Quest-Shinns?
Godey's lady's book v.87 1873 and Questions from the 1870s.
Tracking down those urban legends, Shinn myths, fun factoids, ghost stories, and more!
Got Questions for us? We've got answers! (at least soon we will have answers)
Is the Shinn House Haunted? We are often asked this question or told that it is haunted! Finally in February 2024 we came across the Vice Admiral Allen M. Shinn's request that the docents should stop telling this story at the January 1998 meeting . "Allen Shinn was here for the Saturday, Christmas open house and told us that he does NOT want the ghost story told. He said that it is pure fiction and not appropriate." (199801MIN)
Commonly seen "fact." James and Lucy Shinn and son Charles came to California. Daughter Annie was born in California. Annie was actually born in Texas according to most sources. See the timeline for their travel to California.
Didn't the roses on the arbor come from Texas? Sorry to disappoint! They are modern roses.
Is this garden really the oldest Japanese Garden in the US? Someone came to the park some years back and told the docents this "fact." However, there are so many questions. The current day Japanese Garden was dedicated in 1983 in one half of the Shinn's "Circle Garden." Today's garden is a true "Japanese-style Garden" with a garden viewing room, Japanese plants, a Japanese lantern, a rock waterfall and dry ponds. The oldest operating public Japanese garden is the 1894 garden at Golden Gate Park. The oldest Japanese Garden in America is considered to the garden at the 1876 World's Fair in Philadelphia. But perhaps they meant a private garden? True that in the 1870s the Shinn family was importing Japanese plants and planted many in their garden next to the 1876 Big House. There would be no comparison between this nursery garden and the one at the World's Fair! Just planting Japanese plants does not a Japanese Garden make!
It is written that Milicent Shinn retired to the Shinn Ranch after her PhD and didn't do anything else other than take care of her parents. Really? Christine Von Oertzen's paper filled in some of Milicent's activities and Elissa Rodkey followed with "Far More Than a Dutiful Daughter." She continued her studies of child development, published a paper, was active in several organizations, schooled her nieces and nephews, had her own house built on the property, and more. Milicent was trying to publish another book in the 1930s according to papers at the Bancroft.
"The sundial in the garden is a memorial for Patty Shinn who died falling out of a window." However, Patty died from the worst double pneumonia the doctor had ever seen. See Is the Shinn House Haunted? Please be respectful of the people who lived here. An unfortunate Halloween event might have started this rumor and once they get started watch out.