TEMECULA, Calif. – The Temecula Valley Historical Society Museum is located on the historic Vail Ranch property. The museum is part of the Vail Headquarters, which is a commercial and historic park. The area has some fun small businesses, many that are housed in historic buildings. The Press Expresso Coffee shop, located in the former Vail Headquarters, was built in 1867. The building has been a general store, saloon, stagecoach stop and more.

This building was first built by German immigrant Louis Wolf and his wife Ramona, and they ran it as a trading company.

Dave Wilson, of Destination Temecula Wine Country Tours and Experiences, said the area was converted to shops and more in the mid-1990s. The area has a lot of agricultural history. The Vail family had acquired land grants and had a sprawling ranch and massive cattle operation. With no Vail heirs, Wilson said that they sold the 87,500-acre ranch to the Kaiser Development Co. and Macco Realty in 1964. Hiring an ag expert and studying the climate, they determined this area was perfect for growing grapes. That was the beginning of the wine boon in the Temecula Valley. Calling the area Rancho, Calif., they transformed part of the land into vineyards and others into tract homes.

Some wealthy buyers bought land like, then, California Gov. Ronald Reagan. An interesting side is Ely Callaway Jr., bought 140 acres of the former ranch land and turned it into a vineyard establishing Callaway Vineyard & Winery. At the heights of its popularity, Callaway sold his winery, bought a golf company, and renamed it and turned it into a worldwide golf club manufacturer.

The town was Rancho; was renamed Temecula to honor its Indigenous name. At the Vail Headquarters area, a group of concerned citizens wanted to ensure some of the local history remained and they formed VaRRA, Vail Ranch Restoration Association. VaRRA was able to help save the area that along with the museum, has four other historic buildings onsite. There is the Foreman’s House built around 1910, the Machine Barn, Bunkhouse and Cookhouse. In this historic area, a farmer’s market takes place every Thursday.

The Little Temecula History Center houses artifacts that include the amazing agricultural past of the area. On the website they share, “You can learn about the development and expansion of the area; climb aboard a replica of Butterfield Stagecoach that ran through the Temecula Valley from 1858 until 1961…”

There is a plaque sharing information about the Butterfield Overland Mail Route that carried both passengers and mail. The Civil War ended the mail route.

On the historical museum grounds there is another plaque sharing the Treaty of Temecula that was signed Jan. 5, 1842, between the U.S. and leaders from the Payomkawichum (Luiseno), Cahuilla, Cupeno and Serrano nations. Another plaque commemorates that the “Penchaga Band of Luiseno Indians has been in the Temecula Valley for time immemorial…”

It is fun to walk through the area and see a wooden wagon, windmill and historical water drilling machine offering views of the past. The Gold Rush that began as soon as the U.S. annexed California in 1848 brought emigrants traveling on the Southern Emigrant trail, which became a thoroughfare for westbound travelers. The history includes cowboys, many of which were of Native American or Mexican descent. In the museum is a selection of cowboy hats and a bronze plaque sharing the brief period of the “Old West” that took place between the Civil War and turn of the Century.

Throughout the area are artifacts that show the history of the Vail Headquarters from tanks on steel wheels to fences and more. Inside the museum, visitors can see wagons that settlers use on the emigrant trails, or the buggies used for local transportation. History of the Vail ranch is also on display. A conversion tractor and cool Vail Rancho truck are part of the collection.

Examples of early pioneer life from feed sacks to furniture can be found. Native American history is also included. One of the most fascinating items is a Moshkunish, Acorn Granary. A sign states, “The best acorns were gathered from the Black Oak on Palomar Mountain. Every fall whole villages would migrate to acorn gathering camps in the mountains and spend several weeks harvesting the acorn crop. Acorns are a very nutritional food source and a diet staple for many California Indian tribes…”

The Acorn Granary on display was built by staff at the Pechanga Cultural Resource Department and was a gift to the Temecula Valley Historical Society. Native baskets and other tools of daily life are also on view.

This part of the Temecula Valley offers insight into California’s ranching and agricultural past.