3. Rancho Nicasio 



Benjamin Buckelew, who also owned Rancho Punta de Quentin on the 

 east shore of Marin County, sold much of his Nicasio land to William J. Miller. 

 The son of Marin pioneer James Miller who settled in San Rafael in 1845, 

 William was educated at Jesuit College in Santa Clara and went into business 

 dealing cattle and land. His Nicasio land was only a part of his 8,000 acres 

 around the county; he may have been the county's largest taxpayer until the 

 Shatter family took hold of their Point Reyes ranches. Miller built a large hotel 

 in Nicasio in 1867. 51 



As in all of the county, dairying became the major industry in Nicasio. As 

 J. P. Munro Fraser wrote in 1880, "Butter is here, as elsewhere, the product, 

 although the business of dairying is not conducted on quite so large a scale, by 

 individuals, as in some other sections." Nicasio Township became noted for its 

 numerous cheese factories, and still supports a number of dairy ranches. 52 



In 1866 Miller sold two parcels totalling more than 2,000 acres on the 

 extreme west edge of Buckelew's grant, 932 acres to Gaudenzio Cheda for 

 $4,500 and 1,202 acres to Joseph and John DeMartin for $6,000. These ranches 

 developed into dairies and are now part of Golden Gate National Recreation 

 Area. 



4. Rancho Punta de los Reyes 



Antonio Osio sold his holdings at Point Reyes, including Snook's two 

 leagues on Tomales Bay and the vast sobrante, to Dr. Andrew Randall of San 

 Francisco on January 8, 1852. Randall, a geologist with medical training, came 

 to California late in 1849 and soon became customs inspector and postmaster at 

 Monterey. He won a seat on the first California legislature and founded the 

 California Academy of Sciences. Upon purchasing the Point Reyes ranch he 



51 Munro-Fraser, Marin County, p. 287; Mason, Early Marin. pp. 44-45; Jack Mason, in 

 collaboration with Helen Van Cleave Park, The Making of Marin (1850-1975) (Inverness: North 

 Shore Books, 1975), p. 140. 



52 Munro-Fraser, Marin County, pp. 282-283. 



35 



