Desert Magazine of the Southwest

The Last Governor
of Mexican California
•WOULD GOVERNOR Pio Pico have
nU approved of the 605 Freeway and
II the steady stream of motorized traffic
only a stone's throw to the east of his
beloved "El Ranchito?" Would he have
welcomed today's four-lane paved Whittier
Boulevard to the north of the rancho,
where in Pico's day squeaky ox-drawn
cairetas loaded with fruits and vegetables
meandered along the dusty-insuinmer
or muddy-in-winter "county
road" on tedious journeys to the San
C ibriel Mission or the Pueblo of Los
Angeles? What about the flood control
basins where in the old days the San
Gabriel River used to flow unchecked,
and the freight trains now rattling along
the Southern Pacific overpass, on the
west side of his ranch? What would
Governor Pico have thought about all
this—progress?
El Ranchito, home of the last Governor
of Mexican California, lies almost forgotten
beside the bustle and roar of the
freeway, originally called "San Gabriel
by KATHERINE SHEEHEY
River Freeway," and Whittier Boulevard.
A state park ranger presides over
the spacious grounds and what remains
of Don Pio Pico's "little" ranch, now designated
"State Historical Landmark No.
127." The ranch was much larger in
Pico's heyday. Nevertheless, what survives
is a haunting symbol of California's
transition from Mexican to American
rule. Pio Pico played a leading part in the
cultural and economic development of
American California in a surprising turn-
Brick-paved
patio of Don
Pio Pico's
"El
Ranchito."
Covered porch
with stairs to
the second
floor may be
seen at left
rear. Huge
ash tree
towers over
the structure
at upper right
of picture.
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