Lloyd C.
Jul 8, 2024
Shadelands Ranch Museum is a nice wedding venue. I was fortunate to attend a couple of good friends' daughter's outdoor wedding.The ceremony was held in a beautiful area with a huge tree to provide shade for some of the guests. In another area, close by, there is also a pretty gazebo. Pretty roses and plants surrounding the whole area. At night, they have some string lights lit up around to provide a nice, cozy lighted area. They only have outdoor restrooms, but they are nice.It was a nice special day for the couple, along with their family and friends, to help celebrate this blessed occasion!
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Janet S.
Sep 21, 2022
We had our 150-ppl wedding here June 2022. This place is gorgeous!!! I found it on yelp and so glad I did. The grounds are beautiful and very well kept. I worked with Jackie the entire time and she was a pleasure to work with. I originally booked back in 2020, but with Covid had to move our date around to 2022.I wanted to have an outdoor wedding but didn't want to deal with a fixed vendor list. Luckily I found this place and was surprised on how affordable it was compared to other venues!! There is so much parking available behind the venue and the trees provided so much shade. There is also a cute dressing room on the porch that has a vanity, tall mirror, and clothing rack. They also provide tables/chairs and set them up for you!Fast forward to June 2022. It was a very HOT day and had some elderly family members attending the wedding. Although we had plenty of shade, Jackie offered to have the family members sit inside the Museum if needed. It was a very nice gesture. This place is truly beautiful and their staff is wonderful to work with. If you're looking for a beautiful outdoor venue without having to overspend, check this place out!
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Shayla B.
Apr 15, 2018
A total Walnut Creek gem! The Shadelands Museum is owned and operated by the Walnut Creek Historical society. The museum was once home to Walnut Creek Pioneer Hiram Penniman. The home was built in 1903, and here Penniman raised four children with his second wife, Carrie Morris. Many of the original furnishings and architecture can be found within the museum, along with donated replicas of popular items that were used in the early 1900's.The museum has been well maintained and each and every room has its' own piece of history. The kitchen is probably the only room in the entire house that has been modernized since it still used to prepare meals for weddings. In the back of the home, there's an old tank house dating back to 1902 that was used as a worker's cabin. You'll also see the beautiful altar that gets rented out for weddings. Museum tours are held twice a week on Sundays and Wednesday's from 1pm - 4pm from February to October. The tours are docent led and last about an hour. Admission fees are $3 for adults, $1 for children, and free for members. This small $3 fee helps to maintain the museum and offers support toThe Walnut Creek historical society. Reservations are required for large groups. Photography is not allowed once inside of be museum, but unfortunately I didn't know this until after I had completed the tour (I'm sorry!). The docents are very passionate and informative. Phyllis was excellent and made the tour extremely enjoyable. If you're interested in learning about the history of Walnut Creek, I would absolutely recommend taking a tour!
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Terry T.
Aug 28, 2017
This house museum is amazing. The majority of the furniture, artifacts and even the rugs are original to the house. When the house was first turned over to the historical society and they emptied the barn, a treasure trove of artifacts were found and they brought them into the house.If I had to choose favorite treasure in the house it would be Stella music box/record player. The docent turned the hand crank and the metal record started to play Ava Maria, the tone was amazing. If I had to choose a favorite room it would be the dining room. The table was set with beautiful china and the cabinets and sideboards had wonderful Victorian era glassware and silver.What made this tour special were the docents. One of the women took me on the tour of the main floor and the other took me on a tour of the upstairs. They were both knowledgeable about the house, the people who lived there, and the history of the area. I came away feeling that I knew these people and also had a new appreciation for the people who settled, in what at the time, was a very rural part of California.
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Ann L.
Mar 13, 2011
After doing a short hike in the area we decided to see what the Shadelands Ranch Museum was about. Since it was Sun we were able to visit it. It's $3 per adult, no AAA or Senior Discount - boo.We asked for the full tour and it was pretty long with lots of information about Hiram Penniman, his 5 kids, etc. NO Photos allowed inside - another boo. Inside is the living room, dining room, upstairs are four rooms & a bathroom. You can take all the pics you want outside though.Ask if you can get some oranges & lemons from their trees outside - we did and were allowed. That was nice.Hours: Wednesday & Sunday (tours offered) - 1 to 4 p.m.Closed late November through early February.Office hours: Mon-Thurs, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.Admission: $3, adults; $1, students ages 6-17, free; children under 6 and WCHS members.Website:http://walnutcreekhistory.info/
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Cait R.
Aug 12, 2017
We had our wedding here on April 29. It was as perfect as we could have ever imagined. The grounds were beautiful and the flowers were in full bloom. The venue fit our vision to a tee. Jackie was fantastic to work with and helped us every step of the way. She even helped us set up a "doomsday" plan in case of rain. Our guests loved the venue, with the touch of history and beauty of the gardens. All of our wedding photos turned out beautifully - with so many different options for backdrops.
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Paul N.
Jun 21, 2016
This is a nice historic house and ranch right off Ygnacio Valley Road in Walnut Creek. As other Yelpers have pointed out, no personal photography allowed inside, which is a bummer. I didn't choose to do a house tour (which is on Wednesdays and Sundays from 1-4 PM), but I was able to explore around the porch and the gardens, as well as the gazebo. Pretty nice place, overall, though the parking lot is rather small.Also, the Shadelands Ranch Museum is a popular venue for weddings and special events.
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Allison M.
Mar 10, 2024
The Shadelands Ranch House was the perfect venue for our wedding. After issues with our original venue, and being a little over 2 months out from our wedding, Shadelands luckily had a cancellation for our wedding day and we were able to fully move over and have our wedding there. We worked with Jackie leading up to the wedding. She was so accommodating and helpful with trying to make our vision come to life. She allowed us to come see the venue a few times before the wedding to make sure we knew where everything would be and how it would look day of. They also provided all tables and chairs, and had everything set up before our allotted rental time. The venue itself is beautiful and has many trees, the gazebo, flowers, and the amazing house. The venue is fully outdoors and our wedding day was much hotter than expected for an October wedding. However, they allowed us to set up fans and a portable air conditioner in the bridal suite to help with the heat. They provided a venue coordinator who was there day of to make sure everything was set up correctly and taken down at the end of the night. They also had a pumpkin patch going on in front of the house that they redirected traffic for and gave all the kids at our wedding tickets to go get their own pumpkins. We were also able to go over there to take photos which was so fun! Overall, we couldn't have asked for a better venue and we loved working with Shadelands and their staff.
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Alexandra T.
Aug 5, 2022
Our wedding was a dream at the Shadelands Ranch Museum grounds! Jackie and her team were so accommodating, helpful, and easy to communicate with for our entire year-long planning process, and so many of our 150 guests complimented the beauty and simplicity of the venue. It was spacious and clean, with plenty of room for dinner, cocktails, dancing, and games. We highly recommend Shadelands Ranch Museum!
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Alyssa B.
Jul 6, 2018
We had our wedding here & it was perfect. Affordable venue that allows you to make it your own & hire your own vendors. Beautiful for wedding photos if you're looking for a romantic garden wedding. I was nervous about the location on Ygnacio but it didn't bother me at all the day of.
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