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Gc 979.401 L88h 1204146
M. L.
GENEALOGY COLLECTION
ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 1833 01717 2310
History of POMONA VALLEY California
with
Biographical Sketches of
The Leading Men and Women of the Valley Who Have Been Identified With Its Growth and Development from the Early Days to the Present
ILLUSTRATED
COMPLETE IN ONE VOLUME
HISTORIC RECORD COMPANY LOS ANGELES, CAL. 1920
S. den Boule 27.50
CONTENTS -
CHAPTER ONE
1204146
MEXICAN PIONEERS 33
FIRST VISIT OF PALOMARES AND VEJAR TO THE SAN JOSÉ VALLEY-THE GRANT FROM GOVERNOR ALVARADO-SAN JOSÉ DAY-SURVEY AND BOUNDARIES OF THE RANCHO SAN JOSÉ.
CHAPTER TWO
LIFE ON THE RANCHOS IN THE FORTIES . 41
OCCUPATION OF THE RANCHO BY PALOMARES AND VEJAR FAMILIES-HOME LIFE IN THE HACIENDAS-THE MISSION OF SAN GABRIEL-BRANCH MISSION AT SAN BERNARDINO-INDIANS OF THE VALLEY-STORY OF BURIED TREASURE- GRANTS ADJOINING THE RANCHO SAN JOSÉ-HENRY DALTON AND AZUSA --- DON ANTONIO LUGO AND THE CHINO-LA PUENTE RANCHO-THE ROW- LANDS AND WORKMANS-DESCRIPTION AND PARTITION OF THE RANCHO SAN JOSÉ-CONNECTIONS WITH THE WORLD OUTSIDE-THE WAR OF 1846- BATTLE OF THE CHINO RANCH HOUSE-THE GOLD FEVER.
CHAPTER THREE
THE QUARTER CENTURY FOLLOWING THE CESSION OF CALIFORNIA TO THE UNITED STATES 69
WILLOW GROVE, LEXINGTON AND MONTE-EARLY SETTLERS AND LIFE AT EL MONTE-BEGINNINGS OF SPADRA-SCHLESINGER AND TISCHLER FORECLOSURE -LOUIS PHILLIPS AND HIS RANCH-THE RUBOTTOMS AT SPADRA-THE FRYERS AND OTHER SETTLERS-THE OVERLAND STAGE-BUTTERFIELD AND HOLLIDAY-THE STAGE AT SPADRA-DEATH OF HILLIARD P. DORSEY-OTHER TRAGEDIES-KEWEN DORSEY.
#
CONTENTS-Continued
CHAPTER FOUR
THE SPANISH SETTLEMENT AT SAN JOSÉ HILLS 89 CYRUS BURDICK, THE PIONEER OF POMONA-REVOLUTIONARY FORBEARS-OVER- LAND JOURNEY-RESIDENCE AT SAN GABRIEL-EARTHQUAKES-REMOVAL TO SAN JOSÉ VALLEY-FIRST ORANGE GROVE-MEXICAN LIFE AT THE SPANISH SETTLEMENT-PASSING OF THE EARLY GENERATION-CHILDREN OF YGNACIO PALOMARES-THE VEJAR FAMILIES-THE YGNACIO ALVARADO HOUSE AND ITS ACTIVITIES-THE INDIANS-THE FIRST SCHOOL AND ITS TEACHER, P. C. TONNER-FIRST SCHOOLHOUSE-TONNER THE TEACHER-TONNER THE STU- DENT AND POET-SWEET SAN JOSÉ-THE LOOP AND MESERVE AND OTHER EARLY TRACTS OF THE SAN JOSE DE ARIBA.
CHAPTER FIVE
BEGINNINGS OF POMONA 113
COMING OF THE RAILROAD -TONNER-BURDICK-PALOMARES CONTRACTS-LOS AN- GELES IMMIGRATION AND LAND COOPERATIVE ASSOCIATION-THE NEW TOWN OF POMONA-PUBLIC SCHOOL-COLLAPSE OF THE L. A. I. AND L. C. A .- POMONA LAND AND WATER COMPANY-THE BOOM-POMONA IN 1882 AND 1885-CONSTABLE SLANKER AND OTHER OLD-TIMERS.
CHAPTER SIX
WATER, LIGHT AND POWER 135
THREE SOURCES OF WATER-OLD SETTLEMENT WATER-CANYON WATER- ARTESIAN WELLS-WATER COMPANIES-TUNNELS-CONSERVATION-ELEC- TRIC LIGHT AND POWER.
CHAPTER SEVEN
INDUSTRIES OF THE VALLEY . 145
SPADRA, PUENTE AND THE GRAIN COUNTRY-SPADRA AFTER THE RAILWAY- JAMES M. FRYER, F. M. SLAUGHTER AND SENATOR CURRIER-VINEYARD AND ORCHARD-VITICULTURE-DECIDUOUS FRUITS-OLIVE CULTURE-ORANGES AND LEMONS-COOPERATIVE MARKETING-BUSINESS AND MANUFACTURE- POMONA MANUFACTURING COMPANY-BUSINESS-BANKS.
CONTENTS-Continued
CHAPTER EIGHT
SOCIAL, INTELLECTUAL AND SPIRITUAL LIFE OF POMONA 159
EDUCATION-POMONA SCHOOLS FROM 1875-HIGHER EDUCATION-CHURCHES AND RELIGIOUS LIFE-EARLY CONDITIONS-CATHOLIC, BAPTIST, EPISCOPAL METH- ODIST, CHRISTIAN, PRESBYTERIAN AND CONGREGATIONAL CHURCHES-FRA- TERNITIES-NEWSPAPERS-POMONA TIMES-POMONA PROGRESS-THE RE- VIEW AND OTHER PAPERS-PUBLIC LIBRARY-SOCIAL LIFE IN POMONA.
CHAPTER NINE
POMONA'S MUNICIPAL LIFE . 171
INCORPORATION AND LIQUOR FIGHT-BEFORE INCORPORATION-THE GREAT ISSUE -DRUNKENNESS-THE CONFLICT-CHINESE PROBLEM-OTHER PROBLEMS AND CONTESTS-THE MURCHISON LETTER-MUNICIPAL SOLIDARITY.
CHAPTER TEN
THE FOOTHILL CITIES ALONG THE SANTA FE . 177
COMING OF THE SANTA FE-RAILROAD ACTIVITIES-BOOM OF NEW TOWNSITES- EFFECT OF SANTA FÉ ON SOUTHERN PACIFIC AND POMONA-LA VERNE, LORDSBURG AND LA VERNE COLLEGE-SAN DIMAS-MUD SPRINGS-CANYON SETTLERS-THE TEAGUES-MOUND CITY LAND AND WATER ASSOCIATION- SAN JOSÉ RANCH COMPANY-WATER COMPANIES AND LITIGATION-CITRUS INDUSTRY-GROWTH OF SAN DIMAS-CHARTER OAK-CLAREMONT AND POMONA COLLEGE-THE BOOM AND ITS COLLAPSE-INDIANS AND WILDS OF THE DESERT-TOOTS MARTIN-PETER FLEMING -- BEGINNINGS OF POMONA COLLEGE-CLAREMONT BUSINESS AND CITRUS FRUITS-SCHOOL AND CHURCH.
IN CONCLUSION
203
INDEX
Page
A
Aborn, Mrs. Ida E. 720
Adams, Frank E. 293
Adams, John S. 510
Adamson, John E ..
320
Afflerbaugh, Clinton Bertram 612
Allard, Joseph A., Jr .. 748
Alter, Charles H., D.D.S. 812
Anderson, Daniel Walter 732
Arbuthnot, Daniel G.
493
Armour, Elmer Eugene. 314
Arnold, William Henry 404
Augustine, Victor Curtis 730
Avis, Americus Benezette
519
.
Avis, Walter Moore
391
B
Bailey, Ira D. 704
Baker, Abram 371
Baker, Charles D. +89
Baker, Vincent W., D.D.S. 626
Baldwin, Frank H.
541
Balfour, Frank W
504
Bangle, Ethan G .. 604
Bartlett, William Henry 298
Baumgardner, Welcome A 534
Bayer, Charles Phillip 742
Baynham, Joseph J.
335
Beale, Henry W. 567
Beck, Albert Allen 506
Beck, Samuel Sanders. 324
Belcher, Harry T.
751
Bennett, James Stark 813
Bichowsky, Emmo C. 701
Billheimer, John S .. 528
Blaisdell, James Arnold, D.D. 366
Blatz, Frederick A. 814
Blickenstaff, Lynn A
707
Booth, Charles J. 705
Booth, Elmer E. 564
Bowden, Jere C. 816
Bowen, Frederick W.
632
Bowen, John Carson
599
Page
Bowen, John F.
477
Bowler, William W. 393
Bowman, Jonathan V. 331
Boyd, Sydney R. 746
Brackett, Frank Parkhurst, M.A 254
Bradley, Edward D. 695
Bright, H. Verner 739
Brooks, Ernest 499
Brooks, John Tinley 458
Brown, Harry P. 559
Brubaker, Henry J. and John B .. 685
Bryant, DeWitt Clinton, A.M.,
M.D.
414
Buckner, Rev. Walter C. 691
Bulla, Quincy A. 615
Burr, Rollin T., M.D. 234
C
Calkins, Benjamin E.
757
Camers, Jacob 749
Camp, John Bradford 520
Campbell, J. E.
708
Carson, Walter Scott 227
Carter, Roy H. 817
Catelli, Frank 818
Chain, Charles H. 342
Clapp, Stacy W., D.D.S. 712
Clark, Charles 311
Clark, C. Ralph. 816
Clark, Lloyd R.
709
Clark, Ralph S. 793
Clark, Rev. Stephen Cutter, Jr. 759
Clarke, Joseph C. 798
Clifton, Samuel B. 282
Coates, Thomas, M.D. 288
Cogswell, Capt. Franklin
328
Cole, Cyrus H. 698
Collins, David H 275
Colvin, Joseph L. 397
Condit, Albert P.
726
Coon, William R. 521
Corbeil, Theophile
337
Crank, F. DeWitt, M.D.
248
INDEX-Continued
Page
Crawford, Henry M.
745
Cree, Ira J .. 711
Crookshank, David C.
383
Cumberland, Julian F
480
Curran, Charles P.
522
Currier, Hon. Alvan Tyler
211
Curry, David W.
471
D
David and Margaret Home for
Children
794
Davis, Ferdinand
631
Davis, Henry B.
639
Davis, Walter T
723
Day, Edwy M ..
398
Deere, J. Harvey, B.A., D.D. 721
Dehnel, Joseph Severns
796
Dewey, Harold C.
640
Dillman, George
297
Dole, James Albert.
269
Doughty, William Clyde
680
Doull, Albert P.
763
Doutt, Mace B.
725
Doyle, Patrick W.
283
Dovolos, John
760
Duffy, Maj. Homer Leo
768
Durward, Arthur, A.M.
625
Duvall, Oliver Harvey
766
E
Eakin Brothers
727
Eakin, Charles M. 727
Eakin, Freeman M
727
Earle, Ethan H.
388
Eells, Francis Clark
622
Elliott, Joseph
526
Elliott, Leslie L.
698
Ellsworth, Fred E. and Frank E .. 515
Ercanbrack, William S.
622
Evans, Frank C.
527
Evans, John P.
642
F
Fender, John A.
341
Ferree, Ernest D. 700
Ferrell, Louis
771
Ferry, William
653
Fich, Bertram
659
Fitch, Joseph A.
606
Page
Fleming, Edward J. 253
Fleming, Miss Minerva C ..
552
Fleming, Peter
302
Fleming, William T.
432
Foote, William Burr
741
Forbes, John J.
551
Ford, Selden I.
434
Forester, George Wilmont,
M.D. 589
Foster, Herbert Clare
512
Fowkes, Alfred M.
769
Fox, Capt. Charles J.
532
Fox, William A.
501
Fredendall, Earl
770
Freyermuth, Harry W
571
Fritz, William O.
703
Fryer, James M.
218
Fulton, James W.
281
Fulton, Samuel M.
801
Funkhouser, William E.
621
G
Gammon, Edward H.
694
Gapp, John C ..
655
Garcelon, Frank, M.D.
279
Garrett, Judge W. A.
425
Garrison, Christopher H.
805
Garthside, Joseph Relton
250
Gates, Clyde A.
773
Gates, W. B. 651
Geer, Francis Heman, M.D
610
Gerrard, Albert Campbell
747
Gibson, Bertram W.
803
Gillen, Edward E.
525
Gillette, Charles V.
516
Gilman, Herbert S.
791
Goettsche, John
468
Gore, Thomas E.
802
Gray, Ralph E.
675
Greaser, Charles E.
716
Griswold, George C. B.L., Ph.D .. 574
H
Hall, Orin J ..
656
Hamilton, William Wright
804
Hanawalt, Harvey M.
800
Ferrell, James G.
672
Hansen, Hans B
338
Hansen, Jacob P
710
Hanson, Harry
669
Hanson, Mrs. Marie A.
669
Hardon, Charles H.
+26
INDEX-Continued
Page
Hardy, Ormal G. 795 Harrison, Thomas 755
Hart, Elmer W., LL.M. 385
Hartman, Fred W.
744
Harwood, Frank H.
808
Hathaway, Jefferson M ..
301
Haugh, Prof. Benjamin S.
600
Heath, Col. George
257
Henzie, Edward A
743
Hickman, Frank A.
629
Hill, Alton B.
419
Hinman, Elliott
372
Hinman, Harry H.
625
Hitchcock, George Gale. 569
Hoover, William I. T., Ph.D
620
Hough, Jesse W.
784
Howard, Horace E.
789
Hudson, Rev. Charles R. 706
Huff, Charles C.
445
Hume, James
464
Hunter, John H
676
Huston, Roy
719
I
Inwood, Rev. Alfred
731
Izer, Elmer E.
588
J
Jacobs, Fred C ..
531
Jerde, Edward B. 554
Johnson, Cassius C ..
+08
Johnson, James Dixon .
756
Johnson, William Ellis
786
Johnstone, William Arthur
502
Jones, Cyrus W
750
Jones, George E.
731
K
Kaltenbeck, Fred
590
Keiser, Edwin T.
407
Keiser, John Wilford 533
Keiser, Oscar G.
538
Kelly, Elmer Ellsworth, M.D.
733
Kennedy, William A.
737
Kepner, Shellburn M .. 781
Kettelle, Herbert C., D.D.S.
736
Kiler, William H. 448
Klein, Philip G ..
435
Klinzman, Louis Carl.
537
Knight, Frank W.
724
Page
Knox, Reginald L. 728
Krehbiel, Henry A. 595
Kuns, Henry LeBosquette.
430
Kuntz, Charles
266
L
Lamont, James W.
542
Lamb, Mrs. Elizabeth.
381
Laughlin, Joseph T. 307
Lavars, Harry J ..
737
Lawrence, Edgar A. 264
Lee, Alonzo W
272
Lee, Ira A.
592
Lee, John Henry
327
Levengood, E. J
544
Lewis, Fred R.
439
Lewis, Jerry N.
549
Lewison, Lewis
378
Lichty, Arthur Millard.
570
Lorbeer, Carl H.
575
Lorbeer, Charles Augustus
236
Loucks, Richard N.
630
Ludden, Jerome A.
572
Lussier, Joseph O.
616
Lyter, Albert William
573
M
McCain, Nelson Grant
734
McCannel, Mrs. Flora
547
McComas, J. E., Hon. 238
McComas, Mrs. Emma
238
McGannon, Alfred 1 ..
797
McIntire, Samuel W. 702
McLeod, John A.
547
McMullin, Wm. W
433
Mackenzie, Daniel
635
Manley, Mrs. Sylvia Lucile Powers 323
Manning, Herman L.
687
Mapel, Marion 686
Martin, William M .. 688
Martin, William T. 355
Mason, John W
557
Matthews, Lee R ..
454
May, Clement Robert 786
May, Hal
807
Meredith, Lewis C. 362
Meserve, Alvin Rand 441
Metz, Mitchell K. 790
Middleton, Carl W.
792
Midgley, Charles
350
INDEX-Continued
Page
Miller, George W 799
Mills, Lindsay M. 779
Minnich, Leroy 451
Mishler, Harry 440
Mitchell, Allen G.
694
Mitchell, James M.
361
Moore, George R.
553
Morris, Chester J.
753
Morton, Robert Lee 649
Mosher, Frank D 674
Mullen, Joseph
689
Myers, Mrs. Myra
461
N
Neibel, Ira L.
436
Neilly, P. J .. 782
Newcomer, Paul W., M.D. 693
Nichols, Allen P.
271
Norcross, Hobert F.
558
Norton, Willis A.
313
Nunneley, Ferris J.
778
O
Oglivie, William M.
713
Osgoodby, Andrew 258
Osgoodby, George
258
Otto, Charles E.
785
P
Paige, Joseph Morgan
51.1
Palmer, Edwin T.
289
Palmer, Frank Fletcher.
624
Seaver, Carlton
312
Palmer, Frank L.
318
Pallett, Mrs. Mary Jane
+46
Palomares, Jose Dolores
217
Palomares, Porfirio 222
Park, Schuyler Howard 609
Parsons, Cyrus Mason. 690
Patten, Mrs. Frances Ada
223
Patterson, Tillman W.
644
Pease, Edmund Morris, Rev
452
Penn, Warren
754
Persons, Dennis L. +55
Petty, Moses
+03
Phillips, Louis
215
Pierce, Himon N. 294
Pierson, Joseph Christmas +10
Pirdy, Adelbert J .. 679
Platt, George Cyril
788
Plush, William 259
Page
Poling, Ira W. 636
Pomona Fixture & Wiring Co. 750
Porter, David C. W. 665
Porter, Frank B.
670
Potter, Mark H.
614
Pratt, Harry S.
548
Presnell, William H. 717
R
Rambo, J. Frank
750
Reed, Henry M.
276
Reid, William 442
Reimers, Justus
500
Reynolds, Henry Presley, B.S. 457
Ricciardi, Philip L. 752
Rice, Miss Flora A. 787
Richards, Addison W.
456
Riley, Patrick
233
Ring, Miss Alice B. 666
Ritter, Frederick W.
696
Robbins, Homer E., Ph.D.
776
Robertson, John G.
663
Robinson, Frank C. 652
Romick, John W
290
Ruth, Theodore
237
Rutty, Luman
650
S
Sanborn, Carlton H.
634
Scofield, Ira
568
Scofield, Miss Maie E.
568
Sederholm, E. Theodor
587
Seymour, Miss Alice M
585
Shafer, Walter
308
Shaw, Edward D. 353
Sheehy, Rev. John J. 560
Sheets, L. E ..
809
Shepherd, B. Chaffey
758
Shettel, Walter A.
811
Shewman, John O .. 662
Shirk, Frank M., M.D.
671
Shoemaker, J. Ralph . 681
Silva, Morgan P.
810
Slanker, Frank Oscar
349
Smart, Thaddeus
605
Smead, Franklin 568
Smith, B. Lillian, M.D., D.O 674
Smith, Frederick J.
295
Smith, Lewis N.
613
INDEX-Continued
Page
Smith, Ralph, M.D. 699 Smith, T. Hardy, M.D. 284
Smith, William Henry 714
Somerville, William D.
777
Spalding, Miss Phebe Estelle, Ph.D. 611
Sparks, Marcus L. 287
Spence, Mrs. Cornelia A. 332
Spencer, Charles G. 597
Stahlman, Edward G.
755
Steinruck, Bernard G.
661
Steves, Thurman J.
578
Stine, Rollie A.
772
Stone, Charles M.
226
Storment, John C.
806
Stoughton, Arthur V., M.D.
652
Stout, B. P., Prof.
775
Stover, William Willard. 596
Straley, Elmer
368
Strong, Nathan E.
249
Studer, Robert
594
Sumner, Charles Edward +62
Swank, Amzi S
673
T
Tate, Albert Edward
472
Taylor, Albert L .. 232
Teague, David Clinton 375
Teague, Jasper N.
401
Teague, Robert M.
359
Teitsworth, Hugh S.
735
Thatcher, Hugh A. 543
Thomas, Anson C. 745
Thomas, Edward Walter 598
Thompson, Kirk W
619
Thurman, Monroe.
467
Todd & Patterson
644
Todd, Walter B. 644
Tolton, D. Mat. 774
Travis, G. Luther
593
Trimmer, Scott.
473
Trotter, Thomas Ross
416
True, William S.
305
Tuller, Louis B. 495
Tyler, George R.
641
Tyler, John L., M.D., V.S.
591
U
Ulery, Howard E.
633
V
Vandegrift, William A., Hon .. +7+
Vejar, Abraham H.
550
Vejar, Ignacio O.
577
Vejar, Jose H.
490
Vejar, Ramon 213
W
Walcott, Herbert E.
478
Walker, James W. 563
Waters, Arthur E. 660
Waters, George H
486
Weaver, Fred D. 729
Weber, John. 317
Weigle, George J. 479
Weineke, Morris Randolph 496
Welch, Everett Haskell. 344
Wells, Jasper T.
762
Westerman, Mrs. Ellen D. 319
Westgate, Harry B. 761
Whaley, Guy V. 581
Wheelan, Richard Barrett 367
Wheeler, Edward Myron 664
Wheeler, Frank.
738
White, Caleb 231
White, Francis Harding, Ph.D. 715
White, Harry Randolph 344
White, Ira F.
387
White, John J. 265
White, Mabel E., D.O. 688
White, Robert 646
White, Ulysses E. +29
Whitehead, J. Moses 420
Whiting, Asa G.
346
Whyte, Fred E. 654
Williams, Henry H 263
Williams, Thomas A. 394
Wiltberger, Miss L.
682
Witman, George B .. 764
Wittenmyer, George H. 643
Wood, William Stanley 765
Woodford, B. A.
330
Wyman, Francis G.
767
Y
Yorba, Porfirio J ..
+23
Yundt, Emery Roscoe
740
Z
Zander, Milton W.
718
Page
A Brief Early History
of the
SAN JOSÉ RANCHO
and its Subsequent Cities
Pomona, San Dimas, Claremont, La Verne and Spadra
Prepared by .
F. P. BRACKETT
Copyright Applied for by F. P. Brackett
1920
HISTORIAN'S INTRODUCTION
Two facts should be noted concerning this history.
First: The story of the Valley is entirely independent of the biographical section of the book, the anthor having nothing to do with the writing or selection of the biographical sketches, nor with the publishing or financing of the book.
Second. The story deals only with the early history of the Valley. It does not include the later history at all, save as certain elements of the past naturally continue into the present. This course is required by the limitations of the con- tract and of the author's time, and is justified by the greater interest of readers in the story of the early days, and by the infelicity of attempting the impossible task of depicting in proper perspective the story of recent years.
Persuaded by many that the writing of this history was in some sense a duty to the region, the writer accepted the responsibility with much misgiving. He could only have assented to it with the assurance of assistance from older resi- dents and organizations, and especially with the earnest co-operation of his wife, Lucretia Brackett, danghter of Cyrus Burdick, the pioneer, and her mother. The author is grateful to many others, too numerous to mention here, who have cor- dially rendered assistance in answering inquiries and furnishing material.
It has seemed wise to omit the long list of more than a hundred historical and biographical works and documents consulted. Many of these have been found in the Los Angeles Public Library, in the Pomona Valley Historical Col- lection at the Pomona Public Library, and in the Mason Collection of the Pomona College Library. Harris Newmark's "Sixty Years in Southern California" has of course been referred to frequently. In the supplying of material, special men- tion must be made of Señor Ramon Vejar, and his son and daughter, Frank and Estella ; of Kewen Dorsey, old-time resident of Spadra; of F. P. Firey and U. E. White of the Pomona Valley Historical Society ; of A. P. and H. J. Nichols and F. J. Smith of Pomona ; and of Miss S. M. Jacobus of the Pomona Public Library. The writer is under obligations, for many valuable suggestions, to Professor P. E. Spalding of Pomona College, who has kindly borne the burden of reading the story in the manuscript.
The purpose throughout the narrative has been to present a true and vivid picture of the early life in the Valley, necessarily incomplete, yet above all correct in the details presented.
Notwithstanding the most generous extension of time by the publishers, the work has been done under such stress of pressure from other duties that it cannot be expected to be free from error. In order that it may serve as a foundation for later history, the author would welcome any corrections or additions to the story, that may be addressed to him.
F. P. BRACKETT,
Pomona College, Claremont, California.
HISTORICAL
HISTORY OF SAN JOSE RANCHO By F. P. Brackett, M.A.
CHAPTER ONE MEXICAN PIONEERS
FIRST VISIT OF PALOMARES AND VEJAR TO THE SAN JOSE VALLEY-THE GRANT FROM GOVERNOR ALVARADO-SAN JOSÉ DAY-SURVEY AND BOUNDARIES OF THE RANCHO SAN JOSÉ.
A small party of horsemen stopped beneath the willows which grew beside the little stream skirting the eastern point of the hills, in what is now Ganesha Park. Leaving the San Gabriel Mission at daybreak, they had ridden up the broad valley following the road or trail which led from the old Mission to its branch Mission at San Bernardino. They had crossed the San Gabriel River among the tules near the camp that later came to be known as the Monte, and had followed the trail beside the low-lying hills which we now call the Puente and San José hills, making excursions now and then trom the trail to climb the hills, until now they had come, toward sunset, to this place at the eastern end of the hills where a generous stream flowed around the point. Weary from the day's riding, they dismounted. By their fine mounts, richly caparisoned in silver and figured leather, and by their own uniforms, as well as by their commanding presence, two of the men were evidently Mexican officers. Besides the half dozen soldiers accompanying them there were a number of Indian followers, who unsaddled the horses and watered them, gathering fuel and water for the camp and obeying the orders of their leaders.
Knowing who these caballeros were and the time of the story, one may easily guess the subject of their conversation as they sat smoking by the camp fire in the evening. Both men were in the prime of early manhood. One at least traced his descent from a noble family in Spain. This one, the leader of the two, was Ygnacio Palomares. His father, Don José Cristobal, had come to Monterey during the Spanish era and had been loyal to the Crown of Spain in the days of Governor Arrillaga and the later years when Pablo Vicente de Sola, last of the line of Spanish governors in California, fought his losing fight to hold the new province for his own country, Spain, to which he was so loyal. The other caballero was Ricardo Vejar, who, though born in San Diego, had become an intimate friend of Ygnacio Palomares during the years in which they had lived on the rancho "Rodeo de las Aguas" (near the present city of Hollywood), espe- cially the years of this decade of the eighteen thirties.
Tonight they would have talked about the cattle they had seen grazing over the plains, those remnants of the larger herds of the San Gabriel Mission that
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HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHY
used to roam the lower slopes of the valley all the way from the San Gabriel to San Bernardino. They would perhaps have referred to the Indian tribes (Sabobas, San Antonio, and San Gabriel Indians). that came down from the mountains at times to work for the Mission fathers in the valley and then returned to their native villages, unwilling to accept for long the life of civilization which the Mission offered them. Or, mindful of the more troublesome San Gorgonio tribe which would sometimes swoop down into the valley and run off cattle for their own use, they may have ordered their own Indians to guard their mounts with special care. And they must also have talked of their relations to the government at Monterey, for these were troublous times. Revolts and insurrec- tions had followed in quick succession during the dozen years or more since the revolution in Mexico under Iturbide had made California a province of Mexico. Arguello, Echeandia, Victoria, Pio Pico, Figueroa, and now José Castro in turn had been governor of the province. Mexico was far away and the new govern- ment had changed hands almost as rapidly as that of the Province of California.
Ygnacio Palomares and Ricardo Vejar, sons of loyal Spanish subjects, were not eager to yield allegiance to every victorious leader who might for the moment be in control of the provincial government. It was different in the old days of the Spanish regime. Arrillaga and Sola held their high positions directly for the Crown, and as such commanded the full devotion and service of their subjects, whether in Madrid or Mexico, whether in the outermost trading posts, in the Philippines, or in the even more inaccessible Province of California. But why should one pay tribute of property and time, and life perhaps, to a Carrillo or to other crafty and ambitious men? Victoria had been a brave captain-how fiercely he had fought at Los Angeles when, with a handful of men, he turned back the band of insurrectionists who gathered from the southern parts of the Province as far as San Diego! And now José Castro was in command and doubtless he was lawfully entitled to their support. There must be a strong defense, a uniting of the people against adventurers like Bouchard and his party from Buenos Aires whom Arguello and his thirty men from the San Diego presidio, with the help of a band of Indians from San Luis Obispo under Father Martinez, bravely put to flight when they attempted to raid the Mission of San Juan Capistrano.
Certainly these caballeros, Palomares and Vejar, would have talked much of the large grants of land which the governors of California were making to the leading Mexicans of the Province. Not such princely domains as Pedro Fages and other Spanish governors had made to Verdugo, Dominguez, Nieto, Yorba and Arguello, imperial counties in extent and resource, but yet thousands of square leagues, where large estates might be established. There was Don Antonio Maria Lugo, so well known and popular, whose services both to Spanish and Mexican governors had been rewarded by grants of large tracts of land. To be sure, he was a man of power and influence, a brave soldier and a prominent Spanish gentleman; yet these caballeros, Palomares and Vejar, were also men of worth and had fought well for the government. Moreover, they believed that a request of the Commissioner Juan B. Alvarado would be favorably received. And the rich grazing land over which they had come during the afternoon was yet outside of the grants already made. Don Antonio Lugo, it was said, had petitioned for more land farther east, but this was still open and it seemed to be good grazing land. Here by the hills the stream from the cienegas promised an abundance of water for stock.
DON RICARDO VEJAR
DON YGNACIO PALOMARES
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Mounting their horses in the morning, the two crossed the stream and rode to the top of the hill, avoiding the thick growth of cactus on the south and east and picking their way through the chaparral of the canyon and slopes on the north side of the hill. Arriving at the summit, a scene of wondrous beauty met their eyes. League upon league of virgin country lay below them. East, north and south it stretched away, gently sloping toward the south, where rolling hills, carpeted with green, rose to the nearer horizon. Far to the east the snowy masses of San Bernardino, San Gorgonio and San Jacinto glistened in the rising sun. Northward, hardly more than a half hour's gallop away it seemed in the clear mountain air, the great mountains towered into the blue sky, range upon range, from the nearer foothills to the snow-capped peaks which mark the lofty horizon. Yet between them and the northern foothills lay a great carpet thou- sands of acres in extent, whose variegated colors Nature had woven with lavish hand, its warp of sage brush and chaparral, its woof of wild flowers of every hue in unbroken profusion. And this carpet stretched out to the hills all along the north, and northeasterly to the high gray fan of boulder land opening out from the great canyon whose mountain walls led back to San Antonio (vulgarly "Old Baldy"), with its snow-capped head rising above all the rest. - Mountain, canyon and wash tell of boundless reservoirs of water to supplement the flow of cienegas.
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