Barn Being Built To House Oxnard’s Oldest Treasures
An old fashion barn raising fundraiser is happening in Oxnard. The goal of the fundraiser is to create a home for Oxnard history.
The Oxnard Historic Farm Park is located at 1251 Gottfried Place in Oxnard near Gonzales and Rose.
The people who run the farm have started a Kickstarter campaign to hopefully get the funds they need to build a big barn that can house some of Oxnard’s oldest treasures.
“What we want to do is create a first generation farm setting with a museum, a place people can give us their old photographs, and anything related to local history,” said Jeff Maulhardt, of the Oxnard Historic Farm Park.
The one-acre piece of land is home to two of the oldest buildings in the city.
“At the time when these guys came here, there were no structures except maybe an adobe here and there, so they built these modest cottage homes, including the one we have built here by Gottfried and Sophie Maulhardt back in the 1870s,” said Maulhardt.
Besides the home, a winery was built in the 1870s and is considered the first winery built in Oxnard.
“The winery was used to store the wine for the Santa Clara Chapel, and that was important, because everybody had to work together to build these things,” said Maulhardt.
The new barn organizers are in the process of raising money to build would be used to house several pieces of vintage equipment including a 1880 carriage and a 1900 thresher used on crops here in Oxnard in the early 1900’s.
“They started farming. That’s what they did, and from there, a lot of other ranches developed, and from there, the community of Oxnard sprang up, which came about 30 years after they were here,” said Maulhardt.
Maulhardt hopes the museum will become a place where people can learn about the history of the area as well as share stories and pictures.
“I know from writing 13 local history books that people have stuff out there, but they don’t know where to share it, or how to share it. We want to be the place where they can come and feel comfortable sharing their pictures and their stories and then we can go ahead and present something for that,” said Maulhardt.
The goal of the Kickstarter campaign is to raise $30,000 to help fund the building of a barn at the site. Contributors will be invited out to a BBQ that will be held here on July 11.
There is also an option to contribute more and have a brick or plaque displayed on the property.
