Tres Hermanos Ranch Beginnings

The history of the Tres Hermanos Ranch area goes back far beyond its creation in the 1910s.  While the indigenous people did not live on the ranch, it provided plants and animals for those living in villages in today’s Chino, Pomona and La Puente.  During the Spanish and Mexican periods, the site was public land providing additional grazing areas for the Mission San Gabriel and then for private ranches, including Los Nogales, granted in 1840 to José de la Luz Linares.  As public lands were sold, Los Nogales expanded to include the Tres Hermanos area and among its owners were the prominent Vejar family from what is now Pomona.

A series of Anglo owners followed during the 1870s, including Wilson Beach, George Butler, Charles Wright and Sedgwick and Jane Lynch.  For many years, Jane Lynch and Wright owned the ranch, which was used for raising livestock into the 20^th century.  In 1907, Pittsburgh capitalist Walter F. Fundenberg bought Los Nogales and hoped to strike oil, but when those dreams were dashed, it was divided into two large pieces in the 1910s.  To the west, Frederick F. Lewis, also an Eastern transplant, established the Diamond Bar Ranch, which became the basis of the city of that name.

The eastern portion was acquired by three locals who dubbed themselves the tres hermanos or three brothers.  They were Los Angeles Times publisher and real estate developer Harry Chandler, oilman William B. Scott, and former Los Angeles County sheriff and oil developer William R. Rowland.  While the trio raised cattle on the ranch, it was also a retreat for them, their families and their friends.  Scott died within several years and Rowland followed in the mid-1920s, though Scott’s children retained an interest along with Chandler and his descendants.

In 1978, Tres Hermanos was sold to the City of Industry.  While there were various development plans proposed over the years, a landmark 2019 agreement brought the cities of Diamond Bar and Chino Hills together with Industry to form the Tres Hermanos Conservation Authority. This historic partnership continues to work together to ensure the conservation of the storied Tres Hermanos Ranch.

Courtesy of the Workman and Temple Family Homestead Museum, City of Industry