Adolfo Camarillo

Don Adolfo Camarillo (29 October 1864 – 10 December 1958) was a prominent Californio philanthropist, ranchero, and horse breeder, known for founding the city of Camarillo, California, along with his brother Juan Camarillo Jr. Camarillo also donated the land for Adolfo Camarillo High School. The horse breed Camarillo White Horse was named for Camarillo. He began breeding them in 1921 and the line continues today. Because of his philanthropy in 1950, Pope Pius XII named him a Knight of St. Gregory the Great.

Biography Adolfo Camarillo was born to Juan (1812–1880) and Martina Camarillo (1826–1898). He had four sisters and one brother. and was left to Adolfo and Juan Jr. upon the death of their mother.

Camarillo White Horses

The Camarillo White Horse is a relatively Spanish-blooded horse known for its pure white color. This breed dates back to 1921, when Camarillo purchased a nine-year-old horse named Sultan from the Miller and Lux cattle ranch at the California State Fair in Sacramento. Over the next few years, Sultan won many stock championships throughout California. Camarillo bred Sultan to Morgan mares at his ranch. For the next 65 years the family privately owned and bred the Camarillo White Horses.

Since the 1930s these horses have become famous by being featured up and down the California coast at parades and events. Once a year Camarillo rode one of his white Arabians in the Fiesta of Santa Barbara while dressed up in a colorful Spanish costume. The Camarillo White Horses were privately owned and bred by the Camarillo family until the death of Camarillo's daughter Carmen in 1987,

Many people of note have ridden on Camarillo White Horses including Governor Ronald Reagan, President Warren G. Harding, and 1946 Nobel Peace Prize recipient John Mott, as well as movie stars Leo Carrillo and Steven Ford (son of President Gerald Ford).

Camarillo had leadership roles on the Ventura County Fair Board and on the California State Fair Board, and in the Camarillo City Chamber of Commerce, Peoples Lumber Company, Los Rancheros Visitadores, and California Lima Bean Growers Association. He served as a member of the Pleasant Valley School District Board of Trustees for 57 years, from 1894 to 1951. In 1956, when the district was ready to build the first high school in Camarillo, he donated 50 acres of land. Additionally, the ranch each year hosts two major fund raisers for the house: the Candle Light Gala and the Octoberfest Car Show.