Community Corner

Ramona History: Turkey Capital of the World, Bobby Riggs, Confederate Dentist

Learn where Ramona and Wildcat Canyon Road got their names, and more interesting local lore.

Do you know where Wildcat Canyon got its name? Or, that a President of the United States once pardoned a Ramona turkey bound for Thanksgiving dinner?

Chuck LeMenager, local historian and author, gave a presentation about the history of the Ramona area as part of the recent Ramona Library 100 Years of Stories celebration.

His talk was full of interesting local lore and I jotted down some of the best tidbits:

  • Wildcat Canyon Road is named such because a bobcat was shot and killed there in the 1940s.
  • The Ramona Library has grown from an original 1,500 square feet as part of Town Hall in 1894 to the 27,000-square-foot building that opened in 2011.
  • Ramona used to be known as the "turkey capital of the world." President Woodrow Wilson once pardoned a Ramona turkey bound for Thanksgiving dinner at the White House.
  • The original Bobby Riggs battle of the sexes tennis match against Margaret Court, not as popular as the Riggs vs. King match, was played in Ramona at the San Diego Country Estates in 1973.
  • The town of Ramona got its name from a popular book in the 1880s- appropriately titled "Ramona".
  • Mt. Woodson was named after Dr. Woodson, a dentist and Confederate Veteran of the Civil War that settled in the area.
  • Some cattle that still graze at Barnett Ranch are branded with a backwards B (see photo).
  • In 1957 the Ramona Municipal Water District brought water up the hill for the first time. Before that wells were needed.
Chuck is author of a San Diego County backcountry historical trilogy comprising three books; “Ramona & Roundabout”, “Julian City and Cuyamaca Country” and his latest release, “Off the Main Road: Revisited.”

COMMENT: Do you have any interesting Ramona history to share?


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