The old homestead house is the earliest building at Picchetti Ranch. Secundo Picchetti built it in 1882, and soon afterward he and his wife moved in and began clearing land for vineyards. In 1884, Secundo sold his half share in the ranch to his brother Vincenzo, whose family shared the house with hired workers until the main house was completed in 1886. The building then remained a workers’ residence for several decades. In the mid-1950s, the Picchettis added a side entrance and closed an interior door connecting sections of the house to give greater privacy to the two ranch hands living there. It was also used for wine storage and later as an office. In 1997, Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District completed structural improvements to the building with grant assistance from the Santa Clara County Historical Heritage Commission.