Bradford House in Placentia a step back in Orange County history

It was one of those lazy fall days when I found myself in the city of Placentia with not much to do.

Some days are just like that. Cruising down this avenue or that avenue, randomly driving here and there. I had to be somewhere, but I was usually hours early and had time to kill. So, there I was, randomly driving around.

Not like how millennials use the term ‘random.’

“It’s so, like, random,” one millennial will say to another.

“What’s so random?” another millennial would respond.

“The sun, its so random how it rises every day and sets every evening.”

That may be a bit of a stretch, but genuinely random things happen daily, if not more often.

So, I’m cruising near Palm Circle in Placentia when I randomly spy a beautiful turn-of-the-century styled home. Not the Twenty-First Century, but the Twentieth Century.

“I must stop and take a gander,” I said.

In all transparency, I sometimes talk to myself about this or that, but I never answer. That could be considered a bit off or even crazy.

“We will, we will,” I heard my inner voice responding to me.

It turns out that I had discovered The Bradford House in the City of Placentia, about 75 miles southwest of Victorville or 3,000 miles west of Shapleigh, Maine, where the owner of this stunning home had been born on Aug. 8, 1860.

Albert Sumner Bradford, otherwise known as the ‘Father of Placentia,’ grew up on a farm, but due to some health issues, including asthma, he missed a lot of school, and at the age of 12, he ran away from home.

He had an independent nature and wanted to prove to the world that even at that tender age, he could make a success of himself.

Laureen and I had a hard enough time just getting our girls to make their beds each morning let alone having them prove to the world they would take it by storm.

“I successfully made my bed this morning,” Erica would state before leaving for school.

Laureen would only nod. “It’s a start.”

An interesting side note on Bradford. His father was William Bradford, a native of England and a descendant of another William Bradford, the governor of the Plymouth Colony from 1621 until 1632.

And Bradford’s mother came from a very patriotic and loyal Revolutionary family.

A lot of historical branches on that Bradford tree.

Anyway, Bradford ended up working in the agricultural field in Boston and learning how things grew. He learned about horticulture —no idea, hotbed culture —no idea, and vegetable gardening —that I know since I do it each year and end up feeding feral rabbits and squirrels for an entire growing season.

That is what those agricultural-type folks, like Bradford, do successfully.

In 1887, Bradford left the east coast and headed west to seek fame and fortune.

And he did, in the city of Santa Ana, which at the time was in Los Angeles County.

The rumor is that the folks in Santa Ana and the surrounding towns did not like being in Los Angeles County and wanted to form their county.

“If Los Angeles can be a county, why can’t we?” A man in a top hat yelled at a meeting of other like-minded people.

“Humph, humph,” was the reply from all gathered.

In 1889, he was part of a group of citizens who helped establish Orange County.

Most people at the time grew grapes or raised hogs in the area at the time.

Why Orange County, then?

When the locals thought about it, Hog County did not sound right.

“I reside in Hog County,” a somewhat oversized person may have stated.

“Yes, we can see that,” may have come to the reply.

It could have been worse.

“I live in grape, no grain, no Grape County, I think,” a somewhat inebriated person may have stated.

“Yes, we can see that,” may have come to the reply.

So, Orange County it was.

Soon, people moved into the area and started planting citrus trees. It turned out that the orange trees they planted, over a million by 1890, gave the state of California its second gold rush.

Everyone loved oranges, and the citrus industry blossomed with refrigerated railcars reaching nearly every section of the nation.

Bradford knew this was where his family’s fortune would be made and purchased the Tesoro Ranch on Palm Avenue in the Placentia District. As profits rose, he continued buying more land to grow his Valencia and navel oranges to sell at markets across the country.

With his fortunes growing, he built the beautiful home at Palm Circle in 1902.

I was surprised that the house, which is now a museum decorated as it was when the Bradford family resided there in the early 1900s, was short on visitors.

Such a gorgeous abode once owned by the man who founded the city of Placentia should have a waiting line of looky-loos.

Wandering about the property, I noticed tours had to be arranged by appointment.

Since this was a random discovery on my part, this Bradford House (random being used correctly), I knew there would be no tour for me this day.

But, as luck would have it, a young woman named Nancy exited the house by a side door.

“Howdy,” I said. I always say, ‘Howdy.’

She looked at me and then clasped her purse a bit more closely.

“I’m a travel writer and just love the history of this place,” I said while raising my arms to show I was not carrying anything lethal.

The ice was broken.

“Usually, you need to have a reservation for a tour,” Nancy said, “But it turns out that a group of Girl Scouts is coming in an hour to visit. Would you like to wait and go with them through the house?”

No, I thought. I did not want to tour with a group of giggling young girls.

So, Nancy took me on a private tour of the Bradford House.

Public tours are from 2 to 4 p.m. on the second Sunday of each month.

The Bradford House is a two-story, 15-room mansion that is like walking back into a different era. Large colored carpets lay over highly polished wood floors, staircases that seem to have been chiseled out of solid pieces of wood by a professional sculpturer, and furnishings —many that had belonged to the Bradford family, were in each room, giving the place a feeling of warmth.

Nancy was a fount of knowledge.

“As beautiful as this house is, Albert’s family only thought of it as a farmhouse,” she said. “They had to leave their muddy shoes at the entrance after traipsing through the groves when they came in.”

I nodded while following this docent about the rooms.

“I tell schoolchildren that there are eight bedrooms but only one bath. They all say yuck, but this was very special in a person’s house at that time.”

When I arrived, I noticed small windows at ground level. “Is there a basement here?”

“Yes, and Albert had it made special since he moved from the east; a basement was expected,” she replied.

She did not offer any tour of the basement. I did not pry.

It turns out Bradford’s wife played an essential role in the Placentia Women’s Club, which is still active today.

The Bradford family was crucial to the growth of the city and surrounding communities with their generosity, forward-looking attitudes, and knowing how to be at the right spot at the right time.

The city of Placentia was incorporated in 1926.

After Albert’s death, the house reverted to his son, who visited rarely. He had his successful businesses in Los Angeles and did not seem to enjoy seeing the farm in Placentia.

“His son only stayed here on weekends. His main residence was in Los Angeles, but much of the furniture you see was purchased by him and shipped from Italy. He liked to travel.”

If one considered the Bradford House simply a farmhouse, I would expect they had a lot of moola-moola to travel with.

“Honey, should we spend the weekend at the farmhouse or stay at the Gritti Palace in Venice?”

“Una domanda stupida.”

You don’t need a translator for that reply.

With the personal tour over, I thanked Nancy for her assistance and vast knowledge of the grounds.

“We love visitors,” she said.

And this Bradford House in Placentia should be visited to understand how even 12-year-olds from Maine can think big and prove they can make dreams come true.

Albert S. Bradford certainly did.

For more information: https://thebradfordhouse.org/

John can be contacted at beyersbyways@gmail.com

This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: Bradford House in Placentia a step back in Orange County history