The Great Castaic Range War

W.W. Jenkins

When the law of the land failed to deliver justice in the late 19th century, the remedy was often sought with a gun. The Great Castaic Range War started when neighboring ranchers laid claim to the same tract of land. The bloody conflict was the most enduring feud in southern Californian history, lasting more than a quarter of a century. It claimed at least eight lives, some of them innocent bystanders. Several sources claim as many as 21 lives were lost in the dispute. In 1872, William Willoby Jenkins staked a large claim along Castaic Creek. Six years later, he established a ranch he named the Lazy Z. It was located near the present-day intersection of Lake Hughes Road and Castaic Road. The killing started in 1890. William C. Chormicle had purchased 1,600 acres from the railroad, the same land that W.W. Jenkins was already ranching. The altercation started when three of Jenkins’s men tried to move lumber onto the disputed land in order to build a cabin. “Old Man” Chormicle and William A. Gardner opened fire, killing two of the work party. The third man, 20-year old Jose Olme, narrowly escaped by grabbing the harness of a fleeing horse. He ran behind the frightened animal, using it as a shield from the flying bullets. The trial lasted 18 days in June 1890, and was one of the longest trials ever conducted in Los Angeles County at the time. One side described a cowardly ambush; the other a face-to-face, armed encounter. The defense argued an underlying feud was the real cause of the problems. After 20 minutes of deliberation, the jury returned a verdict. They found the defendants Chormicle and Gardner not guilty of any crime. The acquittal infuriated W.W. Jenkins, so the feud was on in earnest...more