including his prized Hereford, Diamond Domino, a grift from Foster Farms.

It is believed that Leo's beloved horse, Conquistador, was kept in the largest end stall. There was in illuminated cross hung from a vertical support beam above this stall, perhaps to honor Conquistador's memory. The second level included a work and storage area. An office and bunkroom are located on the third level of the complex. Some of Leo's most honored guests were invited to spend the night in the bunkroom, on a three-tiered bunk bed!

"The tall cross on the hill at my rancho marks the resting place of my greatly-beloved Palomono horse, Conquistador. I do not consider it strange that I thus hallow the grave of a horse … Further, I loved this horse greatly. He typified, for me, all the magic yesteryears of California when caballeros rode like centaurs amid these same rounded hills and the neighing of their stallions drowned the voice of the wind itself."

It is still a mystery. Where is Conquistador buried? For many years, people believed that Conquistador was burned on the crest of a nearby hill, in a grave marked by a large wooden cross and a low-lying adobe wall. Plans for development, and the expansion of Melrose Drive threatened the gravesite. Archaeologists, paleontologists, and geologists were called to the site in an attempt to thoroughly document the site prior to construction. After three hours of trenching with a backhoe, researchers were unable to discover the exact location of Conquistador's grave. The marker was removed and is being temporarily stored until a suitable display location at the ranch can be determined.
Submitted: January 6, 2012, by Michael Kindig of Elk Grove, California.
Database Locator Identification Number: p188220
File Size: 3.023 Megabytes

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