Yorba Hacienda

The Yorba Hacienda was a domestic dwelling constructed by Bernardo Yorba on the Rancho Cañón de Santa Ana Mexican land grant, and located in the present city of Yorba Linda, California. It was notable as the seat of the wealthiest member of the Yorba family and as the largest adobe hacienda in Alta California.ConstructionOn August 1, 1834, Mexican Governor José Figueroa granted to Bernardo Yorba 13328acre on the north side of the Santa Ana River, about four miles upstream from the José Antonio Yorba hacienda "El Refugio" on Rancho Santiago de Santa Ana.Bernardo Yorba HaciendaIn 1835, Bernardo Yorba began construction on a two-story adobe house that was to be one of the finest and largest in all of Alta California. Construction was completed in stages over several years. The main buildings were arranged to form three sides of a square and boasted 200 rooms, although older, more conservative accounts list at least fifty rooms. The southern face of the main structure was measured to be 106 feet in length and surviving photographs show it to be over 20 feet at the peak of the roof. Pine beams were cut and brought by oxen from the San Bernardino Mountains to add support to the structures. Indian servants who made the adobe bricks used in construction lived in their own camp closer to the river, past the chapel just east of the northern end of the old Yorba Bridge (now Imperial Highway bridge).