Truttman Ranch: Cultural Landscape Inventory, Point Reyes National Seashore, National Park Service

Owens, Erica; Bennett, Amanda

The Truttman Ranch is an approximately 1170-acre ranching property that is located in north central Olema Valley. The ranch is situated primarily within the North District of Golden Gate National Recreation Area, but the western portion is located in Point Reyes National Seashore, west of Highway 1. The ranch encompasses the west facing slope of Bolinas Ridge down to and across Highway 1to Olema Creek. It is bordered by DeSouza Ranch on the north, Stewart Ranch on the south, Jewell Ranch on the east, and private property on the west. The ranch complex sits on a knoll just west of the highway, with pastures to the north and wooded gulches to the south. The majority of the property, located east of the highway, includes gently rolling grazing lands punctured by steep vegetated gulches. The ranch historically operated as a dairy and the pastures are currently used for beef cattle grazing. The ranch core is used by the park for park housing and storage. Truttman Ranch is a portion of the National Register eligible Olema Valley/Lagunitas Loop Ranches Historic District which was determined eligible for the National Register of Historic Places in 2008 at the local-level of significance under Criteria A and C with a period of significance from 1856 to 1961. Under Criterion A, the district is significant for its small and medium-sized family owned farms and ranches, most of which emphasized dairy production. Under Criterion C, the district is significant for its excellent examples of local rural vernacular architecture, especially dairy building types. The period of significance covers roughly a century, beginning with the initial American settlement of the area in 1856 and extending to 1961 when the federal government authorized the creation of Point Reyes National Seashore. This period encompasses the major development of the roads, buildings, structures, fence lines, and delineation of pastures within the district. Truttman Ranch, which operated, without interruption, as a dairy ranch for over one hundred years until 1974, appears today much as it did during the period of significance and retains its historical integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling and association. The Truttman Ranch complex retains five contributing historic buildings and one water tank, which are organized along a ranch road. Contributing buildings include: the Main House, Bunk House, Old Milking Barn, Grain Shed, and Grade A Dairy. Newer non-contributing buildings include two small sheds between the Main House and the Bunkhouse. Very little has changed since the end of the period of significance. The ranching character of the historic district is evident at Truttman Ranch in the following landscape characteristics: natural systems and features, spatial organization, land use, vegetation, circulation, and buildings and structures. Based on the evaluation of these characteristics, the cultural landscape at Truttman Ranch exhibits key patterns, relationships, and features that convey the historical significance of the district. Overall, the landscape is in fair condition.

Truttman Ranch: Cultural Landscape Inventory, Point Reyes National Seashore, National Park Service

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