Saturday, February 5, 2011

Louis Robidoux's House

As you drive down Mission Boulevard through downtown Rubidoux, you may see a sign out on the street in front of Stater Bros which says that there, where that shopping center sits, is the site of Louis Robidoux's house. Is it really? Up until at least the 1920s there were still reminants of the Robidoux Rancho buildings on that property. An aerial photo that dates from 1945 or 1946 (and is on page 82 of my Rubidoux book) shows the corner of Mission and Rubidoux Boulevards. Up at the very top of the photo you can see a grove of trees and some buildings, at the site of Louis Robidoux's home and rancho buildings. A friend recently looked at a modern aerial photo overlayed with a historic photo and found that Stater Bros sits right on top of where the Robidoux home was. However, the Robidoux home faced the river where Stater's faces Mission Boulevard. So, the next time you visit Stater's in Rubidoux, while picking out some fruit or cereal, you may be standing where Senor Rubidoux slept or entertained guests!

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