Daniel Whitmore, founder of Ceres, built this house in 1870, making it the oldest house in the town. He and his wife Lucy Jane Whitmore and their sons Clinton and Leonard came by wagon train from Michigan in 1854, landing near Stockton, where their son Eugene was born in 1867. The family moved from Stockton to property near the Tuolumne River, and in 1870 Daniel built the house on land he did not yet own. In 1872 he bought almost 10,000 acres from Levi Carter for $9,000. Before irrigation was implemented, wheat was the preferred crop. A devout Baptist, Daniel sold parcels to increase the local population, and the deeds barred the use, sale, or manufacture of intoxicating beverages, with the property reverting to the Whitmore family if the clause was violated. In 1871 Elma J. Carter, Levi Carter's daughter, chose the name Ceres for her father's granary warehouse along the new railroad. Daniel Whitmore also had a mill and warehouse of his own, which operated for two years before burning in 1882. The house remained in the Whitmore family until 1936, when the Eskew family purchased it, and the City of Ceres acquired it in 1987 and began a complete restoration with help from service organizations, fund raisers, and many donated hours and materials.