Bidwell House
The Bidwell house has had many different occupants. It was built mostly of Redwood in 1890 by Jacob Uhland. Colonel John Bidwell bought the property about 1921. Those before him farmed the land. Timothy Phillipo, an uncle to the deJong family operated a chicken ranch on the property for twenty years. The Kinanh's lived in the house from 1968 to 1989.
The house was rescued from destruction in January 2000 when developer Pat Daily donated it to the Historical Society. After a great deal of discussion and a lot of community support, the San Marcos Council allocated a site in Walnut Grove for a Heritage Park. The deJong family, owners of the Hollandia Dairy, donated ten thousand dollars and Bev and Roy Haskins added an additional five thousand to cover the cost of the move.
The house was moved by Dort Marquez and his two sons in October 2000 and placed on blocks in the park. It was fenced in, cleaned up and painted. The Cox house was moved onto the same lot and the fence was extended to surround both houses. The deJong family also financed a major part of the Cox house move.
In January of 2004, with the generous help from the City Building Department of San Marcos, footings and foundations were added to both houses. Currently, renovations are in progress and being financed by the San Marcos Historical Society through donations and volunteer labor.
 |  |