SATICOY : House Regains Landmark Status

The Edwards Adobe in Saticoy has again been declared a county historical landmark, but whether the deteriorated 130-year-old structure will ever be restored remains in doubt.

The adobe, west of Edwards Ranch Road, was built in the distinctive Yankee clapboard style by William Dewey Hobson, called the “Father of Ventura County.”

County supervisors declared the structure a landmark this week, but there are no plans for the restoration, said Katherine Garner, administrative assistant to the county Cultural Heritage Board. Nor have there been any significant attempts at restoration in the past, she said.

“It’s just been sitting there,” Garner said.

The present owners, Limoneira Associates, a Santa Paula-based citrus and avocado grower, bought Orchard Farm in 1985, which included the Edwards Adobe.

The problem is that the adobe “is right in the middle of productive agricultural land,” said President Jack Dickenson. “We’re looking at options to determine what the best use for the structure will be.”

Restoration, he added, would be “very expensive.”

Garner agreed. “It would cost a lot of money,” she said. No estimates are available, she said.

This week marked the second time the county has declared the adobe a landmark. It was first designated such in 1968, but the county revoked that status in 1977 because it had fallen into disrepair and restoration costs would have been prohibitive, Garner said. Supervisors this week reinstated landmark status as a preventive measure, Garner said.

Because of its landmark status, owners may not deface, demolish, add to or alter the adobe without 180-day notice.

“It’s more of a courtesy notice so that interested parties can work with the owner to try to resolve the issues; hopefully restore the landmark, or document the historical significance of the structure,” Garner said.

Edwards Adobe, built in 1860, is a combination of Mexican and Yankee clapboard architecture and represents the last standing Yankee adobe in the county. The two-story adobe was built by Hobson, who was a prime lobbyist for the creation of Ventura County in 1873.

The term Yankee clapboard probably originated from the redwood clapboard siding that was used to protect the adobe, Garner said.

A 1987 report by the Cultural Heritage Board said five adobes in Ventura County have landmark status.