Scions of Santa Cruz Island

Owning your own island must be one of the most alluring dreams for ambitious human beings, a symbol of truly mastering one’s destiny and possessing a definitive slice of the planet for your descendants to call home.

Justinian Caire was one of the few men in California’s history who managed to tackle such a lofty goal, as he purchased Santa Cruz Island in the late 19th century and developed the largest of the Channel Islands into a prospering agricultural masterpiece, a rugged but welcoming landscape overflowing with sheep, cattle, and wine. As might be expected from owning a piece of personal paradise, his large family enjoyed their utopian island days during summer visits or on extended working stays. But after a couple decades of success and happiness, Caire’s legacy came crashing down in lawsuits that tore the family apart and eventually left the direct descendants with practically nothing.

For Frederic Caire Chiles, the great-grandson of Justinian Caire, the good old days on Santa Cruz Island were the hot topic of family affairs during his childhood, but there always remained a dark wrinkle to the tale, one that none of the adults would speak of. A UCSB-trained historian who recently retired after a London-based career in marketing, Chiles decided to tackle the story head-on over the past couple years, and finally get to the bottom of both the good and the bad about his family’s Santa Cruz Island legacy. What he found — from his family’s mercantile days in San Francisco to their troubling times on the island — is nothing short of fascinating, making the resulting book, Justinian Caire and Santa Cruz Island: The Rise and Fall of a California Dynasty, a must-read for anyone interested in Golden State history.