Chatsworth Calera Site

Lime is what held the mission together, and it was burned at this end of the valley. Limestone went into pit kilns and fired until the rock gave up its carbon dioxide, leaving quicklime for mortar, plaster and whitewash, and the oaks were topped for the fuel. As many as five kilns worked here, run by the people the mission held. The kiln that carries the landmark sits north of this park on closed reservoir land. The bronze here is not the state's: a historical society set it in 1948, twenty-nine years before the listing.

What the plaque says

These venerable oak trees were "topped" by the Franciscan friars to furnish fuel for the nearby lime kilns that provided mortar for the building of the Mission San Fernando Rey de Espana. These fused rocks were taken, for their preservation, from the remains of the ancient kilns in this vicinity. Dedicated in honor of William W. Orcutt, October 2, 1948 Historical Society of Southern California and California Centennials Commission

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Santa Monica Pier — 17 mi
  Where the Mother Road runs out of continent, and where the End of the Trail sign gives the drive somewhere to finish.

More markers nearby

• Old Trapper's Lodge — 3.9 mi
• Plummer Park and Oldest House in Hollywood — 4.1 mi
• Los Encinos State Historic Park — 9.0 mi
• Rómulo Pico Adobe (Ranchito Rómulo) — 11 mi