A Good Life: Dairy Farming in the Olema Valley, A History of the Diary and Beef Ranches of the Olema Valley and Lagunitas Canyon

Livingston, Dewey

This study documents the significance of the system of dairy ranches at Golden Gate National Recreation Area and Point Reyes National Seashore for its contribution to the state's dairy industry and the commerce of San Francisco. With many of the ranch complexes remaining in use, all dating from 1857-1880, and with most of these retaining their individual historic integrity, the ranches as a whole or in part appear to be eligible for nomination to the National Register of Historic Places with regional historic significance . This study acts as a companion voume to the Historic Resource Study, "Ranching on the Point Reyes Peninsula: A History of the Dairy and Beef Ranches Within Point Reyes National Seashore, 1843-1992", published in 1993 by the National Park Service. Together, the two reports cover adjacent areas with compatible histories and resources and are practically identical in format. Three chapters in this volume are taken almost verbatim from the earlier document to provide historical continuity, and other chapters on general subjects have been adapted from the Point Reyes volume. The adjacent areas of Point Reyes Peninsula and the Olema Valley are historically compatible yet have their own distinctive patterns and resources. Research has revealed that the entire area comprising the Olema Valley and Lagunitas Loop has had a significant historic ranching activity, and therefore may be eligible for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places as a locally or regionally significant rural historic district. Further study and evaluation of the Olema Valley's cultural landscape is recommended; the area is most appropriate for a multidisciplinary Cultural Landscape Study.

A Good Life: Dairy Farming in the Olema Valley, A History of the Diary and Beef Ranches of the Olema Valley and Lagunitas Canyon

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