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Generation X Y Z all think of Ross on Friends when you mention Paleontologists. But the significance of that field of work for anyone who visits La Brea Tar Pits is this:
Geological remains were discovered while William Orcutt, a petroleum geologist, was dealing with management of Union oil company in California. His discoveries aided the the Paleontologists who then put the details together when concerning the massive ancient animals who roamed our city before it housed the four million people and millions of miles of pipelines and roads. William Orcutt actually collected Orcutt collected saber-toothed cat, dire wolf, ground sloth and other fossils from the site we know as the La Brea Tar Pits. The collection was eventually donated to John Campbell Merriam of the University of California, who was responsible for the taxonomy of vertebrate fossils at the La Brea Tar Pits.
Twenty-four acres of the Orcutt vacation estate (The Orcutt Ranch Horticulture Center, formally known as Rancho Sombra del Roble ) were designated as a park in the City of Los Angeles nearly fifty years ago on January 22, 1965. The following year the property was designated Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument No. 31. The park includes numerous ranch buildings, a residences, the gardens, orchards, and oak trees. Don't miss the monumental oak tree, estimated to be 700 years old, with a plaque placed by the San Fernando Valley Historical Society on October 2, 1948.
A fascinating museum, north of Orcutt Park in Santa Paula, rehearses the oil industry impact on the development of the communities of Ventura County and the San Fernando Valley. The California Oil Museum in Santa Paula was originally the headquarters for Union Oil, of which Mr. Orcutt was an executive who carved out much of the structures and impact the industry had on the area. He was originally from the San Joaquin Valley Division but in 1901 when he became manager of the geological, land and engineering departments of Union Oil he moved to Los Angeles. He eventually become a Vice-President and a member of the board, until he retired in 1939. Orcutt, California, near Santa Maria and Orcutt, Colorado are named after William Orcutt.
The Orcutt Park in West Hills has paths to walk and relax as the senses are rejuvenated with FRESH aromas of the citrus trees and a community garden.
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