Important Dates in the History of the Serrano Adobe
1804 - José Antonio Fernando Serrano born; youngest son of Francisco Serrano
1829 - Don José Serrano marries María Petra Avila
1835 - Don José Antonio Fernando Serrano, son of the former Alcalde Francisco Serrano, is Juez de Campo (Judge of the plains) granting the authority to settle disputes over cattle ownership at the annual rodeos
1842 - Don José petitions and receives Rancho Cañada de Los Alisos (Sycamore Canyon Ranch) from Governor Alvarado
1846 - Don José petitions and receives additional acreage from Governor Pio Pico bringing the size of his rancho to 10688 acres (16.7 square miles)
1863 - The Serrano Adobe at Heritage Hill is built overlooking Old Camino Real and Serrano Creek, probably by Don José's second oldest son; it is the second of 5 adobe homes built on the rancho
1870 - Don José Serrano dies
1876 - Doña Petra Avila de Serrano, Don José's widow, subdivides Rancho Cañada de Los Alisos into 10 lots and sells portions to her sons and to members of the Palomares and Yorba families who were related by marriage
1878 - Doña Petra Serrano dies
1882 - Major portions of Rancho Cañada de Los Alisos are sold to A Eldred
1884 - Dwight Whiting, a Boston immigrant, purchases a major portion to be Whiting Ranch
1915 - Stanley Goode Sr, Superintendent of the Whiting Ranch, replaced the roof and possibly added the kitchen and dining room
1932 - George Whiting, Dwight's son, and his wife Mary restore and remodel the Serrano Adobe adding the dining room, bedroom, kitchen, and bathrooms; they get the building designated California State Historical Landmark #199 and use it as a vacation home and hunting lodge
1958 - The Whiting family sells the Serrano Adobe and 5000 acres to V P Baker
1969 - V P Baker sells 5000 acres of the old Whiting Ranch to Occidental Petroleum which donates 55.9 acres, including the 4.1 acre Heritage Hill site and a mile and a half of Serrano Creek, to the County of Orange for development of a historic park and recreational facilities
1976 - Serrano Adobe listed in National Register of Historic Places