Montebello Historical Society
Montebello Historical Society

About Us

The Montebello Historical Society is a volunteer-run 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization committed to preserving the Juan Matias Sanchez Adobe, a historic site and museum located in Montebello, California.

The Adobe has been a protected public landmark since 1970, when Josephine Scott Crocker donated the property to the City of Montebello with a dedicated purpose: that it be preserved as a public museum and recreational space for the community. Since 1972, the Montebello Historical Society has proudly carried that mission forward in partnership with the City, keeping the Adobe open as a space for education, reflection, and community connection.

As a small team of dedicated volunteers, we rely on the support of our members and visitors to help us maintain this important site. Whether through membership, donations, or simply visiting, your involvement helps ensure the Adobe's stories continue to be shared with future generations.

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Adobe History

The Juan Matias Sanchez Adobe is the oldest surviving structure in Montebello, and one of the few remaining 19th-century adobes in Los Angeles County. Built in 1844 during California’s Mexican era, it stands on land that once formed part of the 2,363-acre Rancho La Merced—just a mile from the original San Gabriel Mission site.

  • Built by Casilda Soto de Lobo and her sons, the Adobe originally served as a family home on Rancho La Merced. In 1851, after a foreclosure, the land was transferred to William Workman, who gave shared ownership to his son-in-law F.P.F. Temple and ranch foreman Juan Matias Sanchez. Sanchez expanded the Adobe and lived there until his death in 1885.

  • The Adobe sits on land originally inhabited by the Tongva (also known as Gabrieleño), one of the First Peoples of California. Their villages once thrived along the rivers and hills of what is now the Los Angeles Basin. Like much of California, this land was taken through colonization, first by the Spanish, then by Mexico, and eventually by the United States after the Mexican-American War.

    The Adobe was built in 1844 during the Mexican period, on Rancho La Merced—over 2,300 acres granted to Casilda Soto de Lobo, a widow of a soldier from the San Gabriel Mission. This layered history reflects the broader story of land ownership, displacement, and resilience in California.

  • The Adobe is a rare, tangible reminder of the region’s layered past—including Indigenous roots, Mexican landholding, and American expansion. Each January, we commemorate the nearby Battle of Rio San Gabriel (1847)—a turning point in the U.S. conquest of California—with a public reenactment and living history day. Preserving and sharing this space helps us better understand where we come from, and how our relationship to land, identity, and community continues to evolve.

    Learn more about our history and the free annual Battle of Rio San Gabriel reenactment.

Board of Directors

  • Jon Reed, President

  • Esabel Reed, Treasurer

  • Maria Antoinette Garcia, Secretary

  • Carolina Ibarra-Mendoza, Publicity Chair

Volunteers

  • Gail Fieldman (Sanchez Decedent & Museum Docent)

  • Kathleen Rabago

  • Eric Frederickson

  • Johnathan Powers

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 Press

  • National Park Service: Learn more about the Juan Matias Sanchez Adobe, Montebello’s oldest residence, and its historical significance as highlighted by the NPS. Read the full entry here.

  • Homestead Museum Blog: “Finally the Stronghold of the Mexicans Was Charged and Taken: An Engraving of the Battle of San Gabriel, California, 8 January 1847” by Paul R. Spitzzeri, January 12, 2025. Read the full article here.

  • Old Spanish Trail Association: A brief history of the Juan Matias Sanchez Adobe, highlighting its significance as Montebello’s oldest structure and its connection to the historic Old Spanish Trail. Read more here.