CAMARILLO : Museum Gets Cart Used by Pioneer

A farm cart dating back to the time of pioneer Adolfo Camarillo will become the centerpiece of a garden at the city’s Pleasant Valley Historical Museum.

The cart, estimated to be 85 to 100 years old, was moved to the museum’s grounds at 720 N. Las Posas Road on Wednesday.

Leila Breeze, a member of the museum’s board of directors, said the 4-foot by 6-foot cart was used on Camarillo’s ranch for many years to haul watermelons, beans and other crops. The ranch became the site of much of the city of Camarillo.

“It’s a little drab and worn-out, but it’s very picturesque,” Breeze said of the cart, which members of the Camarillo family donated. “It’s also the oldest item we have on display. It will give people a feeling of the town’s roots as a farming area.”

She said the cart and the Queen Anne-style Don Adolfo Camarillo Family Home have appeared in several movies and TV shows. Camarillo family members still live in the house, on Mission Oaks Boulevard near the Ventura Freeway.

Meliton Ortiz, 71, a former foreman on the ranch who was born on the property, was on hand as the historic cart was hauled away. Mules used to haul the cart before it was pulled by tractors, Ortiz said.

Breeze said the museum’s new garden and cart display will be dedicated July 22. The museum is open weekends from 1 to 4 p.m. Group tours can be arranged by calling 482-3660.