Stanford bought the Mayfield Grange property along San Francisquito Creek in 1876 and built up an estate of about 8,000 acres. He bred trotting horses there with an original system of training, and the farm became famous for horses such as Electioneer, Arion and Sunol.
In 1878 and 1879 the photographer Eadweard Muybridge used 24 cameras at the farm to show the attitudes of animals in motion. The red barn of about 1880 still stands and is home to Stanford’s equestrian team.