Laguna Seca Ranch

Laguna Seca Ranch is a historic agricultural property in western Monterey County, California, United States. This ranch was founded in the mid 19th century and has revolved around family ownership for most of its history. A historic cemetery exists on the ranch property. Some of the improvements on the property are: main house, stallion barn complex, hay barn, large barn, small barn, bungalow, Free Spirit Farm (an equestrian complex devoted to use of non-toxic substances), fuel tank area, open air storage shed, swimming pool area and main office. ["Environmental Site Assessment: Laguna Seca Ranch", Earth Metrics Inc., on file with the County of Monterey (1989)]

History

The Laguna Seca Ranch was initially established in the year 1867 by Macedonio Vela Senior and his wife Mercedes Chapa Cantu. Approximately ten years earlier, Macedonio Vela Senior fled from Mexico to escape the wave of executions associated with the War of Reform. In 1867 he purchased one square league (convert|4428|acre|km2|0) pertaining to the Santa Anita Land Grant from John and Salome Balli McAllen.,

In the era spanning 1880 to 1890, he acquired more adjacent real estate holdings to yield a ranch over 75,000 acres (300 km²) in extent; during this decade he grazed cattle, horses, and mules, and became an exporter of donkeys to Cuba. The first citrus trees in Hidalgo County were planted within the ranch property. Vela's grandson, Reynaldo Vela, discovered an artesian well which supplies a lake of about five acres in size, which lake was historically and inexplicably called "Dry Lake". In the year 1975 a historical marker was placed at the ranch. In recent times family members manage the ranch holding, although it is subdivided into three tangent parcels.

In 1871, his daughter, Carlota, grew the first orange trees in Hidalgo County from the seeds of a fruit given her by a traveling priest. This is now an important citrus-producing area. The ranch had grown to 80,000 acres when a school was built here in 1892. Delfina Post Office, named for another one of Vela's daughters, was opened in 1893 and a Catholic church in 1894. Laguna Seca Ranch is still owned by the Vela family. (1975) [http://atlas.thc.state.tx.us/shell-county.htm]

Geography and drainage

On the property a prominent ridge of terrain exists that extends in an east-northeasterly direction to eventually reach Fort Ord. ["Seaside Quadrangle", U.S. Geological Survey, 1947, photorevised 1974] On the south side of this ridge, drainage and groundwater flow is to the south. Surface water flows into the Carmel River, which parallels State Route 68. A series of surface drainage ditches and gullies run south from the higher terrain of Fort Ord to join this flow. Berwick and Canada de la Ordena Canyons also exist on the south and southeast portions of the Laguna Seca Ranch. Berwick Canyon almost borders the eastern side, a quarter mile away (400 m), while Buckeye Canyon parallels the eastern border less than a tenth of a mile (150 m) off the ranch to the east.

ee also

*Laguna Seca Raceway

References

External links

* [http://www.cemeteries-of-tx.com/Etx/Hidalgo/Cemetery/Laguna%20Seca.htm History of Laguna Seca Historic Cemetery]