Leonis Adobe Museum - Share the Legend

ntil it was moved to the Leonis Adobe grounds in 1983, the Plummer House stood in Plummer Park, West Hollywood, where it was known as the "Oldest House in Hollywood". In 1935 it was designated as State Historical Landmark No. 160.

In 1828, Plummer Park was a part of the 4,439-acre Rancho La Brea, granted by Governor Echandia to Antonio Rocha. It was paid for in gold. The rancho was sold several times until 1865 when it was sold to Major Hancock for $2.50 an acre. The ranch became famous for its Tar Pits and skeletons of prehistoric animals. Senora Perez, a squatter, held the land until the early 1870's when the ranch was re-surveyed by the U.S. Government. As a result, Senora Perez lost her holdings. In 1874, the Plummer's acquired the official title to 160 acres from Senora Perez. The Plummer Rancho was bounded by the present day Santa Monica Blvd, Gardner St, Sunset Blvd., and La Brea Ave. Captain John Cornelius Plummer and his wife, Dona Maria Cecelia Plummer had two sons, Juan (John) and Eugenio. The Plummer house was built about 1874 by sons Juan and Eugenio. The home was a typical ranch house of the times. Wine and brandy were made on the premises. Vegetables, fruits, flowers and dairy products were raised and sold to the people of Los Angeles and local hotels. In the lovely garden that surrounded the place Dona Maria grew roses brought from Castile, Spain. Pepper trees were watered by water hauled in by ox-cart. There were large barbeque pits where meat, chicken, geese and wild game were cooked. It became a meeting place for distant travelers and many famous people visited there, including Helen Hunt Jackson, author of Ramona.

The Plummer's and the Leonis' were acquainted, as were most of the landholding families in those days. Eugenio Plummer visited the Leonis family in 1873 as a teenager, when the Leonis family was still living on EI Rancho Escorpion. One day, Eugenio reached under a building for a stray ball and was bitten by a scorpion. Espiritu treated the wound and he survived. Eugenio told about Espiritu visiting the Plummers, playing Spanish whist, and talking about days past in his book Senior Plummer. Juan Menendez, Espiritu's son, wrote in his diary of visits by him and his mother to the Plummers in 1897 and 1902. After the death of Dona Maria, the Plummer land was slowly eaten up to pay debts. The 160 acres dwindled down to 3 and, in 1937 Eugenio Plummer was faced with foreclosure. Los Angeles County bought the property, named it Plummer Park, and allowed Eugenio Plummer to live there until his death on May 19, 1943 at the age of 91. At that time, the house was turned over to the Audubon Society and was used by them to house their library and exhibits until 1980. By then West Hollywood had changed dramatically. Even though the Plummer House was in the middle of a county park, vandals set fire to it twice; the second time ruining the Audubon Society's library and exhibits, and almost destroying the house. Despite its historical landmark status, the county allowed the house to stand abandoned for over two years. Large parts of the roof were missing, windows and doors were destroyed, and the inside was filled with trash. The city applied for a permit to tear it down. The Leonis Adobe Association learned of this from the Los Angeles Conservancy, and arranged with the county to move the front portion (the rear being too heavily damaged) to the Leonis Adobe grounds. Since 1983 the Association has repaired, restored, and refurbished the house into a Visitor Center and gift shop for the Leonis Adobe. Restoration...
The Plummer house was restored to its original condition per correspondence with the State Historical Preservation Office. Pictures supplied by S.H.P.O. were used in the restoration. The horizontal shiplap siding was replaced where necessary with duplicates of the remaining material. The gingerbread on the eaves was restored to its original condition. The double hung windows are original. The tongue and groove fir flooring was replaced where necessary. The ceilings were restored with tongue and groove fir, matching the original remnants extant in 1983. The inner walls were restored in the same manner as the original, having bare wood covered with burlap and then wallpaper. The Association has built a rear wall, as the back half of the house was destroyed by fire. The roof shingles were replicas of the original, however, due to the new site being in a fire zone, the shingles were replaced with modern materials. Missing inner doors were replaced with replica 1870's period doors found in salvage yards. Missing hinges were also replaced with those matching the extant hinges.