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Vol. XXVII, No 3 May/June 2014

CALENDAR

Sunday, May 4

Living History, Park

Tuesday, May 20

History Discussion, Escon-

dido Library, 4:30 to 6:30

pm, Catalina, led by Shirley

Buskirk

Friday, May 23

Board Meeting, 11 am-1 pm

Monday, May 26

Memorial Day, Ft. Rose-

crans 10:00 am

Sunday, June 1

Living History, Park

Saturday, June 14

Flag Day on the USS Mid-

way

Tuesday, June 17

History Discussion, Escon-

dido Library, 4:30 to 6:30

pm, To Be Announced

Friday, June 27

Board Meeting, 11 am-1 pm

Upcoming:

Friday, July 4

Independence Day at Old

Town San Diego SHP

President’s Message:

We have been busy and willcontinue being busy for the nextfew months. On April 24, we hada group of US Marines from Com-pany B, 1st Reconnaissance Bat-talion, visiting the battlefield.These soldiers are getting ready todeploy. We send them our bestwishes for safety out there.

Some of our upcoming events

include two school tour groups inMay and a senior bus group fromSan Luis Obispo. We will be help-ing at Fort Rosecrans on Monday,May 26 for Memorial Day by fir-ing the cannon and marking thegravesite of our own San Pasqualveterans. We will be at the SanDiego County Fair for their Kids’

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by Tom Vilicich

“Those Accursed Howitzers” from W. H. Emory’s Notes of a MilitaryReconnaissance, 1848, Ex. Doc. No. 41, 30th Congress, First Session

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BATTLELINES May/June 2014

Park Hours:

Saturday &

Sunday, 10 am

to 4 pm

(winter hours)

Park Phone

Number:

(760) 737-2201

weekends only or

(619) 220-5422

www.parks.ca.gov

www.spbva.org

SPBVA Info:

Tom Vilicich

(951) 674-0185 or

Trooper284@aol.com

School & Adult

Tours Contact:

Darlene Hansen

(760) 480-6320

BATTLELINES

Contributions

Deadline :

June 27, 2014

Contact editor,

Ellen Sweet,

ELSweet@gmail.com

Bob & Judy BowmanRonilee Clark & Brian ArnoldCliff & Royce CliffordDonald CoatesJake Enriquez Family

Greg HillMichael PiqueMelvin & Ellen SweetThomas M. Vilicich

Dragoon Level Members ($100 or more this year)

We Thank these Renewing MembersAlice Eckert, WestminsterWillis Hardy, San Juan CapistranoRichard Meyer, Oceanside

Belatedly, we note the passing oflongtime member Dee Staley of LakeElsinore. Our sincere condolences go

out to Dick Staley and his family.The Staleys have been members ofSPBVA since 1997.

In Memoriam

Day on June 24 and July 1. TheFourth of July brings us, once again,to Old Town San Diego to participateby firing the cannon. We’ll also be inOld Town for the Soldier and Citi-zens event during Stagecoach Dayson July 26. On Saturday, June 14we will be taking the cannon to theUSS Midway for Flag Day celebra-tions onboard and we will be firingthe cannon from the flight deck. Thisis a first for us! This ought to be dif-ferent and fun. And don’t forget ourmonthly History Discussions at theEscondido Public Library.

If you have not heard by now, thereare plans to remove Lt. Clyman’sdress uniform from our visitor centermuseum, along with the priest’s vest-ments, for preservation. The State hasa new archival warehouse in Sacra-mento and the San Diego Coast Dis-trict has a grant to take these items

and preserve them by what they callresting them. Being on display is notconsidered good for rare items. I be-lieve we are losing a real feather inour cap by losing these items. Onecannot help but think of the closingscene of the Indiana Jones and theRaiders of the Lost Ark movie wherethe ark is boxed up and moved into ahuge warehouse, never be seen again.We haven’t lost the items yet, but it iscoming. This means that we will havetwo empty display cases. While theState has grant money to take the uni-form, there is no money to replace theitems on display. The plan is to raisemoney for a reproduction of a dra-goon uniform, one that would havebeen worn in battle instead of a dressone like what we have now. The otherdisplay case would be used to displaya Californio outfit. A museum withno original artifacts! This will be asad day for me when it comes.

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President’s

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SPBVA 2014

BOARD

MEMBERS

Shirley Buskirk

Cliff Clifford

Royce Clifford

Donald Coates

Tom Cook

Jake Enriquez

Randall Hamud

Darlene Hansen

Ron Hinrichs

Gisela Koestner

Richard Meyer

Leroy Ross, Jr.

Stan Smith

Ellen Sweet

Tom Vilicich

Bob Wohl

President:

Tom Vilicich

Vice-President:

Don Coates

Treasurer:

Gisela Koestner

Recording Sec’y:

Ellen Sweet

Corporate Sec’y:

Ron Hinrichs

Mailing Address:

PO Box 300816

Escondido, CA 92030

BATTLELINES May/June 2014

First Sergeant’s Corner Submitted by Tom Vilicich

School of the Platoon,Mounted

To charge by platoon.569.—The charge will be practice

by file, by twos, fours, and sections,before the charge by platoon.

The troopers being instructed in in-dividual charge, No. 418, to charge byplatoon the instructor orders the sabreto be drawn. The platoon is com-manded by the assistant-instructor,that the instructor may be able tomove wherever he can best observethe faults.

The opposite line is marked out 200paces to the front, by two troopers, thedistance of the front of the platoonapart, and facing each other.

To commence the move, the assis-tant-instructor commands:

1. Platoon forward.2. Guide right (or left).3. MARCH.

When the platoon has marched 20paces, the assistant-instructor com-mands:

1. Trot.2. MARCH.

At 60 paces farther, he commands:1. Gallop.3. MARCH.

At 80 paces farther, he commands:CHARGE.

At this command, the troopers ofboth ranks take the position ofraisechargeLANCES, disengaged from the boot.)They give hand and lengthen the gal-lop, without losing control of theirhorses or disuniting.

When the platoon arrives at 20 pacesfrom the troopers who trace the newline, the assistant-instructor com-mands:

1. Attention.

2. Platoon.3. HALT.4. Right (or left5. FRONT.

At the command attention, thetroopers carry the sabre to the shoul-der. (Lancers, carry the lance.)

At the command platoon, they takethe trot.

At the command HALT, they stop.At the command right

they align themselves to the right.At the command FRONT, turn the

head to the front.

exercised at the charge with thegreatest care, without being requiredto repeat it too often.

The instructor requires the gallop tobe kept up; he sees that the trooperspreserve ease in the ranks; that theyhold a light hand, so that the horsesnot being constrained in theirmovements may not become toorestive. He observes that the trooperscarry the upper part of the body a littleforward, in order to aid the impulsion,remaining at the same time wellseated, which gives them a facility inconducting their horses and using thesabre; finally the rear rank keeps at itsproper distance. It is better, however,that the rear rank should have toomuch than too little room.

The instructor explains to thetroopers, that it is in keeping theirhorses in had, in causing them to feelfrom time to time the effect of the bit,in moving parallel to the flank files,and remianing always abreast of them,that the shock of the charge becomesthe greatest. Finally, the instructordirects the troopers not to change thegait before the command, and tolengthen the gallop only at thecommand CHARGE.

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BATTLELINES May/June 2014

[San Diego Union Editor’s Note: The followingnotes on San Diego in 1845 were prepared for usby Mr. Philip Crosthwaite, who was a resident ofthe Pueblo in that year, and who is one of threesurvivors of the American population of that time.]

[Battlelines Editor’s Note: Crosthwaite was a par-ticipant in the Battle of San Pasqual as a volunteerunder Archibald Gillespie. Crosthwaite’s wife wasa Lopez, so he was fighting against members of hiswife’s family. Paragraphs have been added to thearticle to make it more readable.]

San Diego, then called the Presidio, (garrison)though there were no soldiers then, was no morethan the adobe buildings now known as Old SanDiego. There was not a house between there andthe Punta Rancho, owned by Don Santiago Ar-guello. The Mission of San Diego, although partlydilapidated, the church and some of the buildingswere in good condition. A priest resided therenamed Padre Vicente, who came to the Presidio onSundays to celebrate Mass. The Mission, besidesits olive orchard and vineyard, owned some horses,cattle and sheep. Close to the Mission there was alarge Indian village.

The only business in this county was raising cat-tle for their hides and tallow; the hides were sold toCaptain Henry D. Fitch, who kept a general store(the only one) in San Diego, or delivered at thehide houses at the Playa. There were four of thesehide-curing warehouses belonging to differentships that were on the coast trading for and collect-ing hides. Each ship had its hide house, saltingvats, and gang of men at the Playa, curing, dryingand storing hides. The ships then on the coast werethe Admittance, Vandalia, California and Sterling.The hide houses were named after the ships towhich they belonged, viz: the Vandalia’s hidehouse, the California’s hide house, etc. Hides wereworth $2 in trade or $1.50 in cash; they were neverweighed, large and small being of the same value.

The ship Admittance, Captain Peterson, sailed forBoston in December, 1845, taking with him as pas-senger a Mrs. Stevens, wife of Captain Stevens,who remained in San Diego, she was the onlyAmerican woman at that time in California. Don

Pio Pico was Governor of California. Montereywas the capital. Los Angeles was known as ElPueblo. San Diego was governed by Prefect, Al-calde and Ayuntamiento. Don Santiago Arguello,Sr. being the Prefect, and Don Francisco Ma. Alva-rado, Alcalde. The Alcalde had very little to do, aslawsuits were unknown, and except now and thenan Indian being arrested as drunk and disorderly,there was no criminal business.

Sea otter were plentiful in the kelp along thecoast of Lower California and around the islands.There were two companies of otter hunters in SanDiego. They were usually fitted out for their huntsby Capt. Fitch. Each company had three canoesand during the spring and summer months huntedalong the coast, landing through the surf everynight at places known by them where there waswood and water for their camp. Prime otter skinswere worth $40 each and were sold to Capt. Fitch,who sent them to China where they were disposedof at a good profit. Sea elephants were very plenti-ful along the coast and islands of Lower California,until the whale ships heard of them, when theywere killed by thousands. Some ships filled upwith elephant oil in one season. They are nownearly extinct on the coast: either they were all de-stroyed or they have emigrated to some yet un-known region.

There were a great many foreigners, estranjerosas the native Californians called them, living inwhat is now San Diego county and Lower Califor-nia, several of whom were married to the nativewomen, viz: Capt. Joseph Snook, Capt. Stevens,Capt. John S. Barker, J.J. Warner, J.C. Stewart,Thos. Wrightington, Wm. Curley, Peter Wilder,Thos. Russell, C. Walker, John Brown, Wm. Wil-liams, Enos A. Wall, John Post, Albert B. Smithand an English carpenter known as “Chips.” Therewere two negroes living in Old San Diego, namedAllen B. Light and Richard Freeman. In LowerCalifornia there lived Thos. Warner, Julian Ames,Chas. Gage, Luther Gilbert, Geo. Hewitt, ThomasWhately, Robt. Patterson, Alex. Rollins and _____Hall. I believe they were all sea faring men with

(Continued on page 5)

San Diego in 1845 March 29, 1885

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San Diego in 1845

BATTLELINES May/June 2014

the exception of J.J. Warner, who, I have been told,came over the Rocky Mountains as a trapper.

When the war with Mexico began in 1846, andthe U.S. flag was hoisted in San Diego, every manjoined the American forces and enlisted as a volun-teer during the war. There was not one who wenton the Mexican side. Many of them were marriedand were opposed to and fought against the broth-ers and relatives of their wives. Of all the abovenamed, J.J. Warner, now living in Los Angeles,and John C. Stewart, in Old San Diego, are theonly survivors..

(Continued from page 4)

Our friends from Escondido Historical Center asked us to publish this “Save theDate” notice. Since Sunday, October 5 will also be San Pasqual’s Living History Day,

we suggest you try to attend both events.

Fourth Annual Adobe Home Tour in EscondidoSave the Date!

Sunday October 5, 2014 11am to 4 pm.Tour 5 beautiful adobe homes and gardens in Escondido.

Tickets are $25 in advance and $30 on the day of the event.Proceeds benefit the Escondido Historical Center, a non-profit organization.

For additional information or to be kept up to date on this event, please contact

info@adobehometour.com

San Diego in 1850

Philip Crosthwaite,whose remembranceswere recorded by theSan Diego Union.

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BATTLELINES May/June 2014

Panto of San Pasqual, March’s discussionThe Chief Panto history discussion relied heavily

on two articles written by California Department ofParks and Recreation historical archaeologistGlenn Farris. Ellen Sweet also provided documentsand materials that expanded the discussion, includ-ing her 2000 Battlelines article on Panto.

Mission records indicate that Panto was baptizedPedro Jose Panto Escarcar on January 11, 1817.His age was recorded as 14, approximating hisbirth year as 1803. Using this year as a benchmark,Panto would have been 32 when the Mexican gov-ernment officially established the San PasqualPueblo in 1835, age 43 at the time of the Battle ofSan Pasqual, and age 71 when he passed away in1874. Author Farris indicated that Panto wascapitán for 37 years. This would approximatePanto’s capitán status beginning around 1837. Thishappens to be the same year that Indians from SanPasqual tracked down renegade Indians that sackedRancho Jamul, an episode Panto was later creditedwith playing a large role in resolving.

Although census records indicate Panto could notread or write, other references describe Panto as anIndian “headman” respected by his own people, aswell as Mexicans, American, and other Indians inthe area as illustrated by his status as capitán of theMesa Grande Indian village. Panto was also knownfor having good relations with his neighbors andfor having desirable abilities. Notably in 1845, lo-cal ranchero Lorenzo Soto hired Panto to build adam (1,110 feet long and 13.5 feet wide). The dis-cussion also entertained the notion that it wasPanto who joined Lt. Edward Beale and Kit Carsonin their post battle nighttime trek from Mule Hill toSan Diego. Optimistically, due to his lifelongknowledge of the region and various possibleroute, Panto had technical advantages over othersto quickly and safely reach San Diego. Pensively,one might ask why a leader of Panto’s status wouldchoose to leave his village and people at such anunsure time; a question that will probably foreverremain unanswered.

After statehood and through the 1860s and 70s,Panto’s leadership status remained strong. Descrip-

tions of the San Pasqual Pueblo during these dec-ades show gradual increases in population, numberof dwellings, and scope of agriculture.

In 1868, Panto’s wife Dolores even recorded herown cattle brand. During this time period, Pantosteadily advocated for his people’s right to theirland, with encroachment from settlers becomingtheir main concern. Government staff even referredto him as “Panto Lion,” perhaps epitomizing howmost people viewed him. As the 1870s unfolded,Panto worked with Indian agents to protect hispeople’s claim to their San Pasqual land. Unfortu-nately, on April 27, 1874, Panto died after beingthrown from a horse.

Panto’s magnetism is poignantly illustrated bywhat happened after his death. In 1878, the Supe-rior Court of San Diego issued a writ to eject theIndians from San Pasqual. Many of his peoplewent to Mesa Grande. Others, including his daugh-ter Felicita, scattered into the hills north of the val-ley. With their respected leader gone, the Indiansof San Pasqual saw their homeland fall into thehands of others. In the end, Panto’s life was shapedby the same culture shock and inequities endured

(Continued on page 7)

History Discussions by Jake Enriquez and Ron Hinrichs

Brand of Dolores, wife ofPanto of San Pascual, Septem-ber 4, 1868, San Diego CountyBrand Book 1, page 174.

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BATTLELINES May/June 2014

SPBVA’sHISTORY DISCUSSIONS:

Catalinaled by Shirley Buskirk

Tues, June17 4:30—6:30 pm

To Be Announced

Please call Ron Hinrichs,760-746-8380 for information.

Escondido Public Library,239 S. Kalmia, 2nd floor conference room.

,

by Indians across the southwest, but throughPanto’s guidance the San Pasqual Pueblo stayedintact for an exceptional period of time and is ob-served as a positive example of California Indianresilience.

Bishop Thaddeus Amat, April’s discussionBishop Thaddeus Amat (1810-1878) was the sub-

ject of the April History Discussion led by RichardMeyer.

Born in Spain and ordained as a priest in Paris,Amat came to the United States in 1838 where heworked in the missions of Louisiana. Amat wasnamed to succeed Bishop Alemany of Montereywhen Alemany was promoted to Archbishop ofSan Francisco. Thaddeus Amat was consecratedBishop of Monterey in Rome in 1854.

By 1859, Amat was given permission to call him-self Bishop of Los Angeles with his residence inthat city. In southern California, he establishedmany churches and schools. He opened St. Vin-cent’s College and began the construction of a newcathedral, St. Vibiana. By the time of his death in1878, there were two colleges, six academies, nine

parochial schools, and five orphanages in his dio-cese.

In San Diego, Bishop Amat took part in the cen-tennial of the San Diego Mission on July 18, 1869and preached in English and Spanish at a Mass. Healso laid the cornerstone of the new Saint Joseph’sChurch, which was later relocated after the OldTown fire of 1872.

Bishop Thaddeus Amat was buried beneath thefloor of St. Vibiana. Years later in 1962, CardinalJames McIntyre had the body disinterred in orderto move it to a mausoleum at Calvary Cemetery inLos Angeles. Amazingly, the body appeared toshow little decay. (see Francis J. Weber’s “A FinalChapter on Bishop Amat” in Vincentian HeritageApril 1992.) The body was moved again andplaced in the mausoleum at the new Cathedral ofOur Lady of the Angels in downtown Los Angeles.

[Ron Hinrichs notes that his son’s Santa InezHigh School played basketball against BishopAmat Memorial High School.]

Another reference to Bishop Amat is Francis J.Weber’s California’s Reluctant Prelate: the Lifeand Times of Right Reverend Thaddeus Amat,C.M., 1964, Dawson Book Shop, Los Angeles..

(Continued from page 6)

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JOIN NOW! Our non-profit organization supports the activities of the San Pasqual Battlefield StateHistoric Park. All members receive BATTLELINES (email or regular mail), a 10% discount on allbookstore items, special programs, field trips, history discussions, and opportunities to participate in ourLiving History Sundays and in our annual December re-enactment of the Battle.

SAN PASQUAL BATTLEFIELD VOLUNTEER ASSOCIATION MEMBERSHIP APPLICATIONP.O. Box 300816, Escondido, CA 92030-0816

(760) 737-2201

This is my/our membership application & dues for the following category:

____Student ($5) ____ Sustaining ($50) ____Dragoon ($100 or more)

____Individual ($15) ____Organization ($25) ____Benefactor ($1,000 or more)

____Family ($20) ____Corporate ($100) Please make checks payable to: SPBVA

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ADDRESS ______________________________________________________________________________________________

CITY _______________________________________________________ STATE _______________ZIP _________________

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BATTLELINES May/June 2014

Off the Shelf... by Shirley Buskirk

Do you have a favorite book? Perhaps one youremember from your childhood that you sharedwith your kids?

The park aide left me a message. A man came intrying to find a child’s book about a rabbit’s life inSan Pasqual Valley. He bought it at the park yearsago and wanted to know where he could get acopy now.

It sounded familiar and after a few minutes thename “Finster” popped into my head. A quickGoogle search gave me Finsterhall of SanPasqual, on sale through Amazon.

I called the man and while we were talking, hefound it. “That’s it! “ he shouted, “thanks.” Ashort time later he called to say he had bought asigned first edition for himself and another copyfor his girls. He had lived in Highland Valley, at-tended San Pasqual School, and had been thinkingabout getting that book for ten years. He was soexcited he had to tell me. I’m glad he did.

So what does that have to do with the books wesell at the Battlefield? Nothing directly. But

maybe, just maybe, you could find a book on ourshelves that will become your child’s favoritebook.

Here are a few of our children’s books. DosCalifornios is the story of an 1818 pirate raid onthe California coast and how a young Californioand his old sea otter thwart the evil doers. The pi-rate, Hippolyte de Bouchard, was a real pirate andthe story is in both English and Spanish. ThePainted Rocks is about Indians who lived in theLake Hodges area--their history and how theylived. Great Indians of Cali-fornia is a collection of sto-ries that describe famousIndians and related histori-cal events.