Los Angeles Public LibraryIn 1968 and 1969, the Manson Family lived at Spahn Ranch in Chatsworth, California; here they fired guns, stole cars, and planned the Tate-LaBianca murders.

It was the perfect place to escape. Nestled among the mountains on the outskirts of Los Angeles, surrounded by the remnants of a western-themed film set and perfect rocky trails for horseback riding, Spahn Ranch was an ideal hideout.

In the 1960s, visitors also enjoyed the solitude the ranch provided. The area gave a sense of tranquility and natural beauty, as its land opened up to stunning mountain views and vast, rolling fields.

Yes, Spahn Ranch was the perfect place to escape - especially if you were trying to secretly indoctrinate a cult and planning a series of murders. And between 1968 and 1969, Charles Manson was doing just that.

Ralph Crane/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesSpahn Film Ranch, home of the Manson Family, illuminated at night in August 1969, the month the Tate-LaBianca murders occurred.

This is the story of Spahn Ranch; an unused film set that served as the main base for the Manson Family before, during, and after the Tate-LaBianca murders that shocked America in August 1969.

Before the Manson Family: Spahn Ranch

Before hosting the Manson Family cult, Spahn Ranch was truly an ordinary film set.

In 1947, Lee and Ruth McReynolds purchased a 55-acre property at the western edge of Los Angeles County. They opened a shopping center on this land and built a western-themed film set. The nearby Iverson Film Ranch had been the shooting location for films starring stars like John Wayne and Buster Keaton, and Lee McReynolds hoped to benefit from this flow.

Ralph Crane/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesAn overview of Spahn Film Ranch, including unused western sets.

McReynolds built his sets, but in 1953 he sold them to a man named George Spahn, who owned the property for nearly 20 years.

George Spahn was born in Pennsylvania and owned a successful dairy business. When he moved his wife and 11 children to sunny California, he expanded his business with 35 cows, five wagons, and seven houses.

After moving to the West Coast, Spahn began operating a ranch in North Hollywood and became a major supplier of animals and western props for cinema. Shortly thereafter, he separated from his wife, who took the children, and became involved with an old circus performer named Ruby Pearl.

As the owner of the ranch, Spahn added several more western-themed sets. Several B movies were filmed at Spahn Ranch. Howard Hughes's The Outlaw was one of the most notable, and several episodes of the hit TV western series Bonanza were also filmed here.

Ralph Crane/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesGeorge Spahn, owner of Spahn Ranch, in late 1969.

However, as western films began to lose popularity, Spahn had to diversify. Spahn Ranch essentially became a tourist destination, and horseback rentals helped keep Spahn's business afloat. The ranch was perfect for horseback riding with its various hill trails, dry riverbeds, and mountain views.

But in 1968, it began to host a deranged cult leader and his loyal followers; this group planned a horrific series of murders using the isolation of Spahn Ranch.

The Manson Family Arrives at George Spahn's Ranch

Michael Ochs Archives/Getty ImagesCharles Manson, the cult leader living at Spahn Ranch in 1968.

In 1968, a year before the murder of Sharon Tate, Charles Manson was a new homeless person looking for a place for his "family" to stay; this group consisted of young people who chose to follow his mystical teachings and wild speeches. And the desolate Spahn Ranch on the outskirts of Los Angeles was the perfect place.

At that time, George Spahn was 80 years old. He had spent the last 15 years as a dairy farmer, running the horse rental business from his home and leading a relatively quiet life in the desolate landscape.

On the other hand, the Manson Family had not led a relatively quiet life. Over the past year, they had been roaming the California coast in a completely black Volkswagen van, diving into trash cans in Los Angeles to find food, and partying with Dennis Wilson, the drummer and co-founder of The Beach Boys. After a disagreement with Wilson, the Family began to hit the road again.

Michael Haering/Los Angeles Public LibraryThe Manson Family at Spahn Ranch, around 1970.

Charles Manson was influenced by the isolation and rugged terrain of Spahn Ranch. He thought it would be the perfect place for his cult, which consisted of 13 women and 5 men.

George Spahn was pleased with the young people moving onto the farm; especially when they offered to provide labor in exchange for accommodation. In the later years of his life, Spahn struggled with health issues, was losing his eyesight, and found it increasingly difficult to move around on his own. He was quite happy to have healthy young people around to help protect the farm.

And - of course - Manson's desire to have a treasure trove of young women was also part of the deal.

Charles Manson and His Followers Living Peacefully at Spahn Ranch

Los Angeles Public LibraryIn 1968, George Spahn's film ranch in the Chatsworth area became the main base for Charles Manson and his disturbing "Family."

During the months the Manson Family lived at Spahn Ranch, a relationship developed between George Spahn and the Family. Spahn gave nicknames to many of the Family members; these nicknames would later become publicly recognized.

George Spahn nicknamed Lynette Fromme “Squeaky” - the one who was his favorite and served as his “eyes” and de facto wife - due to the sound she made when she touched his thigh. Charles Watson was called “Tex” because of his Texas accent, which Spahn immediately noticed.

However, while Spahn enjoyed the presence of the young newcomers on his farm, he was unaware of the horrors they were planning.

The most notorious teaching within Charles Manson's cult was his “Helter Skelter” premonition. Named after the Beatles' song of the same name, Manson believed that Helter Skelter was an apocalyptic race war. In the coming years, he believed that the black and white populations would start a war, resulting in the effective end of the white population.

During Helter Skelter, Manson's family would hide in a hole in the desert. When the war ended, if it turned out that the black population had won but could not effectively govern themselves, Manson would emerge from his hiding place, come with a special dune buggy, and save them all.

Ralph Crane/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesThe interior of Spahn Ranch where Charles Manson lived with his "family."

Despite preaching about the birth of Helter Skelter for years, Spahn Ranch was the first place where he could fully immerse his followers in their crazy beliefs. There were no newspapers, clocks, or regular visitors at Spahn Ranch; this allowed Manson to impose a sense of time on his followers, making them even more susceptible to his influence.

Spahn Ranch After the Tate-LaBianca Murders

The peak of Charles Manson's disturbing teachings came on August 8, 1969; Manson Family members Tex Watson, Susan Atkins, Patricia Krenwinkel, and Linda Kasabian set out on Manson's orders from Spahn Ranch to the home of famous actress Sharon Tate and director Roman Polanski at 10050 Cielo Drive.

When they broke in, they brutally killed Tate and Jay Sebring, Wojciech Frykowski, and Abigail Folger who was with him.

The next night, the same group, along with Leslie Van Houten, Clem Grogan, and Manson, who actually did not kill anyone with their own hands, went to the home of supermarket manager Leno LaBianca and his wife Rosemary in Los Angeles and brutally killed them as well. These consecutive murders shocked Los Angeles and the country, launching a massive manhunt for the perpetrators.

Shortly thereafter, the killers were caught, and Spahn Ranch became the epicenter of the events. Charles Manson was even arrested at Spahn Ranch in August 1969.

However, despite the planning of the Tate-LaBianca murders at Spahn Ranch, members of the Manson Family hid on the ranch after the bloodshed, and although George Spahn had sexual relations with the women of the Manson Family, he faced no charges related to the crimes.

Herald Examiner Collection/Los Angeles Public LibraryThe police are investigating at Spahn Ranch following the Manson Family murders.

Spahn and many Family members lived on the ranch for a year after Manson's arrest; until a forest fire burned much of the ranch in September 1970. Four years later, Spahn passed away and was buried in Eternal Valley Memorial Park.

However, this does not mean that he was completely forgotten due to his infamous summer murder spree. For those with an extreme interest in Manson's life, it is intriguing not only to consider Manson's followers but also those who orbited around his metaphorical black hole and somehow managed to avoid being completely drawn in.

Los Angeles Public LibraryMembers of the Manson Family at Spahn Ranch, including Mary Brunner (in the background, wearing stripes) and Squeaky Fromme (front right).

What Happened to Spahn Ranch After the Manson Family and How Is It Today?

Today, there is not much left of Spahn Ranch. After the forest fire in 1970 and a subsequent fire, the land was repurchased by the state of California. It is now mostly covered with dirt and shrubs.

Wikimedia CommonsToday, Spahn Ranch consists mostly of dirt roads and shrubs.

However, if you look closely, traces of the Manson Family and their fans are still present. Large X's are carved into rocks scattered around the property; resembling those carved into the foreheads of Family members who committed the Tate-LaBianca murders in August 1969. In a cave where the Family took photos, there is a carving that reads “Manson Family Cave.”

Los Angeles Public LibraryThe so-called “Manson Family Cave” at Spahn Ranch is shown with a photo from August 1970 featuring Family members.

It seems that while nature tries to erase all traces of the Manson Family's time at Spahn Ranch, there will always be those determined to remember it.