perpendicular line of the Gregorio Briones' Rancho las Baulines boundary. 



The Shafter family constructed a vast system of tenant dairies that 

 stayed under family control until 1939; Garcia and Briones sold off their 

 property to hardworking and ambitious families from the east coast who 

 developed farms and ranches to their own tastes and style, unhindered by 

 landlords and the demands of standardization. Out of this grew the unique 

 Olema Valley Dairy District, with a somewhat insulated and comfortable 

 lifestyle, yet successful and respected by the rest of the county. Of the six 

 Olema Valley ranches discussed in this report, two have been under the 

 continuing ownership of their founding families, and the others have seen few 

 changes in ownership after a brief interval of title turbulence in the early years. 



The Lagunitas Loop ranches, so-called because they line Lagunitas Creek 

 and the northern Olema Valley and can be visited by taking a "loop" road in the 

 area, have their own unique histories. Three of these were part of Rancho 

 Nicasio, the largest of the Marin County land grants; they were prominent 

 Swiss-owned dairies, called in some reports the "Italian farms." It is hoped this 

 report will shed light on these lesser-known ranches of the region, and bring 

 into focus the rich history of the Olema and Bolinas area and the challenges of 

 local historic preservation. 



B. Coast Miwok Settlements in the Olema Valley Area 



The Coast Miwok Indians are among at least four groups known as 

 Miwok in California; the word means "people" in Sierra Miwok dialect. The 

 tribe was reportedly composed of up to 15 independent tribes of up to 200 

 people; according to Miwok historian Beverly R. Ortiz, the name was "given by 

 linguists to several groups speaking related languages." The Coast Miwok 

 occupied an area comprising all of today's Marin County and much of southern 

 Sonoma County, in which more than 600 village sites have been identified by 

 archaeologists and ethnographers, most of which are located in drainages near a 

 salt water bay, where most of the food was found. Many local names, including 

 Olema and Bolinas, are believed to derive from Miwok dialect. Olema-loke is 



