Long known as the Old Whaling Station, this old adobe was built by David Wright, a Scotsman, as a private residence and modeled on the plan of his ancestral home. The exterior followed the pan of two-story construction in Monterey of that day with the roof slanting to one-story at the rear. The cantilevered balcony was added after 1900. Map.
The structure acquired its unusual name when it became a boardinghouse and headquarters for Portuguese whalers in the 1850s. On the nearby beach, alas, the whales were cut and oil rendered. A whalebone walk in front is a reminder of this past era in California’s economy.
The building was renovated by the Monterey County Junior League and State Parks Department. It is now a unit of Monterey State Historic Park and is leased to the Junior League for their headquarters.
Location: Heritage Harbor