The history of "The Postmaster’s House" in Novato

The oldest house still standing in Novato was built on land owned by the Pacheco family. Its origin is unclear; one story is that Ignacio Pacheco built it for his son Ramon as a wedding present, but that seems unlikely since he would have been only about seven at the time. The 1,247-square-foot cottage was an early version of a “prefab,” described as “New England Style,” and shipped in pieces from New England. The basic three-bedroom house was erected near the creek on what is now South Novato Boulevard, which was an active shipping lane for goods and services.   

In 1856, postmaster Henry Jones and his family moved into the cottage, and for the next four years it served as Novato’s first post office. The house stayed in the Pacheco family until 1917, when Mrs. Pacheco gave it to her brother, Valentine Clark, who lived there until 1947.

Between 1947 and 1972, the house changed hands several times and fell into a state of disrepair. Photo courtesy of the Novato History Museum.

When Novato business man Fabian Bobo bought the property in 1972, he gave the house to the city, and it was moved three miles northeast to what is now DeLong Avenue. Once the cottage arrived at its current location, several community organizations worked together to transform it into a museum. In 1976 it opened as the Novato History Museum, which it still is today.

Curious Facts:

• In 1872, postmaster Henry Jones was murdered. His wife found his dead body in a horse trough right outside the house. At one point she herself was a suspect, but the murder was never solved.

• The house was built in what was originally called “old town,” then moved to “new town, but now the old “new town” is called “old town.”

• Fabian Bobo gifted the house to the city of Novato so he could build a 28-unit apartment building on the property. “If you can haul it away, I’ll give it to you,” he said.

• Museum staff have found all kinds of fascinating documents in the historical archives stored on the second floor, including a Land Patent document from the U.S. Supreme Court signed by President Andrew Johnson in 1867. The document confirmed the land grant ownership of Rancho de Novato.