IN 1869, FORMER CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR and banker John G. Downey (1827-1894) purchased sections of the land grant from Vicenta Carrillo and eventually, additional sections of the land from John Warner. Specializing in sheep husbandry, Downey hired Charles Ayers, an expert in fleece production, to manage operations at the ranch in 1870. Ayers developed a unique method of producing first-rate quality wool: bathing the sheep in the nearby soda springs prior to shearing them. Ayers, his wife Jesusa and their young daughter Mary were the subsequent occupants of the adobe after the departure of the Carrillos. The couple had four additional children during their residency.

In 1880 Downey employed Andrew Linton, a native of Scotland, to oversee his ranch operations from the ranch house, where Linton supervised nearly 30,000 head of Downey's sheep, horses, and cattle, in addition to being appointed the postmaster for the newly established Agua Caliente branch.

In 1888 Downey leased the 77-square-mile valley to cattleman Walter L. Vail (1852-1906), who owned and operated the Empire Ranch in Pima County, Arizona. By 1905, a partnership between Vail and C.W. Gates had made the 87,000-acre Vail Ranch into one of the largest cattle operations in California, stretching from Camp Pendleton to Vail Lake to Murrieta.

(Above) John G. Downey. Courtesy California Historical Society Collection, University of Southern California. (Left) Recording of Downey's brand on April 30, 1862. Courtesy San Diego History Center

(Left) Southeast view, the back of the ranch house is seen on the left, the barn and corral are on the right, c. 1880s. (Right) West view, the front of the ranch house is seen with the barn directly behind it, c. 1890s. Photos courtesy Coons collection

IN 1911, GEORGE SAWDAY secured the lease on the Warner-Carrillo Ranch, which remained in his family until 1960. Sawday owned and operated the largest cattle enterprise in Southern California. Born near the mining town of Julian, George was the son of Frederick Richard Sawday, a London merchant who established a general merchandise store and stage station in Witch Creek, near Santa Ysael. George built the turn-of-the-century home (on the former site of his boyhood residence) on the side of Highway 76 in Witch Creek, which is still occupied by Sawday descendants.

(Left to right) Ed Vail and George Sawday

George A. Sawday, c. 1900