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| Landmark #411 | San Diego County | Visited: January 26, 2014 | Plaque? YES! 🙂 |
| What is it? | The fortified stone store of the Gaskill brothers, now a museum! |
| What makes it historical? | THE GUIDE SAYS: The pioneer Gaskill brothers of 1868 built a frame store which was raided on December 4, 1875 by border bandits. This fort-like replacement of summer 1855 was bought in 1896 by E. T. Aiken, resold to Klauber Wangenheim, 1889, and operated by Henry Marcus Johnson as the Mountain Commercial Company until 1925. In disrepair, it was bought after 1938 by E. M. Statler, given to San Diego County, and restored, 1943-48, as a museum.
OTHER TIDBITS: The bandit was named Cruz Lopez, and according to legend, he inherited the band of either Joaquin Murrieta or Cleovaro Chavez! Either way, he was a pretty bad dude! He brought five of his followers into Campo on that day in 1875 with the intent to rob the Gaskill store, but they didn’t plan on facing such tough, determined brothers! Luman Gaskill was shot in the lung and Sam Gaskill in the shoulder, but did that stop either of them? No! In fact, with the help of a single local shepherd, they chased off Lopez’s band and ensured that Campo was never troubled by outlaws again! |
| How can I Help the Helpers? | HERE’S HOW:
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| Where is this place? | LISTED DIRECTIONS: State Hwy 94 (P.M. 50.6), at Campo Cr Campo, CA 91906 ANNOTATIONS: From Los Angeles: ~172mi (277km) — 2.9hrs |
| When should I go? | The museum is open Saturdays and Sundays from 11:00 AM until 4:00 PM! |
