The Ramona Chapel at Heritage Junction was formally dedicated on Dec. 9, 2001, celebrating the completion of a year-long restoration led by SCV Historical Society board member Allan Howe.

A plumbing contractor by trade, 84-year-old Howe worked on the Ramona chapel nearly every day from August 2000 to December 2001.

He painstakingly rebuilt damaged woodwork and uncovered the original color palette by chipping away layers of paint. Father Norm Supancheck of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic Church in Newhall blessed the restored building during the dedication ceremony.

Dec. 9, 2001: Allan Howe receives a commendation from the city of Santa Clarita from Mayor Laurene Weste, upon the completion and dedication of the Ramona Chapel. (SCV History)

Modeled after the chapel at Rancho Camulos — the famed “Home of Ramona” — the building was constructed in 1926 by entertainer and novelist Robert E. Callahan as part of his Mission Village attraction in what is now Culver City.

Callahan capitalized on America’s fascination with the mythic West and the romanticized vision of Old California popularized by Helen Hunt Jackson’s 1884 novel “Ramona.”

Mission Village evolved into the Mission Village Auto Court, a precursor to modern theme parks with themed lodging, decorative teepees and a collection of eclectic buildings, including the little red schoolhouse, the Ramona Chapel and a traditional kiva.

When construction of the I-10 Santa Monica Freeway forced Mission Village to close in 1962, Callahan relocated much of the site to 13660 Sierra Highway in what was then known as Outlaw Canyon (now part of Agua Dulce), where it became Callahan’s Old West Trading Post, also called Indian Village.

After Callahan’s death in 1981, his widow, Marion Callahan, continued to preserve his collection.

In 1987, she donated several key structures — including the Ramona Chapel and the Little Red Schoolhouse — to the Santa Clarita Valley Historical Society, ensuring their permanent home at Heritage Junction.

To view yesterday’s Today in SCV History, click here.

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