PowerPoint Presentation

Mexican California

This is the first of three sets of slides dealing with Mexican California and the Gold Rush.Timeline1542: Cabrillo visits California1769-1770: Fra. Junipero Serra founds first missions: San Diego and Carmel1776: Anza reaches San Francisco via land route1777: Pueblo de San Jose founded1781: Pueblo de los Angeles founded1821: Mexico wins independence from Spain1833: The California missions are secularized, that is, they are taken over by the civil government

Here's a brief timeline to help contextualize the events we're about to cover.Mexican IndependenceMexico gained its independence from Spain in 1821Mexico became a constitutional republic in 1824California, as a result, became a territory of MexicoTwo major problems with nascent Mexican California:Distance from Mexico CityInexperience of the leaders

When Mexico gained its independence, California became a territory of the new nation of Mexico. However, California had two standing issues that made governing the territory difficult.The first was that it was so far away from Mexico City, the seat of Mexican government, and the leaders in California were inexperienced.Especially for a state that was so large, and so lightly populated, and was becoming ever moreso a place of interest for many parties.Timeline1542: Cabrillo visits California1769-1770: Fra. Junipero Serra founds first missions: San Diego and Carmel1776: Anza reaches San Francisco via land route1777: Pueblo de San Jose founded1781: Pueblo de los Angeles founded1821: Mexico wins independence from Spain1833: The California missions are secularized, that is, they are taken over by the civil government

Here's a brief timeline to help contextualize the events we're about to cover.Mexican IndependenceMexico gained its independence from Spain in 1821Mexico became a constitutional republic in 1824California, as a result, became a territory of MexicoTwo major problems with nascent Mexican California:Distance from Mexico CityInexperience of the leaders

Results of Mexican IndependenceSecularization of the missionsRancho Land Grants IssuedPolitical Turmoil EnsuedHide and Tallow Trade Intensified

As a result of Mexican independence, four major ongoing events occurred within California,namely, the missions were secularized. As a result of that, the mission lands were reissuedas land grants to people.Again, being so distant from Mexico City, and being a very lightly populated area -- over a large area -- political turmoil ensued, and the economy shifte to hide and tallow trade as the mainstay of California's economy.Mexican California endeavored to create a civil society throughsecularization of the missions,foreign trade,and land grants (Starr 45).SecularizationThe California missions were secularized in 1833That is, they were taken over by the secular governmentOne thinks of Henry VIII of England at the time of the Reformation and his dissolution of the monasteries (that is, they too came under state rule). But in the case of California missions, the original intent was to return land to the native peoples of California.Governor Jos Figueroa (1834)Unfulfilled secularization proclamationHalf of the property was to go to the Native AmericansHowever, he died during the process, and the secularization process was negatively impacted as far as returning land to the Native Americans.

So, twelve years or so after Mexican independence, the missions of California -- those 21 churches established -- were secularized, that is, they were taken by the civil government and the property dispersed to othersI'm of three hundred years before this, during the Protestant Reformation, and Henry VIII disolved the monasteries, that is, England to state ownership of the monasteries and increased the wealth of the civil government of England.Secularization (cont.)Impact on the Native AmericansThey were transferred, along with the mission cattle and land, to the newly created ranchos.They were usually treated worse than when under the leadership of the missions.Emergence of an elite class (rancheros)

As a result of not fulfilling the plan of turning over the missions to the Native Californians,matters became worsefor the Native Californians.They were transferred, along with the mission cattle and landto the new rancho owners, and they were usually treated worsethan they had been treated under the leadership of the missions.Rancho Land GrantsSizemaximum 50,000 acresProcess for qualification to receive land grantStep 1: petitionStep 2: diseoStep 3: concedoStep 4: permanent title

The next five slides go into detail about how someone became the owner of a rancho.Step 1: PetitionAgree to military service if neededBecome a Mexican citizen (and thus convert to Roman Catholicism if lacking)Examples of economically expedient religious conversion would be Benjamin (Benito) Wilson and Louis RubidouxA rationale must be given for being granted the land

Step 2: Diseo (a drawing; map)

Step 2 was that a Diseo (drawing; map) of the prospective area had to be submitted.Step 3: ConcedoThe official order to prepare the titlePermanent structure necessaryDefinite boundaries (offical survey)

Step 4: TitleOfficial title granted as the last stepUnfortunately, many did not take this last stepThese ranchos were lost after California became a part of the United States

The final step was to obtain the offical title to the land.Unfortunately, many did not take this step,perhaps thinking things would always stay the sameand others recognizing already their ownership of the land.Those who did not obtain the title -- some of these are well-known cases --once the United States took over California,if these people were not able to produce the official title,even though they had been on the land and were living there and working it,they lost that land.RancherosRecipients of government land grantsParticipants in Mexican Californias hides and tallow economyNotable rancherosDon Jos Andrs SeplvedaMariano Guadalupe VallejoJuan Bautista Alvarado, the nephew of VallejoPio Pico: born at Mission San Gabriel; his grandfather had accompanied Anza on one of his expeditions; the last Governor of Alta CaliforniaJuan Bandini: Owned Rancho JurupaBenjamin (Benito) Wilson: AmericanGrandfather of General George S. Patton, Jr., of WWII fameMt. Wilson is named after himLouis Rubidoux (near Riverside): AmericanThe rancho tradition is remembered in the local name Rancho Cucamonga

This slide notes some notable rancheros -- those who owned ranchosSome of these people gave their names to major streets and towns in Californiaand I even note some more local rancho owners.Life on the RanchosNative American serfsVaqueros (cowboys)Essentially a feudal societyRancheros ruled as lords, and thus the title Don.Indian workers were serfs (slaves?)Native Americans who were, in a sense, transferred to the new rancho owner, were analogous to the medieval serf, who was tied to the land regardless of any change in lordship.Rawls and Bean estimate that only around 100 non-Native Californians were literate (70). They were doing quite well and ruling their own enclaves, but they were living on borrowed time

When I look at the situation of the ranchos, I am more and more reminded of medieval feudalismbecause the Native Americans are like the medieval serfs in that they seem to be in some sense tied to the land-- they were transferred with the land when the secularization of the missions occurred.The ranchero who rules over his rancho in known as "Don," which is from the Latin for "lord."Once again, I like to make historical connections.Ranchos (cont.)Overall, there was very little urbanization in Mexican California (i.e., people were not living in towns); reminiscent of feudal Europe during the Middle Ages, where villages were associated with the old Roman villas, worked by serfs, known as villeins. In fact, some of the Californios styled themselves as caballeros. The Spanish term caballero is cognate to chivalry and calvary, and thus caballero is equal to the term knight. A caballero was thus a knight/gentleman, and a vaquero was equivalent to a cowboy.

Ranchero culture and horsesExcellent horses, however, were so numerous that they were allowed to run and graze freely, dragging lassos for easy catching. Walking was a lost art. It was much easier to catch a passing horse, ride it where one wished to go, and turn it loose again. To Richard Henry Dana, author of Two Years before the Mast (1840), all Californians in the 1830s seemed to be centaurs (R & B 68), adding, Some of the most skillful riders were the daughters of the rancheros (ibid.).Two of the Riverside areas rancherosLouis RubidouxOwned a grist mill (near corner of Rubidoux Road and Mission Boulevard)Louis Rubidoux , Lorenzo Trujillo (leader of the Agua Mansa/La Placita settlement), and Benito Wilson all knew each other

Cornelius JensenA Danish ship captainMarried Mercedes AlvaradoSettled near Rubidouxs mill.His home is one of the best preserved old homes in the State of California

Louis Rubidoux home (1869)(now gone)

The Jensen Alvarado Ranch home in Rubidouxc. 1870; still standingNot an adobe, but built of red brick.Both a California Historic Site and a National historic site

Buried at Agua Mansa cemetery, along with Rubidoux.

CalifornioA person of Spanish descent who was rooted in California during the Mexican California period.They were often rancheros, i.e., persons who owned (by government grant of the Mexican California government) a large parcel of land for (primarily) cattle raising.The rancheros were connected throughout the state via family ties, and were fairly independent of government intrusion.The non-Native American population of California at the time was extremely small (around 7000, and only about 1000 were adult males)

The movement from missions to ranchosAt first, there were only missions (religious) and presidios (military)Added were a couple of pueblos (secular towns): San Jose and Los AngelesThen, with Mexican independence, the missions were eventually secularized and their extensive lands granted as ranchos (numbering 600 by 1840)Many of these ranchos were subdivided over timeMexican California was, then, tentatively republican in form, tempered by deep-seated hierarchical and military traditions. The system was late medieval (it has been styled ante-bellum Southern), based upon blood (Spanish), property, and position, and the labor of subservients. The gentry, vaunting some trace of Spanish inheritance and usually intermarrying, held the chief military and civil offices, much of the land and property, and a prejudice against things Mexican (Harlow 24).Among the gente de razn, position was more to be desired than riches, leisure than labor, and individual freedom, even laxity and license, than discipline. Wealth meant lands and cattle, the first initially of small value and virtually free for the asking, the latter, as hides and tallow, providing almost the only free capital and medium of exchange. Juan Bandini, one of the gentry, said in 1828 that most of them did nothing (Harlow 25).

This slide has some points for review, going through things chronologically.At first Father Serra began setting up the missions in California,which were accompanied by a military presence.Then, a couple of pueblos or secular towns were established-- San Jose and Los Angeles -- Then, with Mexican independence from Spain, the missions were secularized and their lands granted as ranchos.I've included here a couple of quotes from Harlow.I find these quotes from Harlow significant because he, too, sees a feudalism going onand I've highlighted a few words: blood (which means heredity); property (which is the core of feudalism)position (people holding superior rank above others); and the labor forcewhich as I noted on another slide, paralled the medieval, feudal practice of the laborer being tied to the land, regardless of the land being transferred to another owner.CalifornioMariano Guadalupe Vallejo

One of those who cannot be said to have done "nothing" is Mariano Guadalupe Vallejoa Californio of great note, and the next few slides give some information about him.Mariano Guadalupe VallejoHis father was a leather jacket soldier who escorted Junipero Serra to San Francisco in 1776 Well educated--he was tutored in English, French, and Latin Entered military service as a cadet at Monterey; became a member of the territorial legislature. He is said to have been an architect of Californias diversity:Vallejo was favorably inclined to foreigners. The Generals establishing a precedent of tolerance would carry over into the distant future. It is not too far-fetched to suggest that Americans of diverse backgrounds today still feel some of that sense of accommodating broadmindedness in California. If he was not actually the founder of Californias diversity, Vallejo was certainly one of its chief architects (Alan Rosenus, General Vallejo and the Advent of the Americans: A Biography, 41).Vallejo (cont.)Family manmarried16 childrenHe owned several land grant ranchos--His land acreage (175,000 acres) was comprised of gifts, purchases, and awards for services or debts owed him. Military Commandant of the San Francisco PresidioAt his own expense, he outfitted and fed the Mexican troops at Sonoma for next ten yearsApprehended in 1846 by Fremont, and then shamefully imprisoned by Fremont, adding to pre-Mexican-American War tensions

Hides and Tallow TradeHuge ranchos exported:Hides (of cattle)Tallow (cow oil for lamps, etc.)The ranchos imported (because the mission economy was shut down):Shoes (made from the hides they exported)SaddlesSoap (made from the tallow they exported)Candles

The hides and tallow trade was the economic backbone of the ranchos.They were huge ranchos that exported the hides and tallow of cattle.Recall that these ranchos were once mission-owned ranchos.It wasn't the best business model . . . because the ranchos, due to the limited economic activity outside of cattle ranchinghad to import items, such as shoes and soap, that were actually made from the materials they exported.Hides and Tallow TradeThe hides and tallow industry first developed among the missions (Rawls and Bean [R&B] 61)tallow = oil from animalsAfter the missions disintegrated, there was virtually no manufacturing (R&B 66)The rancheros inherited, from secularization of the missions, land grants that came with land, livestock, and laborers (R&B 66-7)Hides and tallow were the new industries after (mostly) New England trapping ships nearly exterminated the sea otter and the fur seal from Californias coasts (R&B 73).California Governors under the Mexican regime (1821-1847)Jose Maria de Echeandia- Nov. 1825-Jan. 31, 1831Antonia Garciaappointed but appointment revokedManuel Victoria-Jan. 31, 1831 to Dec. 6, 1831Jose Maria de Echeandia-Dec.6, 1831 to Jan.14, 1833Pio Pico-Jan. 27, 1832 to Feb. 16, 1832 (20 days)Agustin Vicente Zamorano-Feb.1, 1832 to Jan. 14, 1833Jose Figueroa-Jan. 14, 1833 to Sept. 29, 1835Jose Castro-Sep. 29, 1835 to Jan. 2, 1836Nicolas Gutierrez-Jan. 2 to May 3, 1836Mariano Chico-May 3 to Aug. 1, 1836Nicolas Gutierrez-Aug. 1 to Nov. 5, 1836Jose Castro-Nov. 5 to Dec. 7, 1836Juan Bautista Alvarado-Dec. 7, 1836 to Dec. 31, 1842Manuel Micheltorena-Dec. 31, 1842 to Feb. 22, 1845Pio Pico-Feb. 22, 1845 to Aug. 10, 1846Jose Maria Flores-Oct. 31, 1846 to Jan. 11, 1847Andres Pico-Jan. 11 to Jan. 13, 1847

Just for interest's sake, here is a list of the California governors under the Mexican government that controlled California.The AdobesTapia Adobe (gone): Located near the corner of Vineyard Avenue and Foothill Boulevard (later a part of famous Route 66). The adobe was part of Rancho Cucamonga.Yucaipa Adobe (extant): Once occupied by frontiersman Jim Waters (1840s) and Diego SepulvedaYorba-Slaughter Home (extant)Benito Wilson married Ramona Yorba (daughter of Bernardo Yorba); Wilson was Mayor of LA; Mount Wilson is named after himTrujillo Adobe (Riverside; extant but in disrepair): The Agua Mansa and La Placita communities were the largest communities between Santa Fe and LA on the Old Spanish Trail. Located at Orange and Center streets.Diego Sepulveda Adobe (extant in a park): Coast MesaAvila Adobe (built 1818 by Francisco Avila in Los Angeles)The oldest standing residence in Los Angeles. It is located in the Olvera Street area.Alvarado Adobe (Pomona, 1840):Old Settlers Lane inPomona.

There are some old adobes still around that I want to note, and some that are no longer around.These are found somewhat locally.Here are a few links if you want to look into them.Some of them you can visit -- the Yucaipa adobe is quite accessible.The one in Costa Mesa -- the Diego Sepulveda Adobe -- I've never been inside of it, but there's a park around it so you can right up to it.The one in Riverside -- the Trujillo Adobe -- is in unfortunate disrepairand it's covered by a protective shell. It's out toward the corner of Orange and Center Streets.

AdobeMany of early Californias homes were built of adobe, which is dried mud brick.The term adobe is actually from a Coptic word, TBE (pronounced with two syllables), which means stone.Coptic is the last phase of the ancient Egyptian language. The term made its way to Spain via the Muslims, who added the Arabic prefix for the, al-.Thus adobe is only one of two or three Coptic loan words in English.

I have a background in translating Coptic, which is the last phase of the ancient Egyptian language,and is one of the languages of the Christian Coptic Church.This slide notes how the Coptic word for stone, TOBE, became in the western hemisphere our word for dried mud brick.7079.203610161.62952844.95310161.62952844.95357337.78null58147.535null32810.07410997.53558408.74654229.37