Sanguinetti House Museum and Gardens
Introduction
Text-to-speech Audio
Images
The historic E. F. Sanguinetti Home and gardens is operated by the Arizona Historical Society.
Backstory and Context
Text-to-speech Audio
Eugene Francis Sanguinetti was born in Coulterville, California in 1867. He arrived in Yuma when he was 16 and found a job working for a family friend, John Gandolfo, who was a local merchant. Sanguinetti started as a clerk and eventually bought the business. Over the coming years he expanded it, eventually owning twelves stores, a car dealership, dairy, commercial buildings, mines, public utilities, farms, a construction company, and many other interests.
Sanguinetti's impact on Yuma was significant. He employed the most people in the county and the most farm workers in the state. He played a role in convincing Congress to undertake the Yuma Project and Gila Project, which provide water to southwester Arizona. He also supported the idea of building a transcontinental highway to pass through Yuma.
He married his wife, Lilah, in 1915 (he was 48) and they had three children, two boys and a girl. The family lived in the house and Sanguinetti developed the property to what it appears now. Lilah died suddenly of a heart attack in 1937. Two years later, Sanguinetti moved to California and passed away in 1945. The property became a museum in 1963.
Sources
"E. F. Sanguinetti Home." The Historical Marker Database. Accessed September 10, 2020. https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=28971.
Irwin, John. "E.F. Sanguinetti Collection." Yuma County Library District. 2013. http://rmb9ppkcf93ghpsk2g5dx546-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/E.F.-Sanguinetti-Collection.pdf.
Arizona Historical Society