Ventura County Area Listings in the National Register of Historic Places

The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation's historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service's National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate and protect America's historic and archaeological resources.

There are over 80,000 listings in the National Register in five general categories: building, structure, site, district and object.

To be considered eligible for the Register, a property must meet the National Register Criteria for Evaluation. This involves examining the property’s age (generally at least 50 years old), integrity and significance.

To learn more about the National Register of Historic Places and to search its database, visit www.nps.gov/subjects/nationalregister/index.htm.

Now let's highlight Ventura County area properties listed in the Register as of November 2022. Most of these you can visit (links provided where applicable):

• Anacapa Island Archeological District (listed 9/12/1979)

• Anacapa Island Light Station (9/3/1991)

• Elizabeth Bard Memorial Hospital, 121 N. Fir St, Ventura (11/11/1977)

• Bardsdale Methodist Episcopal Church, 1418 Bardsdale Ave, Fillmore (8/28/1986)

• Berylwood (Estate of Thomas R. Bard family owned by U.S. Navy and located at U.S. Naval Station Battalion Center in Port Hueneme) (9/15/1977)

• Burro Flats Painted Cave, Bell Canyon (address restricted) (5/5/1976)

• Calleguas Creek Site, Oxnard (address restricted) (5/19/1976)

• Camarillo Ranch House (2/20/2003)

• Case Study House No. 28, 91 Inverness Road, Thousand Oaks (Case Study Houses were experiments in American residential architecture from 1945 to 1966). (7/24/2013)

• Colony House, 137 Strathearn Place, Simi Valley (9/18/1978)

• Dudley House, 4085 Telegraph Road, Ventura (5/17/1977)

• Ebell Club of Santa Paula, 125 S. Seventh St (7/20/1989)

• George Washington Faulkner House, 14292 W. Telegraph Road, Santa Paula (4/25/1991)

• Feraud General Merchandise Store, 2 and 12 W. Main St, Ventura (1/23/1986)

• First Baptist Church of Ventura, 101 S. Laurel St (7/3/2009)

• Emmanuel Franz House, 31 N. Oak St, Ventura (6/25/1982)

• Glen Tavern Hotel, 134 N. Mill St, Santa Paula (7/26/1984)

• Thomas Gould, Jr. House, 402 Lynn Drive, Ventura (12/23/2005)

• Grand Union Hotel (now Stagecoach Inn Museum), 51 Ventu Park Road, Newbury Park (12/30/1975)

• Grandma Prisbrey's Bottle Village, 4595 Cochran St, Simi Valley (10/25/1996)

• Joel McCrea Ranch, 4500 N. Moorpark Rd, Thousand Oaks (4/18/1997)

• Mission San Buenaventura, 211 E. Main St, Ventura (4/10/1975)

• Olivas Adobe in Ventura (7/24/1979)

• Carnegie Art Museum (formerly Oxnard Public Library), 424 S. C Street (7/27/1971)

• Henry T. Oxnard Historic District, F & G Streets, between Palm & 5th (2/5/1999)

• Charles M. Pratt House, 1330 Foothill Road, Ojai (6/14/2002)

• Rancho Camulos, 5164 E. Telegraph Road, Piru (11/1/1996)

• San Buenaventura Mission Aqueduct, 234 Canada Larga Rd., Ventura (3/7/1975)

• San Miguel Chapel Site (address restricted), Ventura (7/20/1978)

• Santa Paula Hardware Company Block--Union Oil Company (now California Oil Museum) 1003 E. Main St. (8/14/1986)

• Saticoy Southern Pacific Railroad Depot, 11220 Azahar Street, Saticoy (7/23/2018)

• Simi Adobe-Strathearn House,137 Strathearn Place, Simi Valley (5/19/1978)

• SS Winfield Scott (Steamship shipwreck at Anacapa Island) (9/12/1988)

• St. Thomas Aquinas Chapel (now Ojai Valley Museum), 130 W. Ojai Ave, Ojai (6/29/1995)

• Thacher School Historic District, 5025 Thacher Road, Ojai Valley (4/4/2019)

• Ventura County Courthouse (now Ventura City Hall), 501 Poli St, Ventura (8/19/1971)

• Ventura Theater, 26 S. Chestnut, Ventura (12/29/1986)

• Women's Improvement Club of Hueneme, 239 E. Scott St (8/21/1989)

Other nearby historic places:

• Adamson House, 23200 W. Pacific Coast Highway, Malibu (10/28/1977)

• Humaliwo (address restricted) (9/1/1976)

• Saddle Rock Ranch Pictograph Site (address restricted) (2/12/1982)

• Stevens House, 23524 Malibu Colony Road, Malibu (10/9/2009)

• Leonis Adobe, 23537 Calabasas Road, Calabasas (5/29/1975)

Evolution of the Conejo Grade in Ventura County Over the Last 100 Years

Horseshoe shaped section of the Conejo Grade in the 1920s.

The Conejo Grade is the section of Highway 101 that connects the Conejo Valley with Camarillo. It is a four mile stretch of freeway with a significant 7% grade.

Going down the Conejo Grade from Newbury Park to Camarillo today.

At 3:30 p.m. on the afternoon of May 1, 1937, a newly upgraded and realigned Conejo Grade premiered after a day of celebration commencing at the ranch of Adolfo Camarillo. Camarillo, the namesake of what in 1964 became the City of Camarillo, donated the right of way to enable the grade to be realigned. Actor Leo Carrillo entertained guests at Camarillo's ranch at the bottom of the grade.

Grand opening of the newly realigned Conejo Grade on May 1, 1937.

The old Conejo Grade was constructed by the California Highway Commission in 1914-1915. The previous route had 49 twists and turns, making it somewhat hazardous to drive (albeit somewhat less steep than the current grade). The newly aligned Conejo Grade cut the number of curves by 75%.

Another view of the Conejo Grade before it was realigned in 1937.

The new 1937 Conejo Grade cost a total of $570,000, which is less than the average cost of a house in the Conejo Valley today! Over a year and a half, the project employed about 100 workers who put in over 272,000 hours, excavating over 800,000 cubic yards of mostly hard rock. Talk about rock stars!

In the 1950s and 1960s, Caltrans further widened and improved Highway 101 over the Conejo Grade.

Several decades later, as Ventura County grew and the cities of Camarillo and Thousand Oaks incorporated in 1964, Caltrans continued to widen and improve the highway to what it is today.

Source for historical information: "California Highways and Public Works" (May 1937) - official journal of the State of California Division of Highways, Department of Public Works.

Special thanks to the Pleasant Valley Historical Society for providing historic photos.

The Hunt Olive Tree in Thousand Oaks is a Living Link to Conejo Valley History

Richard Orville Hunt and his wife Mary Jane purchased a large parcel of land in the Conejo Valley in 1876 in what is now Lynn Ranch. He called it Salto Ranch. Hunt also served as postmaster of the Newbury Park Post Office for 18 years and was well known in the local community. While his former land now is populated with family homes, one part of Hunt's ranch lives on.

For those of you who drive past the Sprouts Market at 600 West Hillcrest, perhaps you have noticed the historic landmark marker situated in front of the last remaining olive tree from Hunt's orchard. The Hunt Olive Tree was designated a Ventura County Historic Landmark in 1981, when the tree was over 100 years old. That would make this olive tree over 130 years old today.

For nostalgia buffs, to the right is a view of the Hunt Olive Tree marker back in the day that Circuit City was located here. It closed in late 2008. This tree was moved to its current home in 1993. I'm not sure why...perhaps to say hello to the thousands of residents who pass by each day. What a fine specimen this link to the past is. The Hunt Olive Tree is also Historical Landmark #4 in the City of Thousand Oaks.

So be sure to say hello to this tree that sits next to the Sprouts Farmers Market sign at Hillcrest and Lynn and do be nice to him (or her). She's older and wiser than all of us combined, having seen and lived through the growth of our local community.

Visit the City of Thousand Oaks website at www.toaks.org/departments/city-manager-s-office/public-information-office/history for more information on local historical landmarks and points of interest around town.

The Oldest Restaurants in Ventura County and Nearby Areas

We do our best to support local restaurants here in the Conejo Valley and throughout Ventura County. But local eateries come and go, for many reasons. Running a restaurant is not easy, but some of them manage to operate longer than others.

Here’s a compilation of some of the longest-operating restaurants in Ventura County.

1929: The Golden Chicken Inn is located at 701 S. Oxnard Boulevard in Oxnard (at 7th Street). It opened in 1929 and is still in business in one of the last remaining Chinese structures in the area. golden-chicken-inn.cafes-nearby.com

1936: Familia Diaz operated at 245 S. 10th Street in Santa Paula from 1936 to 2015. It was sold to new owners, however, and now operates as Chapala Mexican Restaurant, so we’re going to keep it on this list.

1946: El Tecolote originated in Moorpark in 1946 and moved to its current location at 333 N. Lewis Road in Camarillo in 1952, serving traditional Mexican fare. www.facebook.com/eltecoloterestaurant

1949: Dominick’s Italian Restaurant at 477 North Oxnard Boulevard in Oxnard has been family owned and operated since 1949, serving delicious pasta, New York style pizza and more. dominicksoxnard.com

1952: Otani’s Seafood is a family owned seafood restaurant in Downtown Oxnard that has operated since 1952, featuring Japanese style seafood with a twist of Mexican flair. Located at 608 South A Street in Oxnard. www.otanis-seafood.com

1956: The Ranch House opened at its quaint location at 102 Besant Road in Ojai in 1956. Quite a unique and beautiful place. www.theranchhouse.com

1957: Thousand Oaks Meat Locker started out as a custom butcher shop in 1957, then transformed into a BBQ eatery since the mid-1970s at 2684 Thousand Oaks Blvd, Thousand Oaks. www.thousandoaksmeatlocker.com

1958: Casa De Soria Mexican Restaurant opened at 1961 E. Thompson Avenue in Ventura in 1958. They claim to have served over 7 million meals since then to Mexican food lovers! www.casadesoria.com

1959: Tony’s Pizzaria has been family owned and operated since June 1959 at 186 E. Thompson Blvd in Ventura. Founded by Johnny “Tony” Barrios and now operated by his children and nephew., Tony’s Pizzaria specializes in New York style hand tossed pizza. www.tonyspizzaria.net

1958: Neptune’s Net, with an address of 42505 Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, is technically located in Ventura County in the unincorporated community of Solromar (it uses Malibu for its zip code). Neptune’s Net is open 364 days a year, closed only for Thanksgiving. This is a casual, order at the counter and find a table type of place that is located across from County Line Beach. neptunesnet.com

1961: Harold’s House of Omelettes at 2440 Thousand Oaks Blvd in Thousand Oaks. Harold Warner originally opened Harold’s at 1938 Thousand Oaks Blvd. The eatery closed May 7, 2021 but was subsequently was acquired and reopened as Bo’s House of Omelettes & Waffles. More information at houseofomelettesto.com.

1961: The Rock Store opened in 1961 at 30354 Mulholland Highway in Cornell (an unincorporated community of Los Angeles County located near Agoura Hills). originally as a small town grocery store. An extremely popular motorcyclist hangout, It currently offers breakfast and lunch Friday to Sunday. rock-store.com

1963: Chester’s Asia Restaurant has operated in Camarillo since 1963 at 2216 Pickwick Drive in the Pickwick Shopping Center. www.chestersasia.com

1965: Thousand Oaks Fish & Chips is currently located at 3825 Thousand Oaks Blvd in the North Ranch Shopping Center. It established itself in the Conejo Valley in 1965. www.thousandoaksfishandchips.com

1966: Little Tony’s Italian Restaurant is located at 1441 Redwood Street in Oxnard, next to Weinerschnitzel. Open daily at 4pm for dinner. 805-486-1414 www.yelp.com/biz/little-tonys-italian-restaurant-oxnard

1968: Boccaccio’s Restaurant at the Westlake Landing, 32123 Lindero Canyon Road, Westlake Village, has been operating since 1968. www.boccacciosrestaurant.com

Boccccio’s ad circa 1969.

1968: Jack in the Box Thousand Oaks opened at 484 Moorpark Road this year and still operates today.

1969: Ottavio and Noella Belvedere opened Pizza Villa on Ventura Blvd in Camarillo in 1969 and changed the name to Ottavio’s Italian Restaurant in 1974, so we’re going to credit them for 1969. The moved to a larger location at 1620 Ventura Blvd in 1977 and have operated there ever since. www.ottavio.com

1970: Cactus Patch Restaurant is a diner located at 197 E. High Street in Moorpark that has served breakfast and lunch since 1970. The original owner passed away in 2020 but other family members and staff continue to operate this eatery. www.facebook.com/CactusPatchRestaurant

1970: The Old Place Cornell restaurant opened at 29983 Mulholland Hwy in Cornell (Agoura Hills) in 1970. This is Los Angeles County but close to us here in the Conejo Valley . oldplacecornell.com

1973: The Newbury Park McDonald’s at 850 Wendy Drive premiered in the spring of 1970. (There’s probably other fast food places we need to research and add to this list.)

1974: The first Cisco’s Mexican Restaurant opened in Westlake Village in 1974. That location closed in 2018 but Cisco’s continues to operate at 1712 E. Avenida De Los Arboles in Thousand Oaks, making it one of the oldest eateries in the Conejo Valley. www.ciscosthousandoaks.com

1974: The first Eggs ‘n” Things restaurant opened in the same building as its current Camarillo location at 1200 Paseo Camarillo. Now Eggs “n” Things has locations in Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks and Ventura as well. www.eggsnthings.net

1974: Rhineland Deli Thousand Oaks has been open since 1974. It relocated to 1817 E. Thousand Oaks Blvd in 2022 as it continues to serve its signature delicious German-inspired sandwiches and other items. www.instagram.com/rhineland_deli

1976: The Alamo Restaurant was established in 1976 at 2311 Borchard Road in Newbury Park, specializing in Mexican dishes. www.alamo-rest.com

~1980: Don’t have the exact date, but A-Burger opened over 40 years ago at 155 S. Oxnard Blvd in Oxnard. I’m told that this was originally a Whataburger. www.facebook.com/ABurgerOxnard

1983: Andria’s Seafood Restaurant and Market opened at Ventura Harbor Village on May 13, 1982 and this family business has operated continuously since that date. www.andriasseafood.com

1984: P & L Burgers at 2000-A East Avenida de los Arboles, Thousand Oaks originally opened in 1984, making it the oldest burger place in the Conejo Valley. pandlburgers.com

Familia Diaz in Santa Paula changed ownership and is now called Chapala Mexican Restaurant. We’ll keep this image here in memory of the previous occupant.

The Oldest Eateries in Ventura County that closed in recent years:

1947: Lupe’s Mexican Restaurant on Thousand Oaks Blvd in Thousand Oaks closed its doors in August 2016, after 69 years in business.

Lupe’s Mexican Food in Thousand Oaks in 1975. (Photo courtesy Thousand Oaks Library Conejo Through the Lens Collection.)

1949: The Sportsman Restaurant at 53 S. California Street in Ventura closed in 2018. The Camarillo location at 4426 Central Avenue is still open. www.sportsmancamarillo.com

1946: Dorothy’s Chuck Wagon Cafe was located at 2344 Ventura Blvd in Old Town Camarillo. The building was constructed in 1944 and original owner Larry Logue opened Larry’s Malt Shop there in 1946. It was Carmen’s Snack Bar when owned by Ed and Carmen Quinn. Dorothy Johnson took over as new owner in 1983. In June 2022 she announced the cafe had closed. The building was sold in May 2022.

The former Dorothy’s Chuck Wagon Cafe in Old Town Camarillo (closed in June 2022).

U.S. 101 in Ventura County is Designated "The Screaming Eagles Highway"

As you drive U.S. Route 101 northbound in the Conejo Valley just past the Westlake Boulevard offramp, you’ll see a sign that says "The Screaming Eagles Hwy 101st Airborne Division."

The sign was authorized by Assembly Concurrent Resolution No. 54 (ACR-54) Screaming Eagles Highway: 101st Airborne Division, in 2003.

The 101st Airborne Division ("Screaming Eagles") is a specialized modular light infantry division of the U.S. Army trained for air assault operations. It was formed in World War I on July 23, 1918 and has been involved in every major U.S. war since then.

The 101st Airborne Division was instrumental in the success of the D-Day Invasion, the Operation Market Garden in Holland, in Bastogne for the Battle of the Bulge, in Vietnam for Operation Nevada Eagle, and in many other courageous missions worldwide. 

In recognition of the 101's significance for military personnel of the 101st Airborne Division, the Assembly designated the 44 mile section of the 101 in Ventura County as the Screaming Eagles Highway.

The sign was unveiled in September 2005. The same sign is placed on the southbound 101 just south of the Bates Road offramp on the Ventura/Santa Barbara County border.