USA > California > Santa Barbara County > Santa Barbara > The early days of Santa Barbara, California, from the first discoveries by Europeans to December, 1846 > Part 3
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well prepared to protect itself against many thousands of unwarlike Indians, armed only with bows and arrows; yet the presidio of Santa Barbara was but an outpost in the wilderness; and was over two hundred miles distant from the nearest neighboring presidios, where equally small garrisons were located. Un- known dangers surrounded this handful of men, yet they were filled with the enthusiasm of Argonauts; and to add to their cheer, from the center of he square rose a flagpole, from which floated, at first, the colors of Spain, and, later, those of the Mexican Republic.
Although the plan of the presidio was simple, and the soldiers were assisted by a few sailors, yet the work at first, progressed slowly; later, however, it advanced more rapidly when by offering food and clothing Cap- tain Ortega secured the services of the Indians, who were most useful, not only for procuring fish and game, but also for making adobe bricks, and hewing and haul- ing timbers. Gradually the mud and brick huts were replaced by solid adobe structures, faced with mortar and brightened with a coat of whitewash; the cane and thatched roofs were covered with red tiles; and heavy oaken doors, which could be secured in case of attack, were hung in the exits at the rear of the buildings. Yet every part of the strucures was necessarily simple. The windows were merely small openings in the sides of the walls, which could be closed by wooden shutters; the hardened ground, on which may have been thrown the skin of a deer, was the only flooring; and all of the furn- ishings were exceedingly meagre. Each of the separate houses consisted of two or more dwelling rooms, to which in several instances a kitchen was subsequently attached, although the cooking was often conducted in the open air.
In 1793, just eleven years after the foundation had been begun, the governor referred to the Santa Barbara presidio as being in the best condition of any in Cali-
ONE OF THE ORIGINAL HOUSES OF THE SOLDIERS IN THE PRESIDIO
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THE PRESIDIO
fornia. All of the houses were roofed; the outer wall was erected; and the presidio was completed with the exception of the church, which was begun shortly after. In 1797 it was finished, and was dedicated on the fes- tive day of Saint Guadalupe. It was the first church erected in Santa Barbara, and for more than half a cen- tury, divine services were held within its walls. It was an adobe building twenty-four feet in width with a depth of sixty feet, exclusive of the sacristy. The in- terior was adorned with statuary and paintings; and many years later, but previous to the year 1826, it was furnished with an organ. Until the present parish church was erected in 1854, it was attended not only by the soldiers but by the residents of the pueblo. It was the first object to atract attention, as one entered the pre- sidio, and was still standing, long after the fortifications had crumbled away. Adjoining the church, but with- out the presidio walls, was the burial ground, where the soldiers and the first settlers were buried until the year 1818, when a cemetery was established near the foot- hills.
Some of the adobe buildings which formed the south- west side of the quadrangle and which were occupied by the soldiers and their families are still standing, and with the exception of the temporary huts, they were the first buildings to be erected in Santa Barbara, although much over a century old. Another of the original buildings, that was used for officers' quarters and was located on the northwest side of the square, is now so modified that it has lost much of that appearance of age which is characteristic of the other buildings, but may still be found at the rear of a more modern house facing on Canon Perdido street. These and the house of the commandante which is located three or four rods north-westerly from the corner of Santa Barbara and Canon Perdido streets are the only remaining buildings of the presidio.
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No effort has been made to modernize the houses on the southwest side of the square. They bear the un- mistakable evidences of age; yet the sun and rain of over a hundred years have failed to wear away the adobe walls. Beneath the tiles appear the cane and thatched roofs that were placed there over a century ago, and many of the doors and windows remain as they were when the presidio was built. Of the rest of the presidio nothing remains but the occasional tracings of the outer walls. Every indication of the cemetery has been effaced. The bells and relics of the old presidio church have been removed to the present parochial church, while the ruined walls and houses have given back to earth the soil, from which they were made. Yet in the days of its prosperity, the presidio of Santa Bar- bara, with its regular and well-constructed houses, white walls, and red tiled roofs, presented a more favor- able appearance than that of any other settlement along the coast.
Until the discovery of gold in California and the con- sequent growth of San Francisco and the cities of the interior of the state, Santa Barbara was one of the most important places in Alta California. The whole of the territory occupied by the missionaries was divided into four districts, in each of which was built a presidio; and the officers of these presidios had both military and civil jurisdiction over their respective districts. The presidio of Santa Barbara had jurisdiction over the Missions of La Purissima, Santa Ynez, Santa Barbara, San Buenaventura, San Fernando, and the pueblo of La Reyna de los Angeles. Though the most important of the presidios was at Monterey, as it was the official seat of the governor and the territorial deputation; the presidio of Santa Barbara was undoubtedly next in im- portance, and its officers had considerable prestige in the government of the territory. There seemed to be an established rule that, in the event of the death of the
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governor, the comandante of Santa Barbara should succeed as acting governor, until an appointment should be made. This happened when upon the death of Gov- ernor Jose Arrellago, Jose Arguello, the comandante of Santa Barbara, became governor; and Pablo Vicenti de Sola, when taken ill during his administration as governor, provided that in case of his death, Jose De la Guerra, who was at that time comandante at Santa Barbara, should succeed him as governor. The district of Santa Barbara seems to have been the richest in cattle, hides, and tallow, which constituted almost the only commodities of trade that California then had. About the year 1825, the territory under the jurisdic- tion of Santa Barbara had probably not less than 300,- 000 head of cattle and 25,000 head of horses, although these numbers rapidly decreased after the seculariza- tion. The appropriation that was made from the royal treasury for the presidio of Santa Barbara, previous to the independence of Mexico, amounted approximately to $15,000 per annum, and was expended, principally, in the maintenance of about sixty soldiers. These however, were divided among the different Missions of the district, so that a force not much exceeding half that number remained at the presidio.
The officers of the presidio were civil as well as mili- tary and consisted of the comandante, or commander, who had sometimes the rank of lieutenant but generally that of captain; of an alcade, or justice of the peace; of an alfarez, or ensign; and the habilitado, who had charge of all branches of the revenue and was generally postmaster. The duties of habilitado were frequently discharged by the comandante.
The first comandante was Captain Jose Francisco Ortega, who for two years was engaged in the work of building the presidio and laying the foundation upon which rested the future prosperity of this district. While he may have been severe in the exercise of his
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office, yet he was a man of indomitable energy and un- tiring in his efforts to establish a presidio in which no essential should be wanting. One of his enterprises was the construction of a stone reservoir, and a ditch through which the water from Mission Creek was con- ducted for irrigation purposes; and through his efforts farming was begun on a large scale upon the land ad- joining the presidio. An orchard was planted beyond its western wall, and three or four fruit trees that were subsequently planted in this orchard are still alive. His attention was also directed to stock raising, and through his efforts the presidio acquired a number of horses and cattle, the first of which came from San Buenaventura ; and within a few years they multiplied very rapidly. After being in command for two years, Ortega was re- moved to assume other important duties, and at one time was comandante of Monterey. His life had al- ways been an active one. He was born in the state of Guanajuato, Mexico, and engaged in mining in early life, but subsequently drifted to Baja California, where he entered the military service. He accompanied the expedition under Governor Portola in 1769, the object of which was to found the Missions of Alta California; and rendered signal service to these first pioneers, in exploring the way among the Indian tribes of the coast. After serving as comandante at Santa Barbara and Monterey, he continued to perform military duty until shortly before his death. He was beloved by the people of Santa Barbara, and when he died was sincerely mourned.
In 1784 Ortega was succeeded in command by Cap- tain Felipe de Goycoechea, who was the comandante at Santa Barbara until 1802. During his term of office the presidio and most of the Mission buildings were finished. After leaving Santa Barbara, Goycoechea was made governor of Baja California.
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Goycoechea was succeeded by Lieutenant Raimundo Carrillo, who for five years was comandante at the pre- sidio, and discharged the duties of his office with firm- ness yet clemency. This period was rendered memor- able by the earthquakes of 1806, which damaged not only some of the buildings of the Mission, but also the presidio chapel. The walls of the latter were badly cracked; and a severe gale, two months later, almost completely destroyed the edifice.
Carrillo was born in 1749, at Lorto, the capital of Baja California; and came to Alta California about twenty years later, at which time he became a soldier. He served as a corporal, at Monterey, and later as a sergeant, at Santa Barbara. Shortly afterwards he was made lieutenant and comandante at Monterey; and two years later was comandante at Santa Barbara. He was a very efficient officer and a man of much intelligence.
Carrillo was succeeded in command by Captain Jose Dario Arguello, who for nine years was comandante at Santa Barbara. One of the most important acts of his administration was the opening of common schools; but unfortunately they received but little public support, although several excellent instructors were secured. As he was enterprising and public-spirited, he would have accomplished much more during his administration were it not for the disastrous earthquakes which began in December, 1812, and recurred with frequency until March of the following year. These earthquakes were the severest recorded in the history of Southern Cali- fornia; and considerable damage was done to every Mission along the coast from Purissima, at Lompoc, to San Juan Capistrano near San Diego. At Purissima, not only the church and some of the Mission buildings but a great many of the Indian houses were completely demolished. At San Juan Capistrano, the new stone church which was finished the preceding year was de- stroyed; and nearly all of the fifty people who were at-
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tending mass on the morning when the first severe earth- quake occurred were killed.
At Santa Barbara, a number of the Mission buildings were totally destroyed; and the damage to the presidio buildings was so extensive, that the re-building of the presidio on a different site was seriously contemplated. It is stated that the earth opened in many places, and that a tidal wave broke upon the shore. Though many of the reports were doubtless exaggerated, yet for sev- eral weeks the greatest consternation prevailed among the people; and even the ensign wrote the governor that he was convulsed with fear.
Captain Arguello was born in Queretaro, Mexico, in 1755, and at twenty years of age enlisted as a soldier. He rose to be a captain through his intrinsic worth, and became one of the most influential men in California, where he resided for thirty-four years. For a short time he was acting governor of Alta California, and, subsequently, served for several years as governor of Baja California.
Arguello was succeeded, in 1815, by Captain Jose Antonio De la Guerra y Noriega, whose military com- mand extended over a period of twenty-four years, dur- ing which the presidio passed through the best days of its existence. At the time he assumed command, the presidio was completed and was in the best condition of any in California; all of the Mission buildings had been erected, with the exception of the present stone church, which was founded the same year and completed five years later; the pueblo had begun to spring up around the presidio; and some of the Mexican soldiers had re- ceived grants of ranches. Santa Barbara had reached a position of dignity and importance among the settle- ments of the Pacific Coast. Although Monterey was the capital of Alta California, the governors frequently visited Santa Barbara, and several gubernatorial procla- mations were made during their visits here. Meetings
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of territorial officials were also occasionally held at the presidio, and its comandante was a man of consequence in the affairs of the coast.
Entirely isolated from the civilized world, startling events at Santa Barbara were few; yet so widely scat- tered were the settlements and the population of each was so small, that events which now might seem of most trivial importance appeared then fraught with the grav- est consequences. One of the interesting events which occurred during the command of Captain de La Guerra, and for several days occasioned much excite- ment in this peaceful spot, was the visit to the Cali- fornia coast of two piratical vessels.
The first news of the threatened invasion was received from a sea captain by the name of Henry Gyzelaar, who two years before had been arrested by Captain De la Guerra, on the charge of smuggling; but was shortly afterwards released upon proving his innocence. Pend- ing the investigation, he remained at the home of De la Gurra in the presidio, where he received such cour- teous treatment that he left Santa Barbara with feelings of gratitude towards his captor. In the fall of 1818, he arrived unexpectedly at Santa Barbara in his sailing vessel and announced to De la Guerra, that he had come direct from the Hawaiian Islands, where Hippolyte Bouchard, a Frenchman, was fitting out two vessels with an armament of fifty-four guns and manned by two hun- dred and fifty men, with the design of preying on this coast.
The swiftest courier was at once dispatched to the governor; and the several presidios and Missions of the Coast were warned of the danger. Father Ripoll, the superior of the Santa Barbara Mission, organized an Indian force of one hundred and eighty men to co- operate with the soldiers of the presidio; but as the Ind- ians were untrained and as the few small guns of the presidio, and of the castillo on the Mesa, would be of
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little avail in opposing the armament of the two vessels, orders were issued that the women and children should be prepared for flight to Santa Ynez; that all articles of value should be packed ready for shipment; and that the cattle should be driven inland, as soon as the ves- sels were sighted.
Bouchard first appeared near Monterey, where some firing occurred between the vessels and a small battery on the shore; and the governor reported that several of the attacking party were killed in the engagement. On the following day, the pirates landed and carried away some cattle, and then sailed southward and landed at the rancho Del Refugio, about thirty miles from Santa Barbara. This ranch, at that time, was the most inter- esting and productive of any ranch in Santa Barbara County, and a force of thirty mounted soldiers was hastily sent from the pueblo to render assistance; but before they could arrive, the ranch was plundered; the buildings were burned; and the cattle which had not been driven into the mountains were killed. Although unable to offer any resistance, some of the Mexicans, who were hiding in ambush, captured three of the pirates.
When news was received at Santa Barbara of the plundering of the rancho Del Refugio and of the ap- proach of the vessels, the greatest excitement prevailed. The women were hastily sent over the mountain trails to Santa Ynez; valuables were concealed; and Captain De la Guerra prepared to make all possible resistance. Bouchard arrived at Santa Barbara on the 6th of De- cember; but, to the surprise of everyone, did not at- tempt to land. He evidently realized that nothing could be gained by an attack, as there had been sufficient opportunity to remove all valuables and drive away the cattle; and, accordingly, a message was sent on shore with a flag of truce and an exchange of prisoners pro-
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posed. This offer was finally accepted; and, the ex- change being effected, the pirates sailed away.
In 1821, during the command of De la Guerra, Mexico declared its independence and Alta California became a territory of the republic. A few years after the independence of Mexico was declared, an amusing incident occurred at Santa Barbara, which well illus- trates how isolated California then was from the rest of the world, as a result of the difficulties of communica- tion and travel. Three cadets, belonging to the most prominent families of Santa Barbara, but with identi- ties disguised and dressed as Spanish officers, rang the bell of the presidio one morning, and after receiving the salute of the guard, announced that they had just arrived in a Spanish ship, lying at anchor in the harbor; and that in the name of their king, who, they claimed, had regained sovereignty over Mexico and its territor- ies, they would take possession of the presidio. In great consternation a few loyal Mexicans of the garrison whose latest information received from the Mexican capital was three or four months old, and who, conse- quently, were not in a position to know the truth, sound- ed the alarm, loaded the cannon, and prepared for a siege. The situation then began to look so serious that the cadets confessed their identity and acknowledged that the Spanish invasion was a joke.
Captain De la Guerra was by birth and in feelings a Spaniard, whereas, most of the officers in California were Mexicans; and this difference in birth occasioned some little jealousy, had it not been for this, he would probably have been governor, as he was both able and popular. He was born in Spain, in 1779, of a distin- guished family, and when still very young went to Mexico, where an uncle lived. Shortly afterwards, he entered the army as a cadet and occupied several mili- tary positions, until, in 1806, he was promoted to be lieutenant of the Santa Barbara Company. In 1810 he
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was chosen habilitado general of both Californias and sent to Mexico; but he was arrested by Mexican insurg- ents, and being unable to reach the City of Mexico, he returned to Santa Barbara. In 1815, he was appointed comandante of the Santa Barbara Company, which of- fice he occupied much of the time until 1842. Soon after being made comandante, he was promoted to be captain, the duties of which office he discharged with such satisfaction that he was subsequently offered many other important offices. His wife, Maria Antonia Car- rillo, was a daughter of Comandante Carrillo, and their fourth son, Pablo De la Guerra, was state senator and lieutenant governor. During his long life Captain De la Guerra exercised a strong influence in the political affairs of Alta California. He died in 1858, and was buried at the Mission.
During part of the years 1828 and 1829, when De la Guerra was absent in Mexico, Lieutenant Raimundo Pacheco acted as comandante of Santa Barbara. He was born in Guanajuato, Mexico, and was acting com- mander at Monterey before being transferred to Santa Barbara. He was an efficient and brave officer of high character, but was killed while still young. He left a son, Romualdo, who became very prominent in Cali- fornia, after its admission to the Union, and occupied many offices, including those of lieutenant governor and acting governor of this state.
De la Guerra was succeeded as comandante by Gum- esindo Flores, a Mexican and brevet lieutenant-colonel, who was comandante at Monterey from 1839 to 1842, when he was transferred to Santa Barbara. Flores was actively engaged in territorial affairs during his short term as comandante at Santa Barbara, and is frequently regarded as the last comandante, although Raimundo Carrillo was acting commander, during his absence for part of the year 1846. In December of that year, Fre- mont crossed the Santa Ynez mountains and entered
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Santa Barbara with his battalion of Americans. The presidio had played a most important and useful part in the early settlement of this section of the coast, but with the coming of Fremont its days of glory were over.
THE MISSION
FIRST DECADE
ALTHOUGH the construction of the presidio continued uninterruptedly from the beginning, four years had passed, before it was so far advanced that the comand- ante felt that part of his men could be spared for work on the Mission. Previous experience had shown the wisdom of locating the Mission at a moderate distance from the presidio, but it would have been impossible to have chosen a better or more beautiful site than the present one on the south bank of Pedregosa creek at the base of the foothills. On the 4th of December, 1786 which was the anniversary of the feast of Santa Bar- bara, and the founding of the presidio; just ten years and five months after the American colonists on the At- lantic Coast had proclaimed their political indepen- dence; the ground was consecrated and the cross was raised. A few days later Francisco de Lasuen, the presidente of the Californian Missions, attended by Governor Fages and a few of the officers and soldiers from the presidio, held divine services beneath a bower of green branches, which had been erected on the site. The founding of the Mission was then practically be- gun; but on account of winter storms the actual con- struction of the building was delayed until the follow- ing spring.
It was desirable that, as far as possible, the Mission settlement should not rely upon the presidio, excepting for protection in case of attack; and that this condition of independence should be effected without unnecessary delay. Therefore, a large number of the men who had been engaged in constructing the building of the pre-
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THE MISSION
sidio gave their entire attention to the work at the Mis- sion; and many buildings were completed during the first year after it was founded.
The first building to be erected occupied the posi- tion of the present structure, to the left of the Mission Church, and was for the use of the priests. It was built of adobe with walls two and a half feet in thickness, resting on stone foundations. The length was forty-five feet and the depth was fifteen feet; and adjoining it was a kitchen, eighteen feet by fifteen feet in dimensions. After completing this building, the first Mission church was built. It had a breadth of fifteen feet and depth of forty-five feet, and like the dwelling was built with adobe walls and stone foundations. Its peaked roof was made of rafters, across which slender poles tied to the rafters by thongs of leather were thickly laid. The poles were then covered with a layer of mud, and over this was placed a superstructure of thatch. The follow- ing year, the thatch was replaced by red tiles, and the church was slightly enlarged.
As soon as the church was finished, a small house was built for the Indian servants and a large one for the unmarried women. A granary and a carpenter shop were then built; but it was found necessary to temporar- ily use the former as a general storehouse, and the latter as a bunkhouse for some of the workmen. A building seventy-five feet in length by seventeen feet in depth, and consisting of four rooms, was also erected that year and used as a permanent dwelling house for the lay brothers; a church; dwellings for the priests, lay brothers, unmarried women, and servants; a kitchen; a granary; and a carpenter shop, were the principal re- sults of the work during the first year.
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