Redman, James

James Redman (1856-1921), according to the Find-a-Grave bio, "Born April 11, 1856 in Monroe County, Missouri, . . . arrived in the Pajaro Valley at the age of nine years with his parents Kendrick Francis Redman (1828-1910) and Matilda Farrell Redman." He became a successful farmer, especially in sugar beets after Claus Spreckels built the Western Beet Sugar plant in Watsonville in 1887. Redman built a 14-bedroom house on the farm, designed by architect W. H. Weeks in the Queen Anne style of the 1890s. The Japanese immigrant Hirahara family owned the farm from 1937 to 1982.

The house, highly visible from Highway 1, has been in disrepair for decades but is still standing in 2025. The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2003, but restoration efforts failed. the Santa Cruz County Historical Resources Commission voted in 2024 to delist the house, to clear the way for its demolition.

• Ross Eric Gibson, "Guard dogs seeking landmark demolition"