About
Lil’ Ranchers Summer Program offers five weeks of themed crafts, scavenger hunts, live music, and other activities connected to 1880s rancho life. Children take part in activities such as feeding the animals in the corrals, grinding corn and making tortillas, roping a “steer,” pumping water from the well, and entering the blacksmith shop to make a brand. The program also includes interactive storytelling of Chumash myths and legends inside an ‘ap, edible and medicinal plant identification along Calabasas Creek, and a guided tour across the property with an inside look into the Adobe, Plummer House, historic barn, and more.
• Ages: 1–12 years old
• Schedule: Five-week summer program with weekly themes
• Price: Entry is $10 per person each day for Lil’ Ranchers Summer Program; members and children under 2 years old enter for free.
Weekly themes for Lil’ Ranchers Summer Program are Welcome to the Rancho, Animals on the Rancho, Jobs on the Rancho, Mealtime on the Rancho, and Fiesta on the Rancho. Additional activities at the same site include weekend guided tours, exploring the grounds at one’s own pace, browsing through a curated gift shop, and special events with 1880s rancho activities like roping, laundry, and tortilla making. The museum that runs the program is a living history museum and Historic-Cultural Monument focused on preserving and sharing 1880s ranch life and early California history, and it is recognized as Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument #1 and winner of the 2015 California Image Award. The same organization founded the Passport 2 History program in 2012, which connects over 80 historic and cultural sites from San Diego to San Luis Obispo. The leadership team includes an executive director, historian curator, tour coordinator, communications specialist, grants and developments staff, and groundskeeper and animal care staff, along with a board of directors.
Last updated July 1, 2026.
• Ages: 1–12 years old
• Schedule: Five-week summer program with weekly themes
• Price: Entry is $10 per person each day for Lil’ Ranchers Summer Program; members and children under 2 years old enter for free.
Weekly themes for Lil’ Ranchers Summer Program are Welcome to the Rancho, Animals on the Rancho, Jobs on the Rancho, Mealtime on the Rancho, and Fiesta on the Rancho. Additional activities at the same site include weekend guided tours, exploring the grounds at one’s own pace, browsing through a curated gift shop, and special events with 1880s rancho activities like roping, laundry, and tortilla making. The museum that runs the program is a living history museum and Historic-Cultural Monument focused on preserving and sharing 1880s ranch life and early California history, and it is recognized as Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument #1 and winner of the 2015 California Image Award. The same organization founded the Passport 2 History program in 2012, which connects over 80 historic and cultural sites from San Diego to San Luis Obispo. The leadership team includes an executive director, historian curator, tour coordinator, communications specialist, grants and developments staff, and groundskeeper and animal care staff, along with a board of directors.
Last updated July 1, 2026.
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