An illustrated history of Los Angeles County, California. Containing a history of Los Angeles County from the earliest period of its occupancy to the present time, together with glimpses of its prospective future and biographical mention of many of its pioneers and also of prominent citizens of to-day, Part 10

Author: Lewis Publishing Company. cn
Publication date: 1889
Publisher: Chicago, Lewis Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1092

USA > California > Los Angeles County > An illustrated history of Los Angeles County, California. Containing a history of Los Angeles County from the earliest period of its occupancy to the present time, together with glimpses of its prospective future and biographical mention of many of its pioneers and also of prominent citizens of to-day > Part 10

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HISTORY OF LOS ANGELES COUNTY.

Los Angeles. IIe banished José Antonio Car- rillo, for what was not exactly known, but it is presnmed that he had taken a prominent part in sending memorials from the Sonth in the in- terest of the Legislature being convened. Car- rillo's exile, however, was of short duration. Other prominent people were exiled by him, the reasons for which he never assigned; in other words, he undertook to rule California with an iron hand, to which a people ot free and independent spirit like those of California would not submit, and a revolution against his rule broke out at San Diego, headed by such men as Carrillo, Stearns, Bandini and Pio Pico, who issued a proclamation against Victoria, or- ganized a military force and set out for the north for the purpose of deposing him. In the meantime Victoria's acts of petty tyranny had been on the increase; and among other prominent citizens whom he had imprisoned was Andrés Pico, a brother of Pio.

On arriving at Los Angeles, December 4, the revolutionists at once freed all the prisoners and in turn placed in prison Vincente Sanchez, the obnoxious alcalde, who had been put in office by Victoria. The people of Los Angeles joined the revolution with great enthusiasm, and the next morning, December 5, the revolutionists to the number of 150 marched ont of Los An- geles to meet Victoria, who at the same time left the mission of San Fernando with about thirty men for Los Angeles. He started from Monterey to quell the troubles in the South before the proclamation of November 29, issued at San Diego, had reached the capital, and he had not heard of it even at Santa Barbara, which probably accounts for the smallness of the force which he had with him. Before he reached San Fernando, however, messengers overtook him from Santa Barbara with definite news of the San Diego revolution. At San Fernando, on the evening of December 4, Padre Ybarra had not heard of the revolution, and a messenger arriving at that moment from Los Angeles brought word from Alcalde Sanchez that there were no signs of a revolution there. Later in

the night, however, when the revolutionists arrived from San Diego, releasing the prisoners and locking up Sanchez, a brother of the latter escaped to San Fernando with the news. This was the first information Victoria had of the revolution.

The next morning the contending forces met near the Cahnenga l'ass, about twelve miles west of the city. The revolutionists were com- manded by Pablo de la Portilla, and halted to await Victoria's approach. J. A. Carrillo was at the front; but ex-Governor Echeandia, Pio Pico and Juan Bandini remained behind. Vic- toria was accompanied by Romnaldo Pacheco, whose son of the same name was subsequently Governor of the American State of California. Pacheco counseled Victoria not to attack the enemy, on account of his insufficient force; but he disregarded the counsel of his captain. Ap- proaching within speaking distance, Portilla commanded Victoria to submit. The latter replied that he, Portilla, and the soldiers should come over and support the Governor and the legitimate authorities. Victoria, noting the re- fusal of the revolutionists to obey this order, ordered his men to fire. Portilla and a portion of his men now ran away, followed by the Los Angeles contingent, excepting two or three who had been imprisoned by Victoria, and had per- sonal grievances against him, and who made a charge against the foe before retiring. This party was headed by José María Ávila, who, as he passed Pacheco, shot the latter in the back with a pistol, as the two horses were carried past each other by the impetus, after mutually par- ried sword and lance by the respective riders. Pacheco fell dead with a bullet through his heart. Ávila, followed by Tomás Talamantes, now closed in on the Governor, when a struggle ensued which did not last over three minutes. Victoria received several lance wounds, a soldier was shot in the foot, Ávila was unhorsed and killed by Victoria himself, and Talamantes es- caped unhurt. The combatants then separated. Victoria's men made no attempt at pursuit, the revolutionists retired to Los Angeles, and the

HISTORY OF LOS ANGELES COUNTY.

wounded Governor was carried to San Gabriel by way of Los Feliz Ranch. The bodies of Pacheco and Ávila were taken to Los Angeles, where they were buried the next day.

On the 9th Victoria had an interview with Echeandia at San Gabriel Mission, when he sur- rendered his office to the latter, and also issued a proclamation ordering the Legislative Assembly to meet at Los Angeles, shortly afterward, left for Mexico.

The Legislature met at Los Angeles January 1, 1832, and chose Pio Pico as Governor, who took the oath of office on the 27th. The town council of Los Angeles refused to recognize Pico as Governor, and Echenadia openly declared him to be incompetent and his election was illegal. Pico thereupon declined to retain the office, in opposition to Echeandia and the people of Los Angeles.

In 1835 there was no revolution, this time, at Los Angeles. On the night of March 6th, about fifty Sonorans, who had lately come to California, in the Hijar colony, assembled at Los Nietos Ranch, and early in the morning of the 7th entered the town, under command of Juan Gallardo, a shoemaker, and Felipe Castillo, a cigar-maker, and captured the arms of the dif- ferent foreign residents and then took posses- session of the town hall. Francisco J. Alvarado, the alcalde, was then summoned, and, at the command of the revolutionists, convened the town conncil in a splendid meeting. Gallardo then submitted to that body a proposition to remove Governor Figueroa and place Captain l'ablo de la Portilla in his stead, claiming that Figueroa had exceeded the powers granted him by assuming both political and military com- mand, and seemingly protesting against the measures taken by the Legislature for the secu- larization of the missions, and that Figueroa was unworthy of public confidence, and also that they wished the priests to have again the exclusive control of the temporal affairs of the missions. It was generally understood, how- ever, that the revolt was for the purpose of ulti- mately making as Governor one José María

Hijar, who had brought these people to Cali- fornia as colonists, and had come himself with a commission from President Santa Ana, of the Mexican Republic, as Governor of California, which had been revoked by Santa Ana after Hijar had left Mexico and before he had arived in California. The town council decided that it had no authority to act in such a matter, and went so far as to disapprove of the revolution, appointing a committee to request the revolu- tionists to remove their forces across the river. This they declined to do, but promised to preserve the peace and hold their position until after fonr o'clock in the afternoon, when the leaders respectfully informed the council that as that body had not approved their plan, they had de- cided to give up the instigators of the move- ment and throw themselves upon the mercy of the authorities. They accordingly delivered Antonio Apalategui, a clerk, and Dr. Francis Torres, who, with some twenty others, were finally sent back to Mexico as disturbers of the public peace and conspirators against legitimate authority. Subsequent investigations proved that the Sonorans had no special grievance to redress, but had been easily induced to join what they regarded as a popular movement.

By decree of the Mexican Congress dated May 23, 1835, Los Angeles was made a city, and also the capital of California, which fact was made public by the proclamation of Governor Gutierrez Jannary 4, 1836. But Los Angeles did not then become the capital city from the fact that its inhabitants neglected to provide even temporary public buildings necessary for the occupancy of the Government officials, and the capital always remained at Monterey.

The sectional feeling between Southern and Northern California which now prevails among Americans to such an extent as to canse a serions discussion of the division of the State, is one also that caused no little amount of contention among the early Mexican inhabitants. It was manifested as far back as 1836, when a revolu- tion deposed Governor Gutierrez and placed José Castro in his stead, and the provincial

HISTORY OF LOS ANGELES COUNTY.

Legislature at Monterey issued a decree declar- ing that " the constitutional congress of the free and sovereign State of California is declared hereby legitimately installed," and wound up with the words, " Live the Free and Sovereign State of Alta California !" It was a virtual declaration of independence from Mexico; and is said to have been instigated by plotting Americans, who had a lone-star flag prepared at Monterey, but were prevented by David Spence from raising it. Castro was soon suc- ceeded by J. B. Alvarado, whom the Legislature declared Governor ad interim of the State. The same Legislature divided the State temporarily into two " can'ons." The first, that of Mon- terey, included the towns of San Francisco and San José; the second canto: was that of Los Angeles, including Santa Barbara and San Diego. Each canton was to have a political chief, Governor Alvarado himself for the first canton, and for the second a man subordinate to the Governor, and was to be appointed by him from a trio to be elected at Los Angeles by commissioners named by the councils.

While the Northern part of the State readily fell in and approved of this sudden action of the Legislature, a very strong opposition developed itself in the South and succeeded in strangling the new-born State. It is a curious fact that when California came to be admitted into the Union in 1850, there was a similar protest from the Southern counties, although it was not suc- cessful. This strong sectional feeling between the North and the South had been in process of development as early as 1825, when Governor Echeandia, charmed with the Southern climate and the Southern ladies, had seriously wounded the pride of the capital, Monterey, by fixing his residence at San Diego. A majority of the rep- resentatives to the Mexican Congress had been from the Sonth, which the North had always regarded as a sliglit. On the other hand, Argüello and others were Northern Governors, while Pico and Estudillo, Southern men, had failed to secure recognition. Serions quarrels had existed between the custom-houses of San

Diego and Monterey. The feeling was increased also by the fact that Los Angeles had gained so much in population that it had been made a city, an honor which San José, the older and northern pueblo, had not attained. Los Angeles had also been made a capital of the province, but Monterey still actually retained possession of the headquarters of the Government, a fact which did not tend to allay the bitter feeling of the people of Los Angeles. The division of the missions between the friars of the colleges of San Fernando and Guadalajara had also helped to widen the breach. It was usual for the South to oppose whatever the North ad- vocated, and vice versa, as is the case at the present day among the Americans. It is not surprising, therefore, that the people of Los Angeles and San Diego opposed the erection of the province of California into a State. Manuel Requena, the alcalde of Los Angeles, called an extra session of the town council to consider the matter, The excitement was increased by rumors of the fact that Alvarado had raised a military force and was marching on Los Angeles to put down all opposition, and that he had employed a company of American rifleinen, under the command of Isaac Graham, a famous hunter from Tennessee.

The town council of San Diego also assembled in extra session, and Juan Bandini and Santiago E. Argüello were appointed commissioners to proceed to Los Angeles and take part in the deliberations of the town council and people of that place, November 25-'6, on that subject. At these meetings the action of Monterey was rejected, and the councils of other places were invited to send each three persons to Los Angeles to elect a provisional Governor; to en- force the law which made Los Angeles the capi- tal; to invite military officers not engaged in the Monterey movement to choose a General; and to await the co-operation of San Diego and Santa Barbara ; and these resolutions were to have effect until the natural laws should again be enforced.

The next day a communication was read from

HISTORY OF LOS ANGELES COUNTY.

the alcalde at Santa Barbara declining to ap- prove the plan of Monterey. Meanwhile the troops at San Diego and at San Luis Rey served notice that they must be paid if their services were expected.

Everything now seemed favorable in the South for the establishment of a separate pro- visional Government which should either defeat the plan of Monterey or exact favorable terms of compromise. Santa Barbara backed out and chose to remain nentral, taking sides neither with Monterey nor with Los Angeles.

When the new council of Los Angeles was installed in 1837, among its first acts was to refuse to recognize the Monterey plan, and to call a meeting of the electoral college at Los Angeles, and to assume command of the South- ern part of the province until the meeting of the new Legislature which should be elected. San Diego partly approved of this plan.

Alvarado left Monterey during the latter part of December, 1836, with an army of sixty Cali- fornians and twenty-five Americans, under com- mand of Isaac Graham, and was cordially re- ceived at Santa Barbara, which gave him its unqualified support. From this place he for- warded an address to the town council of Los Angeles, declaring the justice of his cause and protesting against the adoption of a sectional policy. His address was not favorably received, and preparations were made at once to oppose him with force, to which San Diego added help in sending twenty men, under Pio Pico, to re- sist the advance of Alvarado. A force of 270 men, under Ensign Rocha as commander-in- chief, was stationed at San Fernando to oppose the advance of Alvarado, where they took their position January 16, 1837. Alvarado's address was discussed by the town council, and Alcalde Sepúlveda and A. M. Osio were appointed com- missioners to effect a settlement with Alvarado on the condition that the plan of independence from Mexico could not be accepted; that the Roman Catholic religion must be the only one permitted; and that the revolutionists must not be punished.

Osio met Alvarado at the Cayugas Rancho, where a conference was held on the 18th; and in the city he again met Osio, with Sepúlveda, at the Encinos Rancho, where Andrés Pico brought the news that his brother was coming from San Diego with a large force. The next day Alvarado approved in writing the Los An- geles plan, which he did not regard as being in conflict with that of Monterey. Osio and Sepúl- veda then claimed that Alvarado should with- draw his force and retire to the North. Alvarado replied that if Sepúlveda did not surrender San Fernando he would take it by force. The order was at once obeyed, and late in the after- noon of the 21st Alvarado occupied the mission of San Fernando, and the Los Angeles soldiers marched home.

The next day the town council disapproved of Alvarado's approval of their plan, and de- clared arrangements with him null and void; and that California was not a sovereign State; that Alvarado was not its Governor; and that Los Angeles was again ready to defend itself. All these resolutions were of no avail; for on the 23d Alvarado entered the city without oppo- sition, accompanied by Graham's company and the Monterey militia, while Rocha retired with the soldiers to San Gabriel.

The town council met on the 26th, and was addressed by the Governor, who proposed a plan, in six articles, upon which he thought all might agree. This plan was submitted to a committee of three, of which Pio Pico was chairman, who reported it back with certain modifications. It provided that a new Legislature should assemble at Santa Barbara on February 25, to adopt or reject what had been done at Monterey, always supporting federalism and insisting upon a native ruler. Alvarado issued a proclamation accordingly, thus mollifying the South. The new Legislature did not meet until April 10, at Santa Barbara, when it empowered itself under the new organization as a constituent Congress of the State. Los Angeles refused to accept the action of the Congress, claiming that the treaty with Alvarado had been made under the old

HISTORY OF LOS ANGELES COUNTY.

condition of the Territorial Government. San Diego for the time remained non-committal.

At a meeting of the Los Angeles council, however, on May 2, after much discussion, it again changed front and accepted the new con- dition of affairs, recognizing the State Govern- ment. Although the South gracefully yielded for the present to the inevitable triumph of Al- varado, and went to their homes, it was not to remain submissive, but to plan for another revolution, which was manifested May 21, 1837, at San Diego, by the town council of that place adopting a plan restoring California to its terri- torial form of government, and raising a inili- tary company to enforce its proposition, which line of action met the speedy approval of Los Angeles.

Early in July there was also a revolt at Mon- terey against Alvarado's authority, by the very ones, some of them Americans, who had put him in power. The result was that the free and sovereign State of California was dissolved almost as soon as it was created; and finally the news came from Mexico that California had been forined into a department. Alvarado was still the Governor ad interim by virtue of his position as first member of the Legislature.

The Wolfskill party arrived from Santa Fé in February. In the autumn of 1830 William Wolfskill, a Kentnekian by nativity and then thirty-two years of age, fitted out a company for trapping in California. He had been a partner of Ewing Young, and was assisted pecuniarily in this enterprise by Ilook, a Santa Fé trader. They left Taos in September, crossed the Colo- rado and the Great Basin, in a northwest course across the Grande, Green and Sevier rivers, then south to the Colorado River, and west through Mojave Desert to Los Angeles. In this party were George C. Yount, Lewis Burton, Samuel Shields, Francis Z. Branch, John Rhea, Zacha- rias Ham, and several foreigners.

In 1831 a Mr. Jackson, who had been a member of the Rocky Mountain Fur Company, and a partner of Jedediah S. Smith, came to Los Angeles to buy mules for the Louisiana

market. He returned to New Mexico with the innles he purchased. With him was J. J. War- ner, yet living. The date of their arrival was December 5, 1831.

Ewing Young started on his second trip to California from Taos in September, 1831, and came by way of the Gila route, reaching Los Angeles in April, 1832. IIe had with himn seventy men, most of whom were soon sent back to Mexico in charge of mules and horses which were bonght here. Eight or ten of his men remained, prominent among whom were Moses Carson, a brother of Kit; Isaac Williams, subsequently proprietor of the Chino Ranch; Isaac Sparks, Job F. Dye, William Day, Benja- min Day, Sidney Cooper, Joseph Dougherty, William Emerson, Joseph Gale, Joseph Dofit, John Higgins, James Green, Cambridge Green, James Anderson, Thomas Lowe, John Price, Pleasant Austin, Powell Weaver, James Bacey and James Wilkinson. Anderson was murdered by Cambridge Green in Arizona, for which he was delivered to the authorities in Los Angeles, bnt some time later he made his escape from prison.

In the winter of 1832-'33 another party from New Mexico arrived, including Joseph Pauld- ing, Samuel Carpenter, William Chard and Daniel Sill. John Foster came up from Guay- mas to Los Angeles by land in 1833. This year there was a school in Los Angeles, kept by Vicente Moraga, who was paid $15 a month for his services.

In September, 1835, William Day bought a barrel of wine from Abel Stearns, and, finding it sonr, wished Stearns to take it back, which he refused to do. A quarrel ensned in which Stearns attacked Day with a stick. Day de. fended himself by stabbing Stearns in four places and nearly cutting out his tongue! Day was arrested and kept in jail for a year. He was not only imprisoned, but also handcuffed; and certain of his Mexican friends, indignant at his treatinent, headed by Juan Manuel Ar- zaga, broke into the jail and removed his hand- cuffs, for which they were banished.

HISTORY OF LOS ANGELES COUNTY.

R. H. Dana, in his book " Two Years Before the Mast," thus notices a local event that oc- curred about 1835:

"A Yankee, who had been naturalized and become a Catholic, and had married in the country, was sitting in his house at the Pueblo de los Angeles with his wife and children, when a Mexican with whom he had had a difficulty entered the house and stabbed him to the heart before them all. The murderer was seized by some Yankees who had settled there, and was kept in confinement until a statement of the whole affair could be sent to the Governor-Gen- eral. The Governor-General refused to do any- thing about it, and the countrymen of the murdered man, seeing no prospect of justice being administered, gave notice that if nothing was done they would try the man themselves. It chanced that at that time there was a com- pany of some thirty or forty trappers and hunt- ers from the Western States, with their rifles, who had made their headquarters at the pueblo; and these, together with the Americans and English who were in the place (who were be- tween twenty and thirty in number), took pos- session of the town, and waiting a reasonable time, proceeded to try the man according to the forms in their own country. A judge and jury were appointed, and he was tried, convicted, sentenced to be shot, and carried out before the town blindfolded. The names of all the men were then put into a hat and, each one pledging himself to perform his duty, twelve names were drawn out, the men took their stations with their rifles, and firing at the word, laid him dead. He was decently buried, and the place was restored to the proper anthorities. A general, with titles enough for a hidalgo, was at San Gabriel, and issued a proclamation as long as the fore top bowline, threatening destruction of the rebels, but never stirred from his fort, for forty Kentucky hunters with their rifles, and a dozen of Yankees and Englishimen, were a match for a whole regiment of hungry, drawl- ing, lazy half-breeds. This affair happened while we were at San Pedro, the port of the

pueblo, and we had the particulars from those who were on the spot."

Los Angeles has the distinction of producing the first vigilance committee in California. Domingo Felix, who lived on a ranch near the town, was married to Maria del Rosario Villa, who had abandoned her husband to enjoy the embraces of Gervasio Alipas. Through the efforts of Felix to recover his wife, he had sev- eral quarrels with Alipas, who murdered him in one of those fracases, March . 26, 1836. The body was not found till three days afterward, and on the 1st of April the town council was suinmoned in extra session to take measures to preserve the peace. The people, well knowing the law's delays, and that California was said to have no tribunal authorized to inflict the death penalty, met on the 7th of April at the house of John Temple. About fifty were pres- ent. Victoria Proudton was chosen chairman and Manuel Arzaga, secretary. Francisco Araujo was put in command of an organized armed force. The demand was made on the alcalde, Manuel Requena, for the woman and Alipas, who were in the jail. The ayunta- miento in session received and considered the demand, which was decidedly refused, after two committees had been sent out to reason with the crowd. The refusals, however, did not seem to have been of a very determined character, for the guard was arrested, the keys were taken, and the criminals taken out of jail and shot.

In April, 1838, a small body of men under the command of Clemente Epinosa, an ensign, was sent from Santa Barbara by Colonel José Maria Villa, a partisan of Governor Alvarado and General Castro, to capture certain persons suspected of being engaged in a plan to over- throw the Government of Alvarado, and replace Governor Carrillo in authority. The party of Espinosa entered Los Angeles in the night, and camped on the open space in front of the old Catholic church. The inhabitants discovered upon opening the doors of their dwellings on the following morning that the town had been captured, or rather that it was then held by

HISTORY OF LOS ANGELES COUNTY.

armed men from abroad, who soon commenced a general search in the houses of the citizens for the suspected persons. Quite a number were arrested, among whom were José Antonio Carrillo, a brother of the deposed Governor, Pio Pico, Andres Pico and Gil Ybarra, the then alcalde of Los Angeles, together with about half a dozen more of the most prominent native citizens of the place. They were all taken north as prisoners of war. The only casualt which occurred was the breaking of the arm of J. J. Warner by one of Espinosa's men, in con- sequence of his inability to inform them where Don Pio Pico could be found, and his resistance to an order of arrest for refusing permission to have his house searched for suspected persons.

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Author: Lewis Publishing Company. cn Publication date: 1889 Publisher: Chicago, Lewis Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 1092

Author: Lewis Publishing Company. cn
Publication date: 1889
Publisher: Chicago, Lewis Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1092