Our history
The soil, the water, the climate — and the people who harnessed them.
Visit the Patrick Ranch Museum and experience the agricultural history of the Sacramento Valley. Displays, artifacts and tours weave the stories of the Ranch into your visit.
The museum’s grand 1877 farm house, Glenwood, a century plus of pictures, farm receipts, manuals and furniture, 260-year-old Valley Oaks and rich alluvial soil provide an unparalleled springboard for first-hand research and discovery.
In 2001, the home and its surrounding acreage were bequeathed to valley residents by the last ranch owner, Hester Grim Patrick. Hester and her husband William Garrison Patrick, who predeceased her in 1981, championed the promotion, documentation, preservation and appreciation of history throughout their lifetimes.
“The preservation and interpretation of the agricultural history of the Sacramento Valley, including social, cultural and economic aspects.”
Glenwood has been restored to earlier times, when it was at the peak of its grandeur, social activity and influence. It is representative of the farm families who resided on similar larger acreages of the time — the Morehead, Durham, Burdick, Troxel and Bidwell families among them — and researchers are still delving into every aspect of local agriculture, documenting the evolution of each crop and collecting the artifacts most pertinent to its advancement.
