Theophilus Kirk was born in Ohio in 1832 and spent his early years in Ohio and Illinois. In1853, he and his brother, Socrates, drove a herd of cattle across the country and settled briefly in Sonora where they contracted to haul logs. With the money raised from these ventures, Theophilus and Socrates were able to purchase their first 428 acres of land in Santa Clara County in 1858. This land was originally part of the Mexican land grant Rancho San Juan Bautista. In 1881, the Kirk brothers purchased an adjoining 376 acres and expanded the ranch to include fruit orchards, wheat and barley. Mr. Kirk saw a future in growing fruit and became one of the valley’s first orchardists and a pioneer in the dried fruit industry. Mr. Kirk was also one of the founders of the Kirk Ditch Company that introduced irrigation techniques to the valley. When he died in 1915, Theophilus Kirk was a man of prominence and influence who was identified with significant agricultural and horticultural advancements in Santa Clara County In 1887, Theophilus married Elizabeth Chestnutwood of Stockton and built for her the Victorian ranch house, known today as the Kirk-Farrington House. The Kirks had two daughters, Ethel and Edith. Ethel married Sidney Farrington in 1904 and Theo Kirk Farrington, their only child, was born in 1905. The Farringtons resided on the Kirk ranch and Sidney became the head of the water district for Santa Clara County. Theo attended military school and graduated from Stanford University in 1930. It was at Stanford that he and Dorothy Bogen (who graduated in 1930) renewed a childhood friendship, dated and were married in the fall of 1930.

Dorothy Bogen Farrington was born on March 24, 1905 and was the only child of Della Beach and William C. Bogen. Della Beach Bogen was the youngest daughter of Tyler Beach, a respected businessman most noted for being the proprietor of the St. James Hotel in downtown San Jose. The Bogens had fruit orchards, raising cherries and prunes on their 180 acres on San Tomas Aquino Road in Campbell. Dorothy attended Castelija School in Palo Alto before graduating from Stanford in 1930. After marrying Theo Kirk Farrington in the fall of 1930, Dorothy and Theo lived for a time on the Kirk family property, but moved to Monterey at the outset of World War II, where Theo worked as a field engineer at Fort Ord. In the early 1950's, they moved into the Kirk-Farrington House on Dry Creek Road and took over the ranching operation. After Theo’s death in 1961, Dorothy continued to run the ranch, but ultimately sold off parcels, retaining only the two acres that remain a part of the estate today. Dorothy Bogen Farrington was very active in the community and a number of organizations. She served as international treasurer for AOTT, her college sorority, from 1963-1973. She was a member of the PEO Sisterhood, ToKalon, Charity League and Eastfield Children’s Home. Mrs. Farrington received the first non-member Paul Harris Fellowship Award from the San Jose Rotary. As a result of Dorothy Farrington’s interest in historical preservation and the request of her mother-in-law that she never sell the Kirk-Farrington House, Dorothy established the Farrington Historical Trust in 1974. After considering a number of organizations, Mrs. Farrington chose the Junior League of San Jose to be the beneficiary of the Trust and to use the house as its headquarters. Since 1978, the Junior League of San Jose has maintained its offices in the Kirk-Farrington House and uses the house for a variety of League and community-oriented meetings. After Mrs. Farrington turned over the house and its contents to the Trust, she remained involved and in touch with the activities of the Junior League and the Farrington Historical Trust. She assisted in the inventory of the numerous antiques that remained in the house as late as 1989 and was instrumental in helping establish the current goals and objectives of the Farrington Historical Foundation. Dorothy Bogen Farrington died in 1996 at the age of 91.

Built in 1878, the house is an excellent example of late nineteenth century bracketed farmhouse architecture. It is often described as an Italianate-style Victorian and acknowledged to be one of the best examples of its kind in Northern California. The original redwood framework of the two story residence has been retained. Framing the front doors is a small podium-style front porch with wood gutters, original to the house.. The interior of the eleven-room, 5000 square foot house features hardwood floors, twelve-foot ceilings, and crystal chandeliers. There are also many antiques furnishings from the Kirk, Farrington and Bogen families. Always used as a family home, some remodeling has occurred over the years. Three interior bathrooms were added as well as updating and expansion of the kitchen and the enclosure of the back screen porch into an additional room. In 1998 the upstairs was refurbished with new documentary wallpapers, paint and draperies in keeping with the character of the house. The grounds of the estate consist of approximately two acres and include two beautiful magnolia trees which are about one hundred years old and a redwood tree planted July 27, 1905 the day Theo Kirk Farrington was born, by his grandfathers. The garden includes a very rare collection of Chinese tree peonies, the original slips coming from the Midwest in the early 1930’s. The blooming season for these beautiful plants is in the month of March. A very large persimmon tree is also original to the grounds. The grounds were completely relandscaped in 2000 with many of the original trees and all of peonies retained. Included in the back garden is a large bell that was brought across the plains by Dorothy Farrington’s grandmother, Mrs. Tyler Beach. The bell was once used to sound the alarm of an impending Indian attack for the covered wagons, and later at the Bogen ranch to summon the men from the fields. Also on the grounds is a barn.  The center of the barn has a door on either end so carriages could drive through.

On April 16, 1978, the 100-year old Kirk-Farrington House was designated, by the Historical Landmark Commission of the City of San Jose, as a landmark of special historical, architectural, and cultural interest. It has been listed as a point of historical interest with the State of California and has been nominated to the National Register of Historic Places.