See the Estate That Drove Jack London to Write
In honor of the ‘Call of the Wild’ author’s birthday January 12, we tour the reason he wrote all those books
The Call of the Wild, White Fang, Martin Eden — these are just some of Jack London’s most famous works. London is best known as an author, adventurer and international traveler, but take a tour of Jack London State Historic Park in Glen Ellen, California, where his ranch and home are preserved, and you’ll learn he had an entirely different side.
We had the opportunity to interview park historians, including Karen Buchanan, tour and education manager, who gave us a new perspective on London as an architect, designer and sustainable farmer. To mark the 140th anniversary of his birth, we take you on a tour of the famed author’s property and home, a San Francisco Bay Area landmark.
We had the opportunity to interview park historians, including Karen Buchanan, tour and education manager, who gave us a new perspective on London as an architect, designer and sustainable farmer. To mark the 140th anniversary of his birth, we take you on a tour of the famed author’s property and home, a San Francisco Bay Area landmark.
London practiced sustainable farming methods he had learned during his travels abroad, many of them unfamiliar to California farmers of the time. He favored natural fertilizers, crop-terracing techniques and the raising of only those livestock suited to the climate. It’s with these environmentally sound techniques, park curators say, that London successfully reversed much of the damage done to the land from previous owners’ farming practices, which had exhausted the soil.
Pig Palace, seen here, was designed and built by London and is a prime example of his skills as both an architect and sustainable farmer. The piggery’s circular design made maintenance easy and conducive to a single-person operation. Each sow had her own compartment, complete with a sun porch and exercise area. These “suites” encircled a main feeding structure, and a central valve filled each pig’s drinking trough with water.
Pig Palace, seen here, was designed and built by London and is a prime example of his skills as both an architect and sustainable farmer. The piggery’s circular design made maintenance easy and conducive to a single-person operation. Each sow had her own compartment, complete with a sun porch and exercise area. These “suites” encircled a main feeding structure, and a central valve filled each pig’s drinking trough with water.
In 1911, London purchased two adjoining farms previously owned by Kohler and Frohling Winery, a vineyard and winery destroyed in the 1906 earthquake. With this new land, London started work on yet another project: building a new home.
But the house, dubbed Wolf House after London’s nickname “The Wolf,” would never come to fruition. In the summer of 1913, Buchanan says, an unexplained fire broke out while London was asleep several miles away in his cottage. The fire demolished the nearly completed structure, leaving only the ruins seen here. The author planned to start again on the project but didn’t live long enough to do so.
But the house, dubbed Wolf House after London’s nickname “The Wolf,” would never come to fruition. In the summer of 1913, Buchanan says, an unexplained fire broke out while London was asleep several miles away in his cottage. The fire demolished the nearly completed structure, leaving only the ruins seen here. The author planned to start again on the project but didn’t live long enough to do so.
Buchanan tells us that the Londons were able to use the old winery building by remaking it into a kitchen and connecting it to the cottage. Unfortunately, there are no photographs of the original kitchen, so curators re-created the room seen here based on the recollections of friends and family.
The couple had several servants, including housekeepers, a manservant and cooks. According to Buchanan, London’s favorite meal was wild roasted duck, which he often had his chefs prepare or ordered from his favorite restaurant, Saddle Rock in Oakland, California.
The couple had several servants, including housekeepers, a manservant and cooks. According to Buchanan, London’s favorite meal was wild roasted duck, which he often had his chefs prepare or ordered from his favorite restaurant, Saddle Rock in Oakland, California.
London purchased all of his land and funded his renovations with money he made as a writer, so his dream to expand and develop his property drove him to write more. “I write for no other purpose than to add to the beauty that now belongs to me. I write a book for no other reason than to add three or four hundred acres to my magnificent estate,” London said, according to the book Jack London State Historic Park.
Seen here is London’s office. The desk, typewriter, Dictaphone, bookcase and books were all owned and used by the author during his life at the cottage. The artworks are illustrations from his novel The Valley of the Moon.
Seen here is London’s office. The desk, typewriter, Dictaphone, bookcase and books were all owned and used by the author during his life at the cottage. The artworks are illustrations from his novel The Valley of the Moon.
Attached to London’s office is his enclosed sleeping porch. Buchanan says the author frequently woke during the night to drink, smoke and of course write. Seen here are his “nocturnal notes,” individual ideas the author would write on separate sheets of paper, pin on a clothes line and sort through in the morning.
One of London’s dreams for Beauty Ranch was to create a community gathering place for fellow writers and other creatives. Although the commune was never established, the author and his wife did entertain a variety of well-known artists, including Mexican painter Xavier Martinez, Norwegian sculptor Finn Frolich, poet George Sterling and novelist Jimmy Hopper.
Shown: Cottage guest room
Shown: Cottage guest room
No photos exist of the cottage’s master bedroom as it looked during London’s lifetime, so curators again relied on the recollections of family and friends to re-create the room seen here.
The author and his wife did share the room, but, because London often woke during the night and Charmian was a light sleeper, they often retreated to their individual sleeping porches.
The author and his wife did share the room, but, because London often woke during the night and Charmian was a light sleeper, they often retreated to their individual sleeping porches.
Seen here is Charmian’s sleeping porch, where she too spent much of her time writing. In fact, she wrote three autobiographical works about her life with London: The Log of the Snark, Our Hawaii and The Book of Jack London.
This is also the room where London passed away, apparently of kidney disease, almost 100 years ago, on November 22, 1916.
This is also the room where London passed away, apparently of kidney disease, almost 100 years ago, on November 22, 1916.
After London’s death, Charmian and Eliza Shepard, London’s stepsister, designed the House of Happy Walls. It served as both a museum dedicated to the life of London and as Charmian’s home until her death in 1955.
The house was designed to mimic the original plans for Wolf House with its 2-foot-thick stone walls, redwood beams and iron-framed windows, Buchanan says. The 4,400-square-foot Arts and Crafts structure has two levels, each featuring an open-floor plan, a large fireplace and window seats.
Today the House of Happy Walls includes a complete set of first-edition books by London, Charmian’s piano and many artifacts and souvenirs the couple collected during their travels.
The house was designed to mimic the original plans for Wolf House with its 2-foot-thick stone walls, redwood beams and iron-framed windows, Buchanan says. The 4,400-square-foot Arts and Crafts structure has two levels, each featuring an open-floor plan, a large fireplace and window seats.
Today the House of Happy Walls includes a complete set of first-edition books by London, Charmian’s piano and many artifacts and souvenirs the couple collected during their travels.
For more information about Jack London State Historic Park, including private tours and special events, visit the park’s website.
More: See the Home Where Charles Dickens Wrote Some of His Classic Stories
More: See the Home Where Charles Dickens Wrote Some of His Classic Stories
It wasn’t until his second wife, Charmian, introduced him to Glen Ellen, California, in 1905 that the author felt he had finally found that home. In 1906 he proudly purchased his first 130 acres of what he called “the most beautiful, primitive land to be found in California,” according to the park’s History of Jack London State Park. “All I wanted,” London said later in his life, “was a quiet place in the country to write and loaf.” But he did anything but loaf. The author eventually owned and managed a total of 1,400 acres, all while continuing his successful writing career.
During his years on what he called Beauty Ranch, he published such famous works as John Barleycorn and The Valley of the Moon. But he dedicated just as much time to cultivating his land, designing sustainable farming methods and building his new home.
When London purchased his first 130 acres, the land was far from fertile. Natural, sustainable ranch life seemed like a pipe dream. But London had a clear vision for the property: He intended to transform it into a thriving agricultural development for future generations to enjoy.