Jack London Ranch: the Beauty Ranch and nearby sites

Pig Palace at Jack London Ranch

In 1905 the America novelist Jack London (1876-1916) and his wife Charmian moved to Glen Ellen, located fifty miles north of San Francisco, nestled between Petaluma and Napa. In the early 1900's, Jack London had purchased a large ranch and buildings in the Glen Ellen neighborhood. 

Private vineyard next to Jack London Ranch with forested Sonoma Mountain hills in the back

The Jack London State Historic Park map shows the Jack London Ranch and its surroundings in detail [pdf map]. As an introduction to the park, I started with the House of Happy Walls Museum and the Wolf House ruins on my first visit in October this year. Then, I explored the Beauty Ranch. This is a wood-framed cottage, which served as the London's principal home.

The Beauty Ranch cottage

Below, I show nearby sites defining the ranch and highlighting Jack London's many interests. Descriptions and quotations taken from onsite interpretive boards supplement selected pictures. 

Old Winery ruins next to cottage, backdropped by Sonoma Mountain ridge

The Old Winery ruins are all that remains of the Kohler and Frohling winery building: “Damaged by the 1906 earthquake, the structure was later converted by the London's into living quarters for their many workers and guests.” 

Prickly Pear Cactus: spineless or not spineless?

Jack London saw fine, fat cattle in Hawaii living well on spined cactus and wanted to duplicate the success of Hawaiian ranchers. He planed this field with Spineless Prickly Pear Cactus, Opuntia avalon, developed by renowned horticulturalist Luther Burbank. Between 1907 and 1913, Burbank promoted it as cattle feed.

This experiment failed. Spineless cactus needed irrigation for rapid growth, and some plants grew back their spines.

Manure Pit

The Manure Pit was built between the stable for Shire mares (former Sherry Barn) and the Stallion barn: “The Manure Pit was constructed circa 1915. An overhead trolley was used to efficiently move manure in buckets.”

Eucalyptus crop rows

Walking from the winery ruins to the silos, Pig Palace and Smoke House, you will pass crop rows occupied by offspring trees Jack London had planted in the hope that “harvesting eucalyptus would pay for other experiments. In 1910, 15,000 seedlings cost him only $150. Eventually, heplanted 80,000 trees, of three species: E. viminalis, E. tereticornis, and E. globulus. Unfortunately, London's experiment failed. The trees were only useful as firewood.” 

Pig-pens on a circle around a central feed tower 

Bath House at London Lake

Getting there and beyond

After passing the Entrance Kiosk, turn right to the Upper Lot, which features an Equestrian Staging section. Short trails, including the 0.1 mile-short Horse Trail, connect the parking lot with ranch locations and a multitude of other trails. A dirt-road trail skirts the vineyard, leading to the old bath house at London Lake and, farther, to an amazing network of trails, which provide access to natural and recreational sites of interest—such as the Ancient Redwood—and the Sonoma Mountain Ridge Trail.

Ancient redwood tree

Today, many redwoods are preserved within California's state and national parks. They are regarded as “natural wonders not only for how long they have been on earth, but also for their height, mass, and hardiness. With trunks as straight as columns and taller than a 25-story building, redwoods have a splendor that attracts visitors from around the world.” Obviously, this one is not simply a straight giant, but branches out into strangely curved arms carrying their own straight columns and hanging branches.