Family Owned & Operated Since 1969. We strive to provide the best experience for your family.
Patchen, California's roots as a town date back to the 1850s, when the first road across these mountains was built. The Post Office opened in 1872, but Jim, the current owner, didn't arrive here until almost a century later to seek his fortunes in the exploding semiconductor industry of Silicon Valley. After more than 50 years, Jim is passing the business to his daughter, Kelley, who came to Patchen as an infant. The entire family welcomes you to experience Holidays in the fresh Santa Cruz mountain air of the ghost town of Patchen.
Salvador Venegas has been the cherished Farm Manager at Patchen since 1997. On any given day you can find Salvador pruning trees, repairing a broken water pump, battling gophers and wasps nests, repairing tractors and bailers, and trimming up tree stumps for the next growth. Salvador and his family spend part of the summer at their other home in central Mexico caring for their cattle and horses...and sneaking in some well deserved rest.
Our History
Patchen, California is one of five “Ghost Towns of the Santa Cruz Mountains” which grew and flourished during the last half of the nineteenth century. Alma and Lexington are buried under tons of silt and millions of gallons of water in the Lexington Reservoir. The other two ( Laurel and Wrights Station ) are mostly forgotten and only accessible to the ardent explorer. Patchen was a vibrant center of activity and local culture for over a century. During the 1940’s the town was bypassed and isolated by the construction of Highway 17 but since the late 1960’s it has come alive again as a Christmas Tree ranch, preserving much of the charm and character of its nineteenth century heritage.
Patchen was once a thriving community; you need only to close your eyes and draw a deep breath of clean mountain air to recall it.
