Workman & Temple Family Homestead Museum

08/12/2026

Another follow-up post on The Homestead Blog from last weekend's Nikkei Festival in Boyle Heights features, from the Museum's collection, a 1920s blotter from Waichi "Fred" Yoshimura's Mission Nursery in San Gabriel. Check out some history of the business and the family, which still operates the successor San Gabriel Nursery: https://homesteadmuseum.blog/2026/08/11/la-la-landscapes-some-history-of-waichi-fred-yoshimuras-mission-nursery-san-gabriel/

by Paul R. Spitzzeri Another artifact displayed at the Homestead’s booth during last Saturday’s 5th Annual Nikkei Festival in the Boyle Heights neighborhood of Los Angeles was a blotter…

08/11/2026

Following the Homestead's participation in the 5th Annual Nikkei Festival at Boyle Heights this past Saturday, the newest post on The Homestead Blog shares, from the Museum's collection, the 1921 book, "Japanese in America," written by E. Manchester Boddy of Lo Angeles for the Japanese Association of America: https://homesteadmuseum.blog/2026/08/10/the-mere-meaningless-calling-of-names-can-do-nothing-but-further-racial-prejudice-e-manchester-boddys-japanese-in-america-1921/

by Paul R. Spitzzeri It was a pleasure to again represent the Homestead at the fifth annual Nikkei Festival in Boyle Heights last Saturday and to share artifacts in the Museum’s collection re…

08/08/2026

The latest post on The Homestead Blog features, from the Museum's collection, a 7 August 1883 Certificate of Ownership of stock in the Ontario Land Company, just launched by the brothers George and William B. Chaffey, with Los Angeles bankers John E. Plater, Jonathan S. Slauson and Robert M. Widney, to develop the new town of that name in today's Inland Empire. Read on for more early history of Ontario: https://homesteadmuseum.blog/2026/08/07/an-important-mile-stone-in-the-history-of-the-model-settlement-a-certificate-of-ownership-of-stock-in-the-ontario-land-company-7-august-1883/

by Paul R. Spitzzeri The colony concept of establishing townsites in greater Los Angeles was a popular one during the last half of the 19th century, beginning with German-Americans who founded the …

08/07/2026

The newest "Treading the Boards" post on The Homestead Blog shares, from our artifact collection, an August 1906 program from the Unique Theatre in Los Angeles, which was unusual in that it had a woman owner, Flora E. Hentz. Read for more about her and the venue: https://homesteadmuseum.blog/2026/08/06/treading-the-boards-with-a-program-from-the-unique-theatre-los-angeles-the-week-of-6-august-1906/

by Paul R. Spitzzeri As Los Angeles grew by leaps and bounds in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, one of the many elements of life in the Angel City that accompanied that massive expansion wa…

08/06/2026

Thanks to mention of Wells Fargo Chief Special Officer James B. Hume in John Boessenecker's 2018 book, "Shotguns and Stagecoaches," the latest post on The Homestead Blog looks Hume's role in guarding around a quarter million dollars in gold coin loaned to the Temple and Workman bank by "Lucky" Baldwin and shipped by Wells Fargo from San Francisco to Los Angeles in December 1875, as well as about "road agent" Dick Fellows, who intended to rob the stage: https://homesteadmuseum.blog/2026/08/05/our-hard-times-are-about-passing-away-the-baldwin-loan-to-the-temple-and-workman-bank-december-1875-january-1876/ &WorkmanBank

by Paul R. Spitzzeri John Boessenecker, a San Francisco attorney and historian, has spoken twice at the Homestead regarding his very impressive books on the famed bandidos, Joaquin Murrieta and Tib…

08/05/2026

The newest post on The Homestead Blog looks at descriptions of Los Angeles in January 1847 by Edwin Bryant, whose "What I Saw in California" documented his overland migration the prior year and his service in John C. Frémont's California Battalion during the Mexican-American War, which led the writer to the pueblo: https://homesteadmuseum.blog/2026/08/04/at-the-abode-of-the-celestials-edwin-bryants-visit-to-los-angeles-january-1847/

by Paul R. Spitzzeri Of the myriad of overland travelogues that were published in the mid-19th century describing (or purporting to do so) the migration routes to California, among the most notable…

08/04/2026

Inspiring a three-part post on The Homestead Blog that used existing research and built on it for a look at late 19th century Mexican restaurants in greater Los Angeles, the newest entry from Zac Salem looks at Luna's Grand Mexican Restaurant, which operated during that era in San Francisco. Check out his excellent work: https://homesteadmuseum.blog/2026/08/03/lunas-grand-mexican-restaurant-1880-1906-an-early-mexican-eatery-in-old-san-francisco/

by Zac Salem We are happy to follow up the three-part post on early Mexican restaurants in Los Angeles from 1875 to 1900 with this one from Zac Salem, a prior contributor to The Homestead Blog, loo…

08/04/2026

Sunday, Aug 9 @ 2 PM

Sign up here: https://www.homesteadmuseum.org/event-details/brownson-settlement-house

In 1902 Mary Julia Workman, grandniece of Homestead founders William Workman and Nicolasa Urioste, established Brownson Settlement House in Los Angeles to support immigrant communities by providing essential services such as food, healthcare, education, and employment assistance. Collaborating with mostly young female volunteers, Workman developed an innovative Americanization program that blended civic education with respect for immigrants’ cultural identities and languages. While Brownson Settlement House operated as a Catholic institution, it welcomed individuals from all religious backgrounds, emphasizing inclusivity. Workman’s approach to social reform contrasted sharply with the nativist ideologies that dominated the Progressive Era. By preserving cultural traditions and promoting linguistic diversity, she offered a distinct model of Americanization that challenged mainstream practices.

Join Homestead volunteer and UCLA PhD student José Castro in discussion for this fascinating look at the intersection of faith, immigration, and race in American history.

08/02/2026

The concluding third part of a "Food for Thought" post on The Homestead Blog examines some history of Mexican (sometimes styled "Spanish") restaurants in greater Los Angeles during the 1890s, including those owned by women, as well as a remarkable 1892 article on Mexican food in Southern California. Tomorrow, we post a companion piece by Zac Salem on a San Francisco Mexican restaurant, so check that out, as well. https://homesteadmuseum.blog/2026/08/02/food-for-thought-some-history-of-mexican-restaurants-in-greater-los-angeles-1875-1900-part-three/

by Paul R. Spitzzeri As the 19th century entered its final decade, conditions in greater Los Angeles included the boom and bust of the last half of the 1880s and the Nineties including a national d…

08/01/2026

The second part of a "Food for Thought" post on The Homestead Blog, looking at some history of Mexican restaurants in 19th century greater Los Angeles, covers several in the Plaza area, as well as one in the eastern suburb of Pomona, with references to a Chinese cook in one establishment, an election dinner for a county sheriff candidate and more. Part three tomorrow takes the tale into the 1890s: https://homesteadmuseum.blog/2026/08/01/food-for-thought-some-history-of-mexican-restaurants-in-greater-los-angeles-1875-1900-part-two/

by Paul R. Spitzzeri As the 1880s dawned, and with the local economy, in the context of the national Long Depression spanning most of the Seventies, still in the doldrums, business activity broadly…