Traces of history fade as the forest restores itself on Mt. Madonna

Henry Miller, "The Cattle King"
With only $6 in his pocket, German immigrant Henry Miller (birth name Heinrich Alfred Kreiser) stepped off the boat in San Francisco in 1850 with one pervading ambition - to labor hard at a business in America. He knew the trade of raising and butchering cattle, so chose ranching.

At the peak of his ranching career, Miller controlled 14.5 million acres of land in California, Oregon and Nevada, where he grazed a million head of cattle and more than a hundred thousand sheep. Along with numerous businesses, ranch estates and a mansion in San Francisco, Mr. Miller owned a summer estate on Mt. Madonna.

Summers on Mt. Madonna
Henry Miller began buying property on Mt. Madonna in the 1870s. Logging had stripped much of the mountain of its dense forest, yielding panorama views of the Pacific Ocean and the Santa Clara Valley.

During their first mountain summers, the Miller family "roughed it", entertaining visitors in colorful, furnished tents.

In the 1890s, Mr. Miller began building what would become three expansive "bungalows". He terraced hillsides and planted lawns, flower gardens, an orchard and a vineyard. After Miller's death in 1916, the estate fell into disrepair. In 1927, the County of Santa Clara began purchasing the property from Miller heirs for parkland.

The last remaining Miller Estate ruins lay before you.[Photo captions:] Henry Miller [top center], View from Mt. Madonna [bottom left], Miller Estate Bungalow [bottom center], Camp Pine Cone [bottom right].

Sorry, but we don't have a picture of this historical marker yet. If you have a picture, please share it with us. It's simple to do. 1) Become a member. 2) Adopt this historical marker listing. 3) Upload the picture.

Show me all markers in:  Watsonville, CA  |  Santa Clara County  |  95076  |  California  |  United States of America

Henry Miller Summer Home
Chitactac-Adams Heritage County Park
Bonesio Winery
James A. Hall
The Discovery of California Redwoods
Donald Leon Rose
Whiskey Hill
Franklin Family Ranch
Charley Darkey Parkhurst
Rucker School Historical Site 1894

• GPX
• KML
• LOC

Have you seen this marker? If so, check in and tell us about it.