The Blanchard family of Santa Paula dates back to when Nathan Weston Blanchard, Sr., arrived in Ventura County in 1872. The Blanchards purchased part of the Saticoy y Santa Paula land grant from E.B. Higgins where they would eventually establish a citrus orchard, the Limoneira Company, in 1893. The Blanchard family was involved in many aspects of local history and life. Dean Hobbs Blanchard features prominently in the collection, with a particular emphasis on his work as an ornithologist and his international travels. Many of his works, photographs, and writings are included in the collection. The collection contains correspondence, photographs, notes, legal documents, negatives, film reels, sketches, writings, and other papers created by and related to the Blanchard family of Santa Paula.

The Blanchard family of Santa Paula dates back to when Nathan Weston Blanchard, Sr., arrived in California during the 1850s Gold Rush. He married Ann Elizabeth Hobbs in 1864 and they moved to Ventura County in 1872. The Blanchards purchased part of the Saticoy y Santa Paula land grant from E.B. Higgins and engaged in ranching. Blanchard Sr. started an orange and lemon orchard in 1874, which marked the start of the family's prominence in the citrus industry and led to the foundation of the Limoneira Company in 1893. He was also one of three of the people responsible for funding the construction the Santa Paula Academy, which was later used as a high school. Blanchard Sr. was also a charter member of the Central Pacific Railroad. The Blanchards also funded the construction of the Dean Hobbs Blanchard Memorial Library in Santa Paula in honor of their first child, who died as a young child. Blanchard Sr. was affiliated with the Congregational Church, was a York Rite Mason, and belonged to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. He was also a member of the Sons of the Revolution and of the California Club of Los Angeles. He died on October 22, 1917. Ann Elizabeth Hobbs Blanchard died in November 1924. They had five children: Dean Hobbs, Sarah Eliot, Eunice Weston, Nathan Weston, Jr., and Thomas Goodwin.

10.98 Cubic Feet (10 boxes)

Property rights to the physical object belong to the Museum of Ventura County. Literary rights, including copyright, are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright and pursue the copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where the museum does not hold the copyright.

COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE: Open for research. All requests to access materials must be made in advance by contacting the Research Library staff via email: library@venturamuseum.org.