Tour America's History: Leo Carrillo Ranch Historic Park

Friday, February 17, 2012

Leo Carrillo Ranch Historic Park

View Leo Carrillo Ranch Historic Park in a larger map

Visit our Tour Destination: Southern California page to see the entire tour of the area’s Save America’s Treasures sites.

Leo Carrillo's 1937 adobe hacienda.
Photo courtesy of the City of Carlsbad.

Leo Carrillo Ranch Historic Park
6200 Flying Leo Carrillo Lane
Carlsbad, CA

Website: Leo Carillo Ranch Historic Park

The Treasure: A 27-acre historic park that served as a working ranchero for actor Leo Carrillo.

Accessibility: Park hours are Tuesday through Saturday from 9 to 5 and Sundays from 11 to 5. Ninety-minute guided tours are offered on Saturday and Sunday. Check for times.

Background: It’s Spanish colonial, it’s Southwestern, it’s California Rancho—what better place to launch our exploration of California Save America’s Treasures projects than this park that is practically the essence of Southern California. Former California Governor Edmund G. Brown even nicknamed its owner “Mr. California.”

Leo Carrillo (1880-1961) embraced his California homeland and its diversity of cultures. Carrillo grew up in an old and respected California family, with an Alta California governor and a Los Angeles mayor among his ancestors. His first taste of acting came in New York’s theaters but he soon returned to his beloved home state determined to break into Hollywood. Over the years, he became a solidly dependable supporting actor, appearing in more than 90 films.

Leo Carrillo's recently restored 1940's hay barn.
Photo courtesy of the City of Carlsbad.

Fame finally arrived at the age of 69 when he landed the sidekick role of Pancho in the very popular TV western The Cisco Kid from 1950 to 1956. But all the time he was building his acting career, Carrillo simultaneously devoted much energy to outside projects, becoming a well-known political champion of public recreation and cultural areas. He promoted the development of the Los Angeles Olvera Street complex, the Los Angeles Arboretum, Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, and the preservation of Hearst Castle at San Simeon.

Located approximately 35 miles north of San Diego, the Leo Carrillo Ranch was the actor’s personal retreat to the Old California environment that he loved most. He began purchasing the property in 1937, eventually amassing a 2,538-acre ranch operation. With its adobe buildings and antique windmills, the architecture of the site masterfully blends into the peaceful landscape.

Duncan Rinaldo as the Cisco Kid
and Leo Carrillo as Pancho
in a 1950 episode of The Cisco Kid.

Notes from the Editor: The Cisco Kid was the first television show filmed in color (even though most people watched it on black-and-white TV sets at the time). Before moving to television, there were many Cisco Kid b-movies, with Leo Carrillo taking the part of Pancho for the first time in 1948. The original concept of the Cisco Kid came from an O. Henry short story which had Spanish roots in its homage to Cervantes’ Don Quixote. Carrillo’s sidekick character indulged in classic Sancho Panza routines, with Pancho offering comic folk wisdom for every situation no matter how tense.

Unlike most Hollywood actors—and that even includes the cowboy stars—Leo Carrillo was a superb horseback rider complete with rodeo experience. The western characters he was frequently called upon to play tended to be stereotypical but he could take pride that his riding was in the style of a real vaquero (cowboy). Here’s a short clip of Carrillo as Pancho and Duncan Renaldo as the Cisco Kid.

Other Recommended Sites: You can further honor Leo Carrillo by visiting some of the sites that he helped to preserve for the public: the Los Angeles Arboretum, Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Hearst Castle, and there’s even a beautiful site nearby that was named in his honor, Leo Carrillo State Park, located west of Malibu on the Pacific Coast Highway.