President Nixon was born on January 9, 1913, in this house, which his father, Frank Nixon, built in 1912. Frank Nixon and his wife, Richard's mother Hannah, ran a citrus ranch on the surrounding land (now the site of the Nixon Presidential Library and Museum). The Nixon family lived in this house until 1922, when the ranch became unprofitable and they moved to Whittier, California.

The house then passed through a succession of owners. In around 1948, the Yorba Linda School District bought the structure, and it became a residence for the custodian of what later was named the Richard Nixon Elementary School, which was located next door until its demolition in 1988. In 1959, the school board and the citizens of Yorba Linda designated the house as a historic site. In 1990, it became a part of the private Richard Nixon Library and Birthplace, the antecedent of today's federal Nixon presidential library.

The birthplace is open to visitors, who must be accompanied by a docent on their tour. Visitors will see artifacts that belonged to the Nixon family and other contemporaneous artifacts as they look through the 1.5-story building.