The Willms Ranch

Stanislaus County · Approximately 2 miles south of Knight's Ferry · location approximate

John R. Willms and John H. Kappelmann arrived in Califorina October 12, 1849, and engaged in the hotel and butcher business in Buena Vista, what is now Stanislaus County. By 1852 they bought up mining claims and settler's claims until they had a tract of 3,600 acres. The "KW" brand was the first in Tuolumne County in 1852. After the death of Kappelmann, Willms carried on alone, and the ranch has been owned by the Willms family ever since.

1971 register text, presented as a historical document. It uses the period's terms for Native people; the state's landmark listings still carry most of this wording, and the California Office of Historic Preservation maintains the program's current texts.

Many of these plaques have since been recast or their texts revised. The California Historical Landmarks program and its current texts are maintained by the California Office of Historic Preservation. California Office of Historic Preservation ↗

David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries

Marker data: State of California, Department of Parks and Recreation, California Historical Landmarks (1971)

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