Rancho Los Cerritos is currently recruiting volunteers for Visitors from the Past, its Living History Tour program in which docents lead guests through the historic adobe house as “cast members” from Rancho history. Participants will have the opportunity to partake in a training course beginning Saturday, Jan. 28, designed to prepare volunteers for their roles as Living History docents.
Volunteers may choose from a rich and interesting cast of characters, including owners, vaqueros, cooks, relatives, sheepherders, gardeners, etc. The ten-week training program provides not only detailed historical information on the Rancho and its collections, but also tools for theatrical interpretation and costuming. In “becoming” a living-history character, volunteers breathe life into history, allowing people of the past to come alive and convey not only facts, but also thoughts, emotions and attitudes.
By the end of their training, participants will be able to give informative and engaging tours to the public from the perspective of a Rancho historical character. Through these, visitors will receive a better understanding of the past and will be able to identify, compare, and contrast this with the present day— connecting their time and ours.
Rancho Los Cerritos Historic Site is located at 4600 Virginia Rd., northwest of the intersection of Long Beach Boulevard and San Antonio Drive. Built in 1844, the adobe home and grounds echo with the rich history of Spanish, Mexican, and American California and with the families who helped transform Southern California from its ranching beginnings to a modern, urban society. The site, a national, state and Long Beach historic landmark, also includes historic gardens and a research library and archives.
More Information
(562) 570-1755
rancholoscerritos.org
