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 6

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 6

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"On one occasion an expedition went as far as the present Rancho del Chino, where they tied and whipped every man, woman and child in the lodge, and drove part back with them. On the way home they did likewise to the lodge at San Jose (now Spadra). Upon arrival, the men were directed to throw their bows and arrows at the feet of the priest in token of sub- mission. The infants were then baptized, as also were all children under eight years of age. The first were (per force) left with their mothers, but the latter were kept apart, until maternal instinct compelled the poor women to submit to the indignity of baptism, in order to see their loved ones again. In time the men gave way also, and this contaminated race, botlı in their own sight and in that of their kindred, became 'followers of Christ,' and laborers in the vineyards of the priests! Strange to say, these Indians, though famous in warfare with other tribes, resisted not their oppressors. Filled with astonishment and fear, they sought only to hide from them; all of which was duly accred- ited to the good offices of 'Our Sovereign Lady!'

"For several years no attempt appears to have been made by 'the missionaries,' either to

HISTORY OF LOS ANGELES COUNTY.

learn the Indian tongue or to teach the natives Spanish. The soldiers learned enough of the former, the better to gratify their lusts; and the Indians were instructed in the latter to say, ' Amar a Dios' (Love to God), without under- standing the phrase any more than if it had been 'Tic douloureux,' or 'Jack the Giant Killer!' "

While Wilson only speaks of individual in- stances, there is no doubt the instances were too numerous. There were many noble exceptions, however, among the priests, and many of the old missionaries are remembered with affection. Some justify the harsh treatment the priests dealt out to the Indians, because of the savage character of the latter, and that kind treatment was always wasted upon them. Not everybody will accept this view, and even a poet has been constrained to write:

They were merry old fellows in cassock and gown, Those jolly old knights of the smooth-shaven crown, Those lion-souled, eagle-eyed Padres of Spain,

Who lorded it grandly o'er mountain and plain; As ready with fair señorita to dance

As grant absolution or balance a lance ; Whose churches and missions impregnable stood, And did to the heathen what seemed to them good; They brought up proud sinners with sharp, sudden pulls, And lassoed their converts like bronchos and bulls, Or gathered confessions from red, rosy lips, To hoard as the treasure the honey-hee sips, With hands that were ready and hearts that were bold: llow I envy those clean-shaven Padres of old !

With fair purple vineyards and wide-spreading flocks, They sighed not for riches, they cared not for "stocks"- Not "Comstocks" at least, though bellowed and gored, And fought for a "rise " at the Devil's " Big Board," With a genuine reckless " bonanza king's" greed, And cornered the stock in eternity's "lead," Refusing all offers of Satan to sell

"Salvation's" sure stock, tho' they "shorted " on Hell, And played for the kingdom with Satan and sin, Where souls were the "divvys," and gathered them in; With stores of " frijoles " and flagons of wine, They craved not the treasures of city or mine ; With princely possessions to have and to hold, They were bully old fellows-those Padres of old. -A. F. KERCHEVAL.

MISSION ANNALS.

The first Indian child was baptized Novem- ber 27. He was a son of the chief that had been killed; but in two years the whole number of converts was seventy-three, and in 1784 there were 1,019 enrolled on the baptismal register.

The first attempts at farming at the mission

were not successful. The first year's crop was drowned. The second was not entirely lost, but yielded 208 bushels of inaize, or 195 fold! and eleven bushels of beans, or twenty-one fold! and in 1773 the mission had 200 head of horned cattle.

On the 22d of March, 1774, there arrived at the mission an exploring party, of thirty-four persons, commanded by Captain Juan Bantista Anza. They had left Tubac, Arizona, on the 8th of January, with 140 horses and sixty-five head of cattle, for the purpose of exploring a land route between Sonora and California. Their route from Tubac, on the Santa Cruz River above Tucson, was westerly by way of the Sonoita Valley and through the Papago country. They forded the Colorado River at Yuma and crossed the desert to its west side, and kept up along on the eastern slope of the .San Jacinto Mountains, and came around through the San Gorgonio Pass. At the San Gabriel Mission they found the supply of provisions short, be- cause of the failure of the transport ships to arrive from Mexico. Anza sent back a part of his company to the Colorado River, and went on to Monterey and was back at the mission again by May 1, and two days later started for Tubac. These were the principal events this year at the mission. Anza deserves to be called a " pathfinder," for he was the first white inan who came overland to California!

The date of the removal of the mission from the old site, now on Mr. Garvey's ranch, to the present one, some nine miles east of Los Angeles City, is unknown; but it must have been about 1775, for in 1774, in his second annual report, Serra mentions the proposition to move the San Gabriel Mission a short distance, and says that for that reason no permanent improvements had been made on the old site. In the same report he says the San Diego Mission had been moved. So it must have been about that time that the site was changed.

In 1797 the present stone church was half completed, though it was unfinished in 1800. At any rate the removal was made sometime

HISTORY OF LOS ANGELES COUNTY.

between 1774 and 1797. The new site is much more eligible than the old. The ground is higher and drier, there is better drainage, and no danger from frost and flood as on the low land where the mission was first located. The new site is in the midst of a belt of live oaks, and the scenery is charming. A few miles to the north the Sierra Madre rise abruptly to a height oť over 5,000 feet, with peaks having an alti- tude 6,000 and 8,000 feet, while west and east, and south, is the valley, some twenty miles wide and long, surrounded by low hills.

Although the records are silent as to the first work done at San Gabriel, there are some yet living who are conversant with the facts as learned from the old missionaries. Don Juan Warner, a native of Connecticut, who arrived in Los Angeles in 1831, thus wrote in the His- torical Sketch of Los Angeles County, published in 1876:

" In less than sixty years from the founding of the mission of San Gabriel, the herds of neat cattle, bands of horses, and flocks of sheep and goats, of the three missions of this county, cov- ered the major part of the land in Los Angeles County, and all that part of San Bernardino County lying south and west of the San Bernar- dino Mountain Range. The number of Indian converts in these three missions was, in 1802, 2,674. In 1831, when these missions had reached their highest prosperity, the number of neophytes was more than 4,000. By the labor of the subjugated and converted Indians the missionaries planted orchards and vineyards, and cultivated large fields of corn, wheat, barley, beans and other food vegetables. As soon after the founding of a mission as its circumstances would permit, a large pile of buildings in the form of a quadrangle, composed in part of burnt brick, but chiefly of sun-dried ones, was erected around a spacious court. A large and capacions church, which usually occupied one of the outer corners of the quadrangle, was a necessary and conspicuous part of the pile.

" In this massive building, covered with red tile, was the habitation of the friar, rooms for

guests, and for the major-domos and their fami- lies, hospital wards, store-houses and granaries, rooms for the carding, spinning, and weaving of woolen fabrics, shops for blacksmiths, joiners and carpenters, saddlers, shoemakers, and soap- boilers, and cellars for storing the product (wine and brandy) of the vineyards. Near the habi- tation of the friar, and in front of the large building, another building of similar materials was placed and used as quarters for a small number-about a corporal's guard-of soldiers, under command of a non commissioned officer, to hold the Indian neophytes in check, as well as to protect the mission from the attacks of hostile Indians. The soldiers at each mission also acted as couriers, carrying from mission to mission the correspondence of the government officers and the friars. These small detachments of soldiers, which were stationed at each mis- sion, were furnished by one or the other of the military posts at San Diego or Santa Barbara, both of which were military garrisons. At an early period in the history of San Gabriel, a water-power mill, for grinding wheat, was con- structed and put in operation in front of and near the mission building. At a later period, a new grist-mill was built by the mission, and placed about two miles west of the mission proper. This was also operated by water-power. The building in which was placed this inill now forms a part of the residence of E. J. C. Kewen, Esq .* A water-power saw-mill was also built by this mission, and was located near the last mentioned grist-mill. These were the only mills made or used in California, either for grinding or sawing, in which water was the motive power, or in which a wheel was used, for more than half a century after the founding of the first mission in continental California. In these two grist- mills the revolving millstone was upon the upper end of a vertical shaft, and the water- wheel npon the lower end, so that the revolution of the stone was no more frequent than that of the water-wheel.

" In 1831 the minister at San Gabriel, Friar * In 1889 the place is the property of E. L. Mayberry.

HISTORY OF LOS ANGELES COUNTY.

Sanchez, aided and enconraged William Wolf- skill, Nathaniel Prior, Richard Laughlin, Sam- uel Prentice and George Yount (all Americans) to build a schooner at San Pedro, which was employed, by the Americans named, in the hunting of sea otter. The same year, or in the preceding year, Friar Sanchez purchased a brig which was employed in commerce between this coast and the ports of Mexico and South America.

"Of the products or manufactures of those missions, during the sovereignty of Spain over California, very little was exported, being mostly consumed by those who belonged to the mission, or by the inhabitants of the town of Los An- geles, and the stock-breeders in the country adjacent.

" Such was the patience, the energy, the busi- ness capacity and tact with which the friars controlled and managed the Indians, and the general affairs of the missions, that in a few years, with some supplies which-while the power of Spain was undisturbed in Mexico --- were annually sent them from the port of San Blas, by their convent in the City of Mexico, their granaries and store-houses were filled to overflowing, and the intervening country from mission to mission was covered with live-stock, and their shepherds and herders were counted by hundreds. Although in the annual lists of stock and of agricultural products made out by the friars the number was mnnch less, it was estimated by the most competent judges that the number of neat cattle belonging to the three missions, in 1831, exceeded 100,000, with sheep and horse kind in full proportion."

Resuming the annals of the missions, Anza, the Spanish pathfinder, arrived at San Gabriel again January 4, 1776, from the State of Sina- loa. He had started with a party of 235 per- 8018, composed of soldiers and their families, recruited for the presidios (forts) of Monterey and San Francisco. They had 165 mules, 340 horses, and 320 head of cattle. Commandante Rivera had arrived the day before from Monterey en route to San Diego to punish the Indians who

had burned the San Diego Mission on the 4th of the last November, and among others had killed one of the resident ministers, Friar Luis Jaume. Anza decided to let his immigrants enjoy a needed rest after their wearisome jour- ney across the deserts, and accompany Rivera. Nothing came of the trip to San Diego beyond flogging a few Indians. The immigrants made heavy inroads upon the meagre supplies of pro- visions at San Gabriel, and the missionaries were not sorry when Anza returned. On Feb- ruary 21 he took his party . and left for Mon- terey, where they arrived on the 10th of March.

On the 24th of March, 1776, there arrived at San Gabriel a remarkable man, Father Fran- cisco Garcés, who, more than any other of early missionaries, explored the country and visited the native tribes. The story of his life would fill a large-sized volume, and would be full of interest from beginning to end. He had accompanied Anza as far as the junction of the Gila and Colorado rivers, and while the latter with his large party came straight on to San Gabriel, Garcés explored the California coun- try to the gulf. Then turning north he went as far as the vicinity of The Needles, and then struck out across the Mojave Desert to the west- ward, following almost exactly the present course of the Santa Fe Railroad: up the Mojave River, passed unwittingly the argentiferons riches. of the Calico Mountain, and, coming through the Cajon Pass, arrived at San Gabriel. Frémont explored the same ronte seventy years after- ward. Everywhere Garcés went he distributed little metallic medals among the Indians. As late as 1854 one of these inedals was recovered by A. A. Humphries, of the United States Sur- vey, from an Indian on the Colorado River. Garcés also would unfurl a banner, on one side of which was painted a picture of the Virgin Mary and on the other side a picture of a lost soul suffering in the flames of an eternal hell. When the Indians looked on the pretty virgin they gave away to exclamations of delight, thus evincing good taste, and when they saw the man in a great lake of fire, even their barbaric

HISTORY OF LOS ANGELES COUNTY.

and savage natures, degraded and uncultivated as they had been for untold generations, could not help expressing their horror, thus showing still better taste.

Garcés received a cordial welcome at the hands of his fellow friars at San Gabriel,* whom he had met two years before when with Anza on the pioneer overland expedition to California. After a fortnight's rest Garcés set out to renew his explorations. Rivera, who from the first did all he could to annoy the missionaries, refused Garcés an escort, but the priests sup- plied him with provisions sufficient for his jour- ney into the interior. Rivera had early quarreled with President Serra, but, on the latter appeal- ing to the Viceroy, had been obliged to submit to Serra's plans. Notably was this so at San Diego in regard to the distribution of troops at the missions. It was Rivera that plainly told Garcés that communication with the Rio Colorado was undesirable. Five years laterboth River a and Garces were massacred by the Yuma Indians.

Garcés left San Gabriel April 9, 1776, and went out through the San Fernando, Santa Clara and Antelope valleys, and, crossing the Sierra Nevada Monntains through Tejon Pass, went into the Tulare Valley as far north as about where Visalia now is, without seeing Tulare Lake, and, turning south, re-crossed the mountains through Walker's Pass, being the first white man to visit that section. From there he went to Northern Arizona, and thence back to Mexico.

* As a curious instance of the manner in which historians differ sometimes, the following statement is taken from Wilson's History of Los Angeles County, page 21: "During the year 1775, a Mexican friar named Francisco Garcés, made a journey from Sonora to the missions of Upper California and preserved a record of his trip. He naturally expected to be received by his brethren of the missions at least with kindness, and perhaps to be admitted as a coadjutor in the work of civilizing, Christianizing, and enslaving the natives; this more especially, as having verified by his successful trip the possi- bility of land communication with Mexico, and of connecting io one band the whole territory from the Rio Colorado to the Pacific. What, then, was his surprise, on arriving at San Gabriel Mission, to find that he was treated with coldness and neglect, and to be told "that it was not desirable a communication should be opened, by which Indians on the Rio Colorado and intervening plains might be enabled to molest the new settlements." So much displeased was the Gov- ernor of California at the audacity of this interloper, that he refused him provisions wherewith to return home. Chilled by treatment so utterly at variance with what he had expected, the worthy father returned home in great haste, thankful to have retained even sound bones amongsuch an inhospitable people."

Wilson was a good student and » conscientious writer, but he did not enjoy access to the original records, as did Bancroft, whose account, therefore, is always to be preferred before any other writer when auy differences do exist between them. Wilson's confusion probably arose from misinformation in regard to the trouble be- tween Rivera and the missionaries, which is stated in the text. 8

A second miracle was wrought at San Gabriel in 1777, when there was an uprising among the Indians. The revolt was caused by outrages committed upon them by the soldiers; but a shining image of the Virgin was held up before them, which caused them, it is said, to lay down their arms, kneel and weep, and even embrace the missionaries.

There was continual friction between the sol- diers and the priests from the Governor and President at the head of each side down all along both lines, The numerous causes of this controversy are minutely and accurately set forth in Bancroft's voluminous history of Cali- fornia, and it is not necessary to reproduce them here, any more than the quarrels which especially affected San Gabriel. In the first place Pedro Fages, the military commandant, had the mis- sion founded withont Serra being present, the first one he had missed, and he was not at San Gabriel for a full year after its establishment. Governor Portolá and Serra had disagreed, and the latter had an open quarrel with Rivera at San Diego, over the disposition of troops, and when Governor de Neve came in 1774 he agreed no better with the friars, who seemed to want the entire control of the soldiers to use as they deemed best, not only in the protection of the inissions, but in the capture of fugitive neo- phytes, who were becoming numerous.

In October, 1785, an aboriginal Eve played her part in tempting the neophytes into a revolt, assisted by the "gentiles." The corporal in command averted all danger by promptly ar- resting some twenty of the conspirators. The woman, by order of General Ugarte, was sent into perpetual exile. One Indian, Nicolás, was sentenced to six years' work at a presidio, to be followed by exile, and two other Indians were imprisoned for two years. The remainder of the conspirators were flogged and released. This severe punishment deterred any further outbreaks for several years. In 1810 there was a threatened attack of Mojave Indians, but it was suppressed by a company of military artil- lery from Los Angeles, under Captain Zuraga,

HISTORY OF LOS ANGELES COUNTY.

and it is recorded that so wisely did he act in his proceedings with the hostile Indians that upward of 400 of them were "converted." In spite of this wonderful extension of the king- dom of peace, the missionaries lived in constant alarm of Indian troubles all the next year.

The great earthquake of Sunday, December 8, 1812, which overthrew the church at San Juan Capistrano, was also felt at San Gabriel. The church was cracked, the steeple fell and images inside were broken; the friars' residence was also injured.

RULE OF ZALVADEA.

It was under José María Zalvadea, who came from San Fernando in 1806, that the mission of San Gabriel attained its maximum of pros- perity. He is described as having been "a man of powerful mind, ambitious as powerful, and crnel as ambitious." When he arrived, the mis- sion already owned an abundance of cattle, horses, mares, sheep, and hogs; but, in his opinion, only a beginning had been made. Ac- cording to Hugo Reid:

" He it was who planted the large vineyards, intersected with fine walks, shaded by fruit trees of every description, and rendered still more lovely by shrubs interspersed between; who laid out the orange garden, fruit and olive orchards; built the mill and dam; made fences of tuñas (cactus opuntia) round the fields; made hedges of rose-bushes; planted trees in the mission square, with a flower garden and hour-dial in the center; brought water from long distances, etc. He also remodeled thie ex- istent system of government. Every article must henceforthi be in place, and every man at his station. Everything under him was organ- ized and that organization kept up with the lash!

" The people were now divided into classes and vocations. These included vaqueros, soap- makers, tanners, shoemakers, carpenters, black- smiths, bakers, cooks, general servants, pages, fishermen, agriculturists, horticulturists, brick

and tile inakers, musicians, singers, tallow melt- ers, vignerons, carters, cart-makers, shepherd,s poultry-keepers, pigeon-tenders, weavers, spin- ners, saddle-makers, store and key-keepers, deer hunters, deer and sheep-skin dressmakers, ma- sons, plasterers, people of all work-everything but coopers, these were foreign; all the rest were native Indians.

" Large soap works were erected, tanning yards established, tallow works, bakery, cooper, black- smith, carpenter and other shops. Large spin- ning rooms, where might be seen fifty or sixty women turning their spindles merrily, and looms for weaving wool, flax, and cotton. Then large store-rooms were allotted to the various articles, which were kept separate. For in- stance, wheat, barley, peas, beans, lentils, chick, peas, butter and cheese, soap, candles, wool, leather, flour, lime, salt, horse-hair, wine and spirits, fruit stores, etc., etc. Sugar-cane, flax- and hemp were added to the other articles cul- tivated, but cotton wool was imported.

"The principal ranchos belonging at that time to San Gabriel were San Pasqual, Santa Anita, Azusa, San Francisquito, Cncumongo, San An- tonio, San Bernardino, San Gorgonio, Yucaipa, Jurupa, Guapa, Rincon, Chino, San José, Ybar- ras, Puente; Mission Vieja, Serranos, Rosa Cas- tillo, Coyotes, Jaboneria, Las Bolsas, Alamitos, and Serritos."

A principal head (Major-domo) commanded and superintended over all. Clandio Lopez was the famed one during Padre Salvadea's ad- ministration, and although only executing the priest's plans, in the minds of the people he is the real hero. Ask any one who made this, or who did that, and the answer on all sides is the same, " El difunto Claudio!" and great credit is due him for carrying out withont flog- ging the numerous works entrusted to him. There were a great many other major-domnos under him for all kinds of work, from tending of horses down to those superintending crops, and in charge of vineyards and gardens.

Indian alcaldes were appointed annually by the padre, and chosen from among the very

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HISTORY OF LOS ANGELES COUNTY.

laziest of the community, he being of the opin- ion that they took more pleasure in making the others work than would industrious ones, and from my own observation this is correct. They carried a wand to denote their authority, and what was more terrible, an immense scourge of raw-hide, about ten feet in length, plaited to the thickness of an ordinary man's wrist! They did a great deal of chastisement, both by and without orders. One of them always acted as overseer on work done in gangs, and accompa- nied carts when on service.

The unmarried women and young girls were kept as nuns, under the supervision of an abbess, who slept with them in a large room. Their occupations were various; sometimes they sewed or spun, at others they cleaned weeds out of the gardens with hoes, worked at the ditches, or gathered in the crops. In fact, they were jacks or jennies of no trade in particular.

The best looking yonths were kept as pages to attend at table, and those of most musical talent were reserved for church service. The number of hogs was great; they were princi- pally used for making soap. (The Indians, with some few exceptions, refuse to eat pork, alleging the whole family to be transformed Spaniards! I find this belief current through every nation of Indians in Mexico. Why should they, without being aware of it, have each selected the hog more than any other ani- mal to fix a stigma upon? It probably may be from its filthy habits, or can something apper- taining to the Jews be innate in them?) Near the mission at San Francisquito were kept the turkeys, of which they had a large quantity. The dove-cote was alongside of the soap works, in an upper story, affording plenty of dung to eure leather and skins with.

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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