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thedrifter
05-17-07, 05:46 PM
Group focuses on keeping base history alive

By Linda McIntosh
TODAY'S LOCAL NEWS

May 17, 2007

Camp Pendleton's history goes back further than the Marines, cattle ranchers and Spanish explorers.

Dinosaurs once made their home on the land. A million-year-old bone was uncovered near the base's main gate in 1966 when construction crews were building a road from Interstate 5 to the main entrance.

The mammuthus bone is among the dozens of artifacts on display in the Bunkhouse Museum at the Santa Margarita Ranch House National Historic Site on base.

“Camp Pendleton is a huge part of the history of this state and we're here to help preserve it,” said retired Col. Richard Rothwell, president of the Camp Pendleton Historical Society. The nonprofit formed last year to raise money for and awareness of base landmarks and is recruiting civilian and military members.

Working with the Camp Pendleton History and Museums Office, the group's first undertaking is to help fund the seismic retrofit of the Santa Margarita Ranch House.

The ranch house complex, including the bunkhouse and nearby chapel built in the early 1800s, is at the heart of the land's history, going back to its cattle ranching days.

Pio Pico, Mexico's last governor of California, called the Ranch House home in 1840. It was later occupied by generals and visited by presidents and movie stars.

The house is in need of repair, as are other historic buildings on base, including the Las Flores Adobe, a National Historic Landmark.

“We need to pull together and keep the history of the base alive,” said Rothwell's wife, Ann, a docent at the Ranch House for 20 years.

Descendants of some of the prominent families who once lived in the Ranch House, such as the Forsters, O'Neills and Floods, have joined the historical society. The group is hoping to attract others who have ties to Camp Pendleton's history.

“So many people have been married at the Ranch House Chapel, it's part of their family history,” said Faye Jonason, history and museums officer.

Weddings and worship services continue at the chapel, and tours of the Ranch House complex are offered by appointment.

Linda McIntosh: (760) 752-6756;linda.mcintosh@tlnews.net

Ellie