n the 1870's, John and Lillie Ann Greenlaw, Scottish and Irish immigrants, lived on the land that later became the Hill Ranch, purchased by Jack London in 1905. John, and his partner James Cooper, both shipbuilders, tried their hand at ranching by planting a wine grape vineyard.

Unfortunately, Phylloxera, a disease caused by a root louse, infected their vineyards as well as many across California and France, causing a disastrous grape vine epidemic.

Greenlaw and Cooper abandoned their vineyard dream to return to shipbuilding in San Francisco. The graves of two of the Greenlaw children, who died and were buried on the property in 1876 (David) and 1877 (Lillie), later inspired Jack London to request that his ashes might someday lie on the knoll, near little David and Lillie Greenlaw. After his death, his ashes were placed under a large volcanic rock on the knoll.

The ages of the children and the causes of their deaths are not known, but the mortality rate for children was high and medical care was scarce back then..

The grave sites of Jack London and the Greenlaw children are a short walk from the museum along the trail to the Wolf House.