In 1849, Antonio Ramirez built a small adobe on the El Camino Real near the ancient Indian village of Holamna, and as travelers to California's gold fields passed by on this main route, he turned it into an inn and stage stop that became the nucleus of Jolon. Ramirez sold the building in 1871, and after three more ownership changes it was purchased in 1876 by Lt. George Dutton and Capt. Thomas Tidball. Dutton became sole owner in 1878, added a second story and adobe and wood frame structures at either end, and expanded the site with Jolon's first post office, a store, and a saloon with a huge fireplace, 6 or 8 poker tables, and an ornate bar that had come around the Horn. By 1876, Jolon was a thriving town serving the Los Burros Mines, surrounding ranches, and many travelers, but after the railroad reached King City in 1886, traffic shifted away from the old Camino Real, the mines declined, and business there faded. William Randolph Hearst bought the property in 1929 and removed its outbuildings along with many other Jolon structures. In 1940, the U.S. Army acquired the property and used the adobe as a bivouac area. Vandalism and exposure eventually destroyed the building, leaving only an adobe ruin, and the site was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.