Spanish California: 1769-1824

1770: Golden Age of Spanish Empire

Colonization of Alta California: 10 year project1769-?

• Why 1769?– Alta California never directly colonized

– Fear of competition—Russians, English

– Fear of independence

– Must Hispanisize the native population

Four Tiered Project:

• Presidios

• Missions

• Pueblos

• Ranchos

Colonial Project’s Goals1. Save souls through conversion to

Christianity

2. Create a ‘Gente de Razon’, Hispanisize native populations

3. Teach farming and agriculture

4. Eventually create private property from mission lands

5. Recruit some Spaniards--Rancheros

• 4 Presidios:– San Diego, Santa Barbara, Monterey, San Francisco

• 3 Pueblos: – Branciforte (Santa Cruz), Los Angeles, San Jose

• 22 Missions:– San Diego 1769 to Solano (Sonoma) 1823

• Ranchos:– Only 20 families until 1824

Drake’s Arrival

• Artist’s conception of Miwok Indians greeting Sir Francis Drake, 1579

Miwok Sunday Service, Mission Dolores (SF), 1816

• Missionization of CA Indians– Control of sex, gender roles– Agriculture– Demographic collapse– Spanish, Catholic Church rationalization

• Mission La Purisma near Lompoc, CA

Mission San Diego

San Gabriel Mission

San Gabriel Mission

Santa Barbara Mission

Santa Barbara Mission

California Mission Postcards: Carmel

Monterey

San Francisco

San Louis Obispo

Santa Cruz

• Pueblos1. Spanish on the ground—beginnings of a civil

society

2. Problematic Missions

3. Los Angeles Pueblo, 1781

4. Racial Diversity in Pueblos (esp LA)

Pueblo LA 1847

L.A. 1857

• Ranchos– Difficult to recruit Spanish

• Only 20 families from 1769-1824 get land grants• Nieto Family: Long Beach to Orange County• Dominguez Family: San Pedro, Palos Verdes (75,000

acres)

– Ideas of property ownership• Very casual• Culture of Honor; Romantic Image

– Rising tensions• Padres vs Rancheros

Dominguez Estate

Mexican Era: 1824-1848

• Independence: 1823-34

• Secularization: 1833-34

• Native Californians

• Golden Age of the Californio

Native Laborer on Rancho

The Romantic Californio

Californio

General Vallejo

Californio Map

Pio Pico and Family, ca 1850