{"nrhp_refnum":"76000505","name":"Serrano, Jose, Adobe","other_names":["Serrano Adobe"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"21802 Serrano Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"El Toro","county":"Orange County","state":"CA","lat":33.64696248300004,"lon":-117.68965057399998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1976-05-24","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Prehistoric","Agriculture","Exploration/Settlement","Architecture","Social History"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A U-shaped adobe ranch house at 21802 Serrano Road in El Toro, Orange County, California, built about 1856-1860 by Jose Serrano and his family with Indian and Mexican labor, and altered in 1932.","why_significant":"It is the only one of five adobes built by the Serrano family on Rancho Canada de los Alisos to survive. It represents the Mexican rancho era and the later Whiting ranch period in the El Toro area. The form marks significance in architecture, commerce, exploration/settlement, industry and social/humanitarian areas.","narrative":"Built around 1856-1860 on a low hill near Serrano Creek, this U-shaped adobe in El Toro was the home of rancher Jose Serrano, whose Rancho Canada de los Alisos covered more than 10,000 acres. Its walls are 21-22 inches thick. Serrano and his sons built five adobes on the rancho, and this is the only one to survive. The drought of 1862 ruined Serrano, and the land was foreclosed. Later owners included Dwight Whiting, who bought the adobe in 1884 and used it as a ranch house and hunting lodge. Whiting's family restored it in 1932, adding plaster, new floors of burnt adobe tile, a fireplace and frame rooms. A 1915 reroofing had already been done to protect slumping walls. After changing hands again, the property was deeded to Orange County in 1974 for preservation and interpretive use as part of a community park, with an historical village planned nearby.","period_of_significance":"1800-1899, 1900-","architect_builder":"Jose Serrano and family and Indian and Mexican labor","architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Condition listed as good, altered, on its original site. Owned by Orange County, used as a museum and park, and accessible with restrictions.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:31.15129-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/76000505.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/76000505/95a93e8d11-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/76000505/95a93e8d11-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","author":"Eli Pousson","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jos%C3%A9_Serrano_Adobe.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Eli Pousson</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 2.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jos%C3%A9_Serrano_Adobe.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123860338","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jos%C3%A9_Serrano_Adobe","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q14682532"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/orange-county/serrano-jose-adobe-76000505/"}