Saving the Serrano Adobe

As we’ve learned during the past 10 months, it was largely the vision of Massachusetts-born entrepreneur Dwight Whiting that transformed the Aliso Valley—now known as Saddleback Valley—from a smattering of isolated farm homes and cattle camps into a cohesive agricultural community ,  and .

When Whiting suddenly passed away in 1907, the management of his remaining property fell at first to his widow, Emily. But because the Whiting family was by that time living in Los Angeles, management was conducted mostly at a distance.

However, as the Whiting sons—Dwight Anson, born in July 1891, and George Nathan, born July 1895—grew to adulthood, they developed an interest in the renovation of an adobe located a few miles from El Toro proper.

Neglect, Then Respect 

First, of course, it had to be refurbished. The adobe, the second of five belonging to the original owner, José Serrano, had been .

But a series of droughts and bad business deals brought about the loss of the adobe and almost all the family's land holdings. At that point, a Los Angles bank took over and the Serranos retreated to their remaining acreage in Santiago Canyon. As for the adobe? It languished while the senior Whiting expended most of his energies building and promoting the fledgling town of El Toro.

By the early 1930s, however, his sons decided to renovate the structure and turn it into a hunting lodge. This they did, adding on a kitchen, dining area and bedroom, but also making sure to maintain the integrity of the original building. Their efforts not only contributed to the preservation of the adobe—the only Serrano structure to survive—but also to it being designated as California Historical Landmark No. 199.

In 1958, the adobe and its surrounding 5,000 acres changed hands again, becoming the home of Mr. and Mrs. V. P. Baker, who further refurbished the structure. According to an article in the December 1991 issue of Orange Coast Magazine, they also “went to considerable effort and expense to refurnish the home, tracking down much of the Whiting furniture, which had been donated to charity when the Whitings moved out.” The photos that accompany this story are from what is now referred to as “the Baker period.”

Not a Tear-Down 

The Bakers so loved the adobe that when they finally sold their ranch to Occidental Petroleum in 1969, they did so with the provision that the Serrano Adobe would be donated to a public agency for preservation. Five years later, the adobe and almost 56 surrounding acres were deeded over to the County of Orange for creation of Heritage Hill Historical Park.

Today, the adobe is one of the park’s four historic buildings from the “old El Toro” days—and the only structure original to the site. It functions, in part, as an office for Heritage Hill's rangers, but also is included in free, docent-led tours of the park, typically scheduled Wednesdays through Fridays at 2 p.m., and Saturdays and Sundays at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.

One quick caveat: Currently, the Serrano Adobe—as was the case with St. George’s Mission and the schoolhouse—has been part of a summer reroofing project.

I have it on good authority, however, that all this work should be finished by the end of this week. So, if this column has inspired you to visit, or revisit, the Serrano Adobe—well, before you stop by, consider calling the park at 949-923-2230 or 949-923-2232.