The best camping near César E. Chávez National Monument

Located on a 116-acre historic ranch in Kern County, California is the once-headquarters of the United Farm Workers (UFW). This property was also home to its founder, César Estrada Chávez. The labor leader and civil rights activist lived here with his wife, Helen Fabela Chávez, from the early 1970s until his death in 1993.

Pay your respects at the gravesites of César and Helen Chávez. The couple's two beloved German Shepherds, Boycott and Huelga ("Strike"), lie buried beside their masters. It was Boycott that Chavez credited with inspiring his decision to adopt a vegetarian diet.

The monument, known as Nuestra Señora Reina de la Paz, tells the story of Chávez. A visit to the Exhibit Hall will show you Chávez’s meticulously preserved office. Piles of paperwork cover his ornately carved wooden desk, and books line the walls.

Check out the broken-down shack made of rusted metal and weather-warped wood. This exhibit illustrates the deplorable "housing" a typical farmworker lived in during the 1960s.

A photography archive documents the farm worker's revolution led by Chávez and UFW co-founder Dolores Huerta. Their ongoing efforts to bring worldwide attention to the plight of U.S. farmworkers eventually got them higher wages and safer working conditions. 1975's California Agricultural Labor Relations Act was the first law in the U.S. to recognize farm workers’ collective bargaining rights.

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