hathaway ranch & oil museum

I don't know how this museum keeps its doors open It has limited hours and is free, yet covers many acres with buildings and old equipment. After the volunteer spent an hour telling us the interesting and complex history of the area, he showed us the working vintage machine shop, several buildings filled with old farming and petroleum equipment, vehicles, tractors, old oil tanks, preserved gas stations, and on and on. We would have liked another hour to explore all this. It seems the Hathaways never threw away anything and it's all still here for display. The Hathaway family started ranching and then added the petroleum business. Somewhere along the story, the surname of Bell came into the story and lead to the surrounding communities of Bell, Bell Gardens (where the garden had been), Bellflower (where the flowers had been) and even far away Bel Air (high in the hills with fresh air). Norwalk is along the trail the Tongva used to walk north. We hope to go back someday and finish the tour.