They were pioneers, traveling
west from Oskaloosa, Iowa in the spring of 1852. The Silas
Mercer Martin family made the six month journey to California by
wagon. They found land in the area that had recently (1850)
become the County of Sonoma in the new State of California.
They bought 320 acres of land in Two Rock, from the heirs of the
Spanish Land Grant, Rancho Laguna de San Antonio. Silas
Martin began to build a unique house for his family, which was
completed about 1859. The house has an octagon footprint,
with two stories, five bedrooms, and a precarious curving stairway
near the center. It has a wooden interior frame, surrounded
by eight concrete walls. The early Martin family history
mentions elk and bears that still roamed the area in those
years.
The house still stands and has housed seven generations of Martins,
including the current occupants. It looks very much the same,
with just a few modifications. The original mudsill
foundation now has piers. In the 1906 earthquake, the lean-to
cooking area collapsed and the kitchen was moved indoors.
Still in use, are the original redwood doors that were carved from
trees cut in Freestone, and indoor plumbing was installed in
1949. The current Martin resident is one of the curators of
the family home and history--and our history as
well.
The house is visible from the road at the intersection and at the
cache site, so please do not enter private property. There is
a narrow pullout on the on the GZ side of the road, a little closer
to the house. The site is also interesting to see on Google
Earth!