USA > California > History of California, Volume I > Part 36
USA > California > History of California, Volume I > Part 36
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Hullones
Heceta
175
Pta Avisader
L. Merced
Ortega 1769
Guadalupe
Pta.Sierra
1705
S.Bruno
PENINSULA OF SAN FRANCISCO.
nena
Precita
Hlorones
282
FOUNDING OF SAN FRANCISCO.
and north, from which to determine the exact route, until, on March 27th, he encamped at about 11 A. M. on a lake near the "mouth of the port," out of which was flowing water enough, as the writer says, for a mill. This was what is now Mountain Lake, to which the Spaniards at this time gave no name,5 though they called the outlet Arroyo del Puerto, now known as Lobos Creek. As soon as the camp was pitched Anza set out exploring toward the west and south, spending the afternoon, and finding water, pasturage, and wood, in fact all that was required for his pro- posed fort except timber.
Next morning he went with the priests to what is now Fort Point, " where nobody had been," and there erected a cross, at the foot of which he buried an ac- count of his explorations." Here upon the table-land terminating in this point Anza determined to estab- lish the presidio. Font presently returned to camp,7 while Anza and Moraga continued their explorations toward the east and south-east, where they found, in addition to previous discoveries, a plentiful supply of oak timber which, though much bent by the north- west winds, would serve to some extent for building purposes. About half a league east of the camp they
+ From the topography of the region, and from the fact that no mention is made of seeing or being near either the bay or Lake Merced, it is most likely that Anza followed the route of the present county road and railroad from San Bruno to the vicinity of Islais Creek, thence turning to the left past the present Almshouse tract.
5 The lake is called Laguna del Presidio on La Perouse's map of 1786. That the lake on which this party encamped was Mountain Lake, an identity that no previous writer has noticed, is proved not only by Anza's subsequent movements, but by the following iu Font's Journal, MS., 31: 'The coast of the mouth (of San Francisco Bay) on this side runs from N. E. to s. w., not straight, but forming a bend, on the beach of which a stream, which flows from the lagoon where we halted, empties itself, and we called it the Arroyo del Puerto." No other part of the shore corresponds at all to this statement.
6 Misled, perhaps, by this mention of the cross, Palou, Not., ii. 286, says that Anza followed his, Palou's, route of 1774 until he reached the cross planted at that time.
7 Font in his diary gives a long and accurate description of San Francisco Bay. Hc clearly mentions Alcatraz Island, though without applying any name. It is to be noted that he mentions Punta de Almejas, or Mussel Point, still so called; but this was not the original Mussel Point of 1769, though Font very likely thought so.
283
ANZA'S VISIT.
found another large lagoon, from which was flowing considerable water, and which, with some artificial im- provements, they thought would furnish a permanent supply for garden irrigation. This was the present Washerwoman's Bay, corner of Greenwich and Octa- via streets. About a league and a half south-east of the camp there was a tract of irrigable land, and a flowing spring, or ojo de agua, which would easily supply the required water. Anza found some well disposed natives also, and he came back at 5 p. M. very much pleased, as Font tells us, with the result of his day's search.
Next morning, the 29th, they broke camp, half the men with the pack animals returning by the way they had come, to San Mateo Creek, and the commander with Font and five men taking a circuitous route by the bay shore. Arriving at the spring and rivulet dis- covered the day before, they named it from the day, the last Friday in lent, Arroyo de los Dolores.8 Thence passing round the hills they reached and crossed the former trail, and went over westward into the Cañada de San Andrés in search of timber, of which they found an abundance. They followed the glen some distance beyond where the San Mateo creek flows out into the plain, killed a large bear, crossed the low hills, and returned northward to join their companions on the San Mateo.
The next objective point was the great River San Francisco, which had in 1772 prevented Fages from
" It is to be noted that Anza calls it simply an 'ojo de agua ó fuente ' and Font an 'arroyo,' but neither mentions any lagoon. Palou, however, says, ' on reaching the beach of the bay which the sailors called De los Llorones (that is Mission Bay, called Llorones by Ayala's men on account of two weep- ing natives, see chap. xi.), he crossed an arroyo by which empties a great lagoon which he named Dolores, and it seemed to him a good site for the mis- sion,' ctc. This may be punctuated so as to apply the name to the stream rather than the lagoon ; but I suspect that the lagoon-subsequently known as The Willows-with its stream was entirely distinct from Anza's stream of Dolores. Of this more in note 26 of this chapter. Font from an eminence noted the bearing of the head of the bay E. S. E., and of an immense spruce, or redwood, afterwards found it to be 150 feet high and 16 feet in circumfer- ence, on the Arroyo de San Francisco, S. E.
284
FOUNDING OF SAN FRANCISCO.
reaching Point Reyes.9 Save that in going round the head of the bay they named Guadalupe and Coyote streams, and further on the Arroyo de San Salvador, or Harina, there is nothing of value or interest in the diaries until April 2d when the ex- plorers reached the mouth of "the fresh water port held hitherto to be a great river," that is, to the strait of Carquines and Suisun Bay. The water was somewhat salt; there was no current; this great River San Francisco was apparently no river at all, but an extension of the bay. The matter seems to have troubled them greatly, and their observations were chiefly directed to learning the true status of this body of water. There was no reason for it, but they were confused. Crespi's diary of the for- mer trip had described the body of water accu- rately enough, and had not at all confounded the strait and bay with the River San Francisco, or San Joaquin ; but, possibly, Fages had also written a diary in which he expressed the matter less clearly.10
The camp on the 2d was on a stream supposed to be identical with the Santa Angela de Fulgino11 of Fages. On the 3d they continued eastward past the low range of hills, from the summit of which, near Willow Pass, like Fages and Crespí before them, they had a fine view of a broad country, which they describe more fully, but not more accurately, than their prede- céssors.12 The long descriptions are interesting, but they form no part of history and are omitted, strange as it may seem, on account of their very accuracy, as is also true regarding Font's description of San Fran- cisco Bay. They described the country as it was and
9 It is noticeable that Anza several times implies that more than one ex- ploration had been made in this direction, but only one, that of Fages, is recorded.
10 Sce account of Fages' trip in chapter viii. According to Arricivita, Cró .. Seráf., 465-7, Font named the body of water Puerto Dulce.
11 No. 100 of Font's map.
12 See also Font's map in preceding chapter, on which 'a' is 'the hill to which Fages arrived;' 'b' a 'rancheria at edge of the water;' ' c,' a 'hill from which we saw the tnlares;' 'd' the 'summit of the sierra;' and 'e' some 'min- eral hills.'
2S5
MOUTH OF THE SAN JOAQUIN.
is; it is only with the annals of their trip and such errors in their observations as had or might have had an effect on subsequent explorations that I have to deal. There are, however, errors and confusion to be noted. It is evident that for some reason they had an imperfect idea of Fages' trip. On the strait they had labored hard to prove it not a river, as it certainly was not, and as it had never been supposed to be, so far as can be known. Now that they had reached the river and were looking out over the broad valleys of the San Joaquin and Sacramento from the hills back of Antioch, they still flattered themselves that they were correcting errors of Crespí and Fages, and they still labored to prove that the broad rivers were not rivers, but 'fresh water ports' extending far to the north and south, possibly connecting by tulares in the former direction with Bodega Bay. In all this, how- ever, Anza was not so positive; but in correcting an error Crespí never made respecting the Strait of Car- quines, Font was singularly enough led into real error left on record for others to correct.
Like Fages, Anza descended the hills and advanced some leagues over the plain to the water's edge,13 but instead of turning back and entering the hills by the San Ramon Cañada, as Fages had done, after some rather ineffectual attempts to follow the miry river-banks, he kept on over the foot-hills, noting vast herds of elk, or jackass deer, passed to the left of what is now Mount Diablo, and crossed the moun-
13 Font in one place calls the hill the terminus of Fages' exploration, and says: 'From said hill which may be about a league from the water, Captain Fages and P. Crespí saw its extent and that it was divided into arms which formed islands of low land; and as they had previously tasted the water on the road further back and found it to be fresh, they supposed without doubt that it must he some great river which divided itself here into three branches ... without noticing whether it had any current or not, which was not easy for them to do from said hill at such a distance.' Font counted seven islands. Anza, Diario, MS., 168, says of the body of water 'nos pareció ser mas una gran laguna que rio,' and 172, 'Me hizo esta noticia (the state- ment of two soldiers that the tulares were impassable even in the dry season) y lo que yo observaba acabarme de conceptuar que lo que se ha tenido por rio es puramente una gran laguna.' San Ricardo was the name given to the ranchería in the Antioch region.
286
FOUNDING OF SAN FRANCISCO.
tains by a difficult route not easy to locate, on which he named the Cañada de San Vicente and the Sierra del Chasco, finding also indications of silver ore. April 6th the party encamped on Arroyo del Coy- ote,14 and on the 8th arrived at Monterey. As before related, Anza started south on the 14th, and his final exhortation to Rivera on the importance of prompt action in the San Francisco matter was accompanied by a diary and map of the exploration just described.15
With the arrival of the colony at Monterey from the south, there had come instructions from Rivera to build houses for the people, since there would be at least a year's delay before the presidio could be founded.16 And such were the orders in force, not- withstanding Anza's protest, when that officer turned over the command to Moraga,17 and left the country. But Rivera, coming to his senses perhaps after a little reflection, or fearing the results of Anza's reports in Mexico, or really taking some interest in the new foundation now that the object of his jealousy had departed, changed his policy, and the day after his arrival in San Diego, on May 8th, despatched an order to Moraga to proceed and establish the fort on the site selected by Anza. He could not, however, neg- lect the opportunity to annoy the priests by saying that the founding of the missions was for the present suspended, as Moraga was instructed to inform the president. Truly the latter had not gained much in the change from Fages to his rival. At the same time Rivera sent an order to Grijalva at San Gabriel to rejoin the rest of the colony at Monterey with the
14 No. 104 of the map.
13 The route of Anza's trip is shown, but of course in a general way, on Font's map. See chapter xii. The natives had been as usual friendly in every ranchería visited.
16 Palou, Not., ii. 283. From the viceroy Rivera had permission dated Jan. 20th, to delay the exploration only until Anza's arrival. Prov. St. Pap., MS., i. 193-4. But of course the viceroy knew nothing yet of the San Diego affair.
17 Feb. 4th, Rivera orders Moraga to take command of the expedition after Anza's departure. Prov. St. Pap., MS., xxii. 19.
287
PREPARATIONS.
twelve soldiers and their families. Anza's departure had, it seems, greatly lessened the danger at San Diego.
Góngora brought the order to San Gabriel, and Grijalva, setting out at once with his company, carried it to Moraga at Monterey. It was resolved to start north in the middle of June, and though the mission must wait, Serra thought it best that Palou and Cambon, the friars destined for San Francisco, shoukl accompany the soldiers to attend to their spiritual interests and be ready on the spot for further orders. Meanwhile the transport vessels arrived on their yearly voyage, having sailed from San Blas together on the 9th of March. The San Antonio, Captain Diego Choquet, with Francisco Castro and Juan B. Aguirre, as master and mate, and Friar Benito Sierra as chaplain, arrived May 21st, unloading supplies for Monterey and waiting for some pine lumber for San Diego. The San Carlos, a slower vessel, arrived the 3d of June,18 under Captain Quirós, Cañizares and Revilla as master and mate, with Santa María and Nocedal as chaplains. She brought supplies for Mon- terey and also for San Francisco, and many articles were put on board to go up by water and save mule transportation; but as two cannons were to be taken from the presidio an order from Rivera was necessary, and the vessel was obliged to wait until this order could be obtained.
On June 17th Moraga with his company of sol- diers, settlers, families, and servants19 set out in com- pany with the two friars by the old route, moving very slowly, halting for a day on San Francisco
18 June 5th, Moraga to Rivera, announcing arrival of the transports. Prov. St. Pap., MS., i. 232-3.
19 About the number of soldiers there is much confusion. Rivera's orders, Palou, Not., ii. 300, had been to take 20 of them, but the same author says, page 307, that Moraga had 13; and elsewhere, Vida, 205-7, that there were 17. He still claims that 12 of Aica's force were at San Diego, but there is no doubt that all the 29 were at Monterey and that about 20 of them started. There were 7 settlers with their families, 5 vaqueros and muleteers, 2 Lower Californians, 1 San Carlos neophyte, a mule train, and 200 head of cattle.
288
FOUNDING OF SAN FRANCISCO.
Arroyo, noting the abundance of deer and antelope, and finally encamping, June 27th, on the Laguna de los Dolores in sight of the Ensenada de los Llorones and of the south-eastern branch of the bay. An altar was set up and mass was said on the 29th, as on every succeeding day. Here Moraga awaited the coming of the San Carlos, because the exact location of the presidio site was to depend to some extent. on her survey for anchorage. A month was passed in ex- plorations of the peninsula, in cutting timber, and in other preparations of which no detailed record was kept, and still no vessel came. The lieutenant finally determined to go over to the site selected by Anza, and make a beginning by erecting barracks of tules and other light material. Thus far all had lived in the field tents, and the camp was transferred on the 26th of July. The first building completed was in- tended for a temporary chapel, and in it the first mass was said on July 28th by Palou.20 The priests, how- ever, did not change their quarters. They as well as Anza thought the first camp in a locality better fitted for a mission than any other part of the peninsula; and though by Rivera's orders the mission was not yet to be founded, the spot was so near the presidio, and the natives were so friendly, that it was deemed safe and best for the two friars to remain with the cattle and other mission property, guarded by six sol- diers and a settler, who might without disobedience of superior orders make preparations for their future dwellings. Things continued in this state for nearly another month.
To their great relief on the 18th of August the San Carlos arrived and anchored near the new camp. After leaving Monterey she had experienced con- trary winds and had been driven first down to the latitude of San Diego, then up to 42, anchoring on the night of the 17th outside the heads and north of
20 The camp was pitched July 26th, and building begun July 27th. Letter of Sal to Governor in 1792. Prov. St. Pap., MS., xi. 52, 54.
289
THE PRESIDIO BEGUN.
the entrance. Quirós and the rest having approved the choice of sites, work was immediately begun on permanent buildings for the presidio, all located within a square of ninety-two yards, according to a plan made by Cañizares. Quirós sent ashore his two carpenters and a squad of sailors to work on the storehouse, com- mandant's dwelling, and chapel, while the soldiers erected houses for themselves and families. All the buildings were of palisade walls, and roofed with earth. They were all ready by the middle of Septem-
ber, and the 17th was named as the day of ceremonial founding, being the day of the 'Sores of our seraphic father Saint Francis.'21 Over a hundred and fifty persons witnessed the solemn ceremony. The San Carlos landed all her force save enough to man the swivel-guns. Four friars assisted at mass, for Peña had come up from Monterey, and the prescribed rites of taking possession, and the te deum laudamus, were accompanied and followed by ringing of bells and discharge of fire-arms, including the swivel-guns of the transport. The cannon so terrified the natives that not one made his appearance for some days.22 Thus was the presidio of San Francisco founded, and after the ceremonies its commandant, Moraga, enter- tained the company with all the splendor circum- stances would allow.23
While the presidio supplies were being transferred to the warehouse, a new exploration of the head of the bay and of the great rivers was made by Quirós, Cañizares, and Cambon in the ship's boat, and by
21 'On that same 17th of September on the other side of the continent Lord Howe's Hessian and British troops were revelling in the city of New York.' Elliot, in Overland Monthly, iv. 336-7.
22 So says Palou, and it reads well. It must be added, however, that according to the same author all had left the peninsula a month before.
23 In connection with the founding of the presidio it may be noted that Moraga in his preliminary search found one or two fine springs which Anza had not mentioned. Gen. Vallejo, in his Discurso Histórico, pronounced at the centennial celebration of the founding of the mission, notes that some remarkable qualities were popularly attributed to the spring called El Polin. Women drinking the water were, it seems, made more than usually prolific, giving birth to twins in many instances. Several other Californians men- tion this old popular belief.
HIST. CAL., VOL. I. 19
290
FOUNDING OF SAN FRANCISCO.
Moraga with a party of soldiers by land. The two expeditions were to meet beyond the 'round bay,' or at the mouth of the river, on a certain day, apparently September 26th, whence by water and land they were to go up the river as far as possible. They started on the 23d, the land party carrying most of the supplies, while the boat took only enough for eight days. On the 29th Quirós returned. He had reached the ren- dezvous at the appointed time, but not meeting Moraga, he had been obliged after waiting one day to turn back for want of provisions. Although prevented from exploring the great river, he was able to settle another disputed question and prove that the 'round bay' had no connection with Bodega. For sailing in that direction he had discovered a new estuary and followed it to its head, finding no passage to the sea, and beholding a lofty sierra which stretched toward the west and ended, as Quirós thought, at Cape Mendocino. This was, probably, the first voyage of Europeans up the windings of Petaluma Creek.24 Respecting the region at the mouth of the great rivers he had done no more than verify the accuracy of previous observations by Fages and Anza.
Meanwhile Moraga, on arriving at the south-eastern head of the bay, had changed his plans, and instead of following the shore had conceived the idea that he could save time and distance by crossing the sierra eastward. This he accomplished without difficulty by a route not recorded, but apparently at an unexpected cost of time; for on reaching the river he concluded it would be impossible to reach the mouth at the time
24 Palou, Noticias, states that Quirós sailed two days on the new estero, and he might with unfavorable winds have spent that time on Petaluma Creek; but if he waited a day for Moraga the two days must include the whole return voyage. He had not, however, disproved Font's theory that the bay communicated with Bodega by way of the great 'fresh water port,' or lagoon, now called the Sacramento River. In his Vida, 210-14, Palou gives rather vaguely additional details. At the mouth of the great river was a fine har- bor, as good as San Diego, named Asuncion (Suisun Bay?). The lofty sierra stretching to Cape Mendocino was called San Francisco. The estuary on the west of Round Bay, up which they sailcd one day and night, was named Merced.
291
THE MISSION AT DOLORES.
agreed on, and resolved to direct his exploration in the other direction. Marching for three days rapidly up the river he reached a point where the plain in all di- rections le hizo horizonte, that is, presented an unbroken horizon as if he were at sea! The natives pointed out a ford, and Moraga travelled for a day in the plain beyond the river, seeing in the far north lines of trees indicating the existence of rivers. But he had no compass, and fearing that he might lose himself on these broad plains he returned by the way he had come, arriving at the presidio the 7th of October.
Let us now return to the other camp at the Laguna de los Dolores, where since the end of July Palou and Cambon, reënforced after a time by Peña appointed to Santa Clara, had been making preparations for a mis- sion. Six soldiers and a settler had built houses for their families, and the establishment lacked only cer- tain dedicatory formalities to be a regular mission. True, there were no converts, even candidates, but the natives would doubtless come forward in due time. Their temporary absence from the peninsula dated from the 12th of August, before which time they had been friendly though apparently unable for want of an inter- preter to comprehend the aims of the missionaries. On the date specified the southern rancherías of San Mateo came up and defeated them in a great fight, burning their huts and so filling them with terror that they fled in their tule rafts to the islands and contra costa, notwithstanding the offers of the soldiers to protect them. For several months nothing was seen of theni, except that a small party ventured occasionally to the lagoon to kill ducks, accepting also at such visits gifts of beads and food from the Spaniards. Two children of presidio soldiers were baptized before the founding of the mission. 25 As soon, as Quirós arrived he had
25 San Francisco, Lib. de Mision, MS., 3. These are the first entries in the mission books ; the first on August 10th was the baptism of Francisco José de los Dolores Soto, infant son of Ignacio Soto; the second that of Juana María Lorenza Sanchez 15 days of age, on Aug. 25th. Both were baptized ad instantem mortem without ceremony, the latter by a common soldier.
292
FOUNDING OF SAN FRANCISCO.
given his attention to the mission as well as the pre- sidio, and immediately set six sailors at work to aid the priests in constructing a church and dwelling, so that the work advanced rapidly.
No orders came from Rivera authorizing the estab- lishing of a mission, but Moraga saw no reason for delay and took upon himself the responsibility. A church fifty-four feet long and a house of thirty by fifteen feet, all of wood, plastered with clay, and roofed with tules, were finished and the day of Saint Francis, October 4th, was the time set for the rites of founda- tion. On the 3d the church, decorated with bunting from the vessel, was blessed; but next day only a mass was said, the ceremony being postponed on account of the absence of Moraga. He arrived, as we have seen, on the 7th, and on October 9th the solemne funcion was celebrated in presence of all who had assisted at the presidio a month before, save only the few soldiers left in charge of the fort. Palou said mass, aided by Cambon, Nocedal, and Peña; the image of Saint Francis, patron of port, presidio, and mission, was carried about in procession. Volleys of musketry rent the air, aided by swivel-guns and rockets brought from the San Carlos, and finally two cattle were killed to feast the guests before they departed. Thus was for- mally established the sixth of the California missions, dedicated to San Francisco de Asis on the Laguna de los Dolores. 26
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