Tejon Ranch commemorates its 175th Anniversary
by gifting original Rancho El Tejon land grant deed bearing the
signature of President Abraham Lincoln
Tejon Ranch Co. (NYSE:TRC) today commemorated the 175th
anniversary of the founding of Tejon Ranch by donating the original
Rancho El Tejon federal deed, bearing the authorized signature of
President Abraham Lincoln, to the Autry Museum of the American
West.
Rancho El Tejon was the first of the four Mexican land grants
that comprise the present-day Tejon Ranch, to be awarded by the
Mexican government. The land grants were awarded at a time when
Mexico wanted to extend its influence over Alta California by
giving large portions of land to its citizens. On November 24,
1843, then Governor of Alta California, Manuel Micheltorena,
awarded the 98,000-acre Rancho El Tejon to Juan Antonio Aguirre and
Ignacio del Valle.
Following the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, the
land grants previously awarded by the Mexican government had to be
confirmed and reauthorized by the United States government. Nearly
20 years after the original Mexican land grant had been awarded, on
May 9, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln’s secretary, William O.
Stoddard, affixed Lincoln’s signature to a deed recognizing Aguirre
and del Valle as the rightful owners of Rancho El Tejon. That
historic document, which has been in the possession of Tejon Ranch
for more than 150 years, will now have a new home at the Autry
Museum of the American West.
“We can think of no better way to recognize our 175 years as a
California landmark than to give a significant part of our history
to a museum that specializes in documenting, researching and
exhibiting the American West – the Autry Museum,” said Tejon Ranch
Co. President and CEO Greg Bielli. “When Tejon Ranch celebrated its
150th anniversary, Gene Autry himself was present, so it’s fitting
that the Autry Museum play a part in commemorating our 175th by
being the recipient of this historic document.”
Of note is that the U.S. Surveyor General who confirmed the
boundaries of Rancho El Tejon was Edward Fitzgerald Beale, who
later purchased the rancho, and three adjacent ones, creating
today’s 270,000-acre Tejon Ranch.
Located 60 miles north of Los Angeles and 30 miles south of
Bakersfield, Tejon Ranch is the largest contiguous piece of private
property in California. Throughout its 175-year history, Tejon
Ranch – and its owners – have played a significant role in the
development of both California and the nation.
Beale, the original owner and founder of today’s Tejon Ranch,
was the first person to carry news to Washington, DC and the east
coast that gold had been discovered in California, helping to
trigger the largest mass migration in US history. At Beale’s
urging, in 1854, the US Army opened Fort Tejon, the remains of
which are located across the freeway from Tejon Ranch Co.’s
corporate headquarters. In the late 1850s, the Fort Tejon area was
the third largest inhabited settlement in Southern California.
Beale was commissioned to improve the pass leading out of the
Southern California mountains in what is now the Santa Clarita
area. Because Beale’s Cut, as it was called, made travel between
Southern and Northern California easier, it is credited by many
historians as the reason why California was not divided into two
states. Beale later surveyed the first transcontinental wagon road
route through the west and eventually would be named US ambassador
to Austria-Hungary by President Ulysses S. Grant.
Situated at the center of California, connecting both north and
south, Tejon Ranch sits in a strategic location. It’s home to vital
transportation and communications corridors, oil and gas pipelines,
electrical transmission lines and more. 17 miles of the State Water
Project crosses over or tunnels through Tejon Ranch, including the
largest pumping plant in the system, which is critical to
delivering water to Southern California. Interstate 5, formerly
Highway 99, formerly the Ridge Route, formerly the Los Angeles –
Stockton Road, formerly the route for the Butterfield Stage Coach
line, all have passed through Tejon’s western boundaries.
In 2008, Tejon Ranch set the model for private conservation when
it signed the Tejon Ranch Conservation and Land Use Agreement. This
landmark agreement with five major environmental resource groups
calls for Tejon Ranch to permanently conserve 240,000 acres of its
property – 90% of the ranch. In 2009, the agreement was recognized
with California’s most prestigious environmental honor, the
Governor’s Environmental and Economic Leadership Award. The
Bakersfield National Cemetery, a new veterans cemetery opened in
2009, rests on 500 acres that were donated by Tejon Ranch. The
cemetery has subsequently been named a National Shrine.
Tejon Ranch uses a small portion of its land for real estate
development. The Tejon Ranch Commerce Center and Outlets at Tejon,
located at the junction of I-5 and Highway 99, is a destination for
those traveling north and south through the state. Its central
location directly on Interstate 5 has also proven ideal for
companies distributing their goods throughout California and the
west. The Commerce Center is home to distribution centers for IKEA,
Caterpillar, Dollar General, Famous Footwear, and in 2019, will be
joined by L’Oréal USA’s professional salon distribution operation,
Salon Centric. More than five million square feet of
commercial/industrial space has been developed to date, creating
nearly 4,000 jobs, with an additional 15 million square feet, and
thousands of more jobs, to go.
Addressing both the current housing shortage in California, and
preparing for future generations, Tejon Ranch is planning and will
be developing three master planned mixed-use residential
communities, two already approved in Kern County, and the other in
the final stages of the entitlement process in Los Angeles County.
Combined, and pending approval in Los Angeles County, the three
Tejon Ranch communities would construct nearly 35,000 homes and
build an additional 15 million square feet of commercial space,
creating thousands of jobs and accommodating the pressing need for
additional housing opportunities in the state.
A diversified company, Tejon Ranch also has a significant
agricultural division. It leases portions of its land for a variety
of uses, including oil exploration and production, mineral
operations, and a natural gas-powered power plant. It also
maintains cattle grazing leases over the vast majority of it
property, operates wildlife management and equestrian operations,
and opens its land for filming opportunities.
About Tejon Ranch Company (NYSE: TRC)
Tejon Ranch Co. (NYSE: TRC) is a growth-oriented, diversified
real estate development and agribusiness company whose principal
asset is its 270,000-acre historic land holding located
approximately 60 miles north of Los Angeles and 25 miles south of
Bakersfield. Celebrating its 175th year, Tejon Ranch is positioned
for growth with its fully operational commercial/industrial real
estate development and three master planned communities on the
horizon.
More information about Tejon Ranch Co. can be found online at
http://www.tejonranch.com.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20181114005259/en/
Barry Zoeller, Vice PresidentCorporate Communications &
Investor Relations(661) 663-4212bzoeller@tejonranch.com
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