San Diego in San Diego County, California — The American West (Pacific Coastal)
La Casa de Estudillo
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, May 31, 2015
1. La Casa de Estudillo Marker
1829 Large adobe-block townhouse built by José Antonio Estudillo. Included servants' quarter, work and storage rooms, living and dining rooms, and Roman Catholic chapel.
1884 Helen Hunt Jackson's Ramona published, linking the casa with marriage place of Ramona, the novel's Indian heroine.
1906 Bought by investor John D. Spreckels
1910 Restored by Hazel Wood Waterman, and afterwards promoted as “Ramona's Marriage Place.”
1932 Listed as California Historical Landmark
1969 Restored by California Parks
1970 Listed as National Historical Landmark
(Marker Number 53.)
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Settlements & Settlers. In addition, it is included in the California Historical Landmarks, and the National Historic Landmarks series lists. A significant historical year for this entry is 1829.
Location. 32° 45.261′ N, 117° 11.807′ W. Marker is in San Diego, California, in San Diego County. Marker can be reached
this page online
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. First Raising of U.S. Flag (a few steps from this marker); Estudillo House (a few steps from this marker); Juan Bandini (within shouting distance of this marker); First San Diego Courthouse (within shouting distance of this marker); La Casa de Rodriguez (within shouting distance of this marker); Casa de Pedrorena de Altamirano (within shouting distance of this marker); Birthplace of the San Diego Union (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Birthplace of The San Diego Union (about 300 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in San Diego.
Regarding La Casa de Estudillo. This is California Historical Landmark No. 53 CASA DE ESTUDILLO - Three generations of Don José María Estudillo's family made their home in Casa de Estudillo. Rich in historical background, the casa is often pointed out, erroneously, as Ramona's marriage place.
Also see . . . La Casa de Estudillo - Wikipedia. (Submitted on June 28, 2015, by Bill Pfingsten of Bel Air, Maryland.)
Additional keywords. California Historical Landmark
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, May 31, 2015
2. La Casa de Estudillo Marker
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, May 31, 2015
3. Lieutenant José Antonio Estudillo
Son of the Commandant of the Presidio of San Diego, Estudillo became a lieutenant in the Spanish army around 1824. He built this adobe house in 1827-29. Neutral in the Mexican American War, he became the first San Diego County assessor after California became part of the United States.
This c. 1830 portrait hangs in the Estudillo house.
This c. 1830 portrait hangs in the Estudillo house.
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, May 31, 2015
4. John Spreckels
Businessman John Spreckels converted the run down Estudillo house into an early 20th century tourist trap, hiring architect Hazel Wood Waterman to reconstruct it and exploiting its tenuous connection to Helen Hunt Jackson's novel Ramona by advertising it as “Ramona's Marriage Place” Close-up of image on signage in the courtyard of Estudillo House.
Photographed By A. F. Harmer
5. Helen Hunt Jackson
This photo of A.F. Harmer's painting of the author of Ramona appeared in Carlyle Channing Davis's The True Story of “Ramona” which helped fuel the Ramona Myth by attempting to identify actual people and places with the fictional people and places in Jackson's novel.
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, May 31, 2015
6. Ramona
Helen Hunt Jackson's romantic novel tells the story of Ramona, a Scottish-Native American mestizo girl who suffers racial discrimination and violence in early California. The author intended the novel to be a sort of Californian “Uncle Tom's Cabin” calling attention to the plight of Native Americans in California. photo of book cover from a display in the courtyard of Estudillo house
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, May 31, 2015
7. Ramona's Marriage Place
First identified in 1887 by the San Diego Union as “Ramona's Marriage Place”, John Spreckels turned the Estudillo house into a major tourist attraction. Close-up of photo on display in the courtyard of Estudillo house.
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, May 31, 2015
8. El Horno
This outdoor oven is one of the popular sights to be seen in the courtyard of Estudillo house.
Credits. This page was last revised on February 10, 2020. It was originally submitted on June 26, 2015, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland. This page has been viewed 645 times since then and 29 times this year. Last updated on February 10, 2020, by Craig Baker of Sylmar, California. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8. submitted on June 26, 2015, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland. • Syd Whittle was the editor who published this page.
