This episode of California’s Golden Parks, originally aired in January 2005, sees Huell visiting Pio Pico State Historic Park in Whittier. The house was built in 1850, after Pio Pico’s time as governor of Mexican California had come to an end and around the time California became the 31st state. At its largest, Pio Pico’s ranch was 8,894 acres; nowadays it’s down to 5 acres and sits surrounded by modern roads and a bustling city. But within those 5 acres there remains a wealth of history and culture harking back to the ranchos of Mexican California. A fascinating character who rose to great heights of wealth and influence only to die in poverty, Pio Pico was of African, Native American, Spanish, and Italian ancestry.

Pio Pico State Historic Park welcomes Huell Howser. It is the site of “El Ranchito,” the final home of the last Mexican Governor of California.

(Click on the linked image below to see the video.)