Roseville approves plan to restore historic Fiddyment Ranch house

One of Roseville's oldest and most historic structures is getting some new attention. On Wednesday, the city council unanimously approved a vision plan to restore a ranch house that's nearly 150 years old.

The Fiddyment family is one of the most well-known names in Roseville, with a major street and a park named after the pioneers who moved there during the gold rush days.

Eric Fiddyment is the fourth generation of his family to call Roseville home. His ancestors moved there in the 1850's, and their photos and other archives are preserved inside the Roseville Historical Society museum.

"It's just amazing that the family kept this all these years," he said.

The original Fiddyment Ranch house still exists on the west side of town. It's listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is one of the oldest homes still standing in Roseville.

Fiddyment has fond memories of hanging out at the ranch as a kid.

"It was my playground. I'd come home from school and walk out in the field," he said. "I explored every inch of it on foot."

The home is now owned by the City of Roseville and is part of Pistachio Park, named after the orchard trees that were once harvested on the ranch.

But the historic home has seen better days. Today, it's fenced off and closed to the public, with windows that have been vandalized and boarded up.

"It's important for us to stabilize the house and use it for public use," said Tara Gee, Roseville's park development manager.

Gee says the city now has a plan to fix up this old house and turn it into a museum. She says the outdoor areas would also make a great public event space.

"It could be a venue for arts and crafts festivals, wine tasting festivals, farmer's markets, those types of community events," she said.

So what's the price tag on renovations?

"It can cost anywhere from $5 million to $7 million," Gee said. "Where it comes from, we have no idea."

City leaders have now approved the vision plan, which allows the city to launch a fundraising campaign, including seeking state and federal historic preservation grants.

"We're going to need to roll up our sleeves and start looking for money," Gee said.

Fiddyment says he's looking forward to seeing the home open to the public as a historical site that will preserve his family's legacy as original pioneers of this placer county town.

"If you have a place for somebody to go, you can keep that history going on for generations," he said.

The ranch house is also right across the street from West Park High School, and Fiddyment says he would like to see students be given living history lessons about what it was like to live there back in the old days.