[Granville-Hough] 13 Jun 2009 - SAR Presentation

[Trustees for Granville W. Hough]

Date: Sat, 13 Jun 2009 05:50:14 -0700
From: Granville W Hough <gwhough at oakapple.net>
Subject: SAR Presentation (2004) 13 June 2009

This answers
California-focused questions about why we should accept descendants of 
Spanish soldierd into the Sons of the American Revolution.  Granville.

     HISPANIC SOLDIERS AND SAILORS OF THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR

1. Why are we interested?

Spain declared war on England 21 June 1779 and continued operations
against England until peace was declared 3 Sep 1783.  Spain had
supported the Colonies all along, but after 1779, she was our active
co-belligerent and ally.

In California, King Carlos III urged his soldiers and sailors to attack
the English wherever they were found.  The Spanish authorities in Mexico
reinforced Alta California, establishing a new Presidio at Santa
Barbara, a second pueblo at Los Angeles, and a ninth mission at
Ventura.  They sent two frigates to Nootka Sound to capture Capt James
Cook.  They established two new missions on the Colorado and Gila Rivers
as a way station to California from Arizona and Sonora.  They were
specifically worried about the English (and Russians) taking over the
western coast, all of which they considered to be Alta California.

The Spanish governor of Louisiana, Captain Bernardo de GÈílvez, answered
the call by mobilizing the militias of the parishes of Louisiana and
attacking the British forts of West Florida on the Mississippi River.
By the end of the war, he
had secured Louisiana, captured West Florida, and was preparing to take
Jamaica.  He thus regained for Spain the land Spain had been forced to
give England in 1763 to get back their cities of Havana and Manila,
which the English had captured.

2. How have patriotic societies responded?

The National Societies of the DAR and SAR, have long understood the
contributions of the Spanish forces from Louisiana under GÈílvez, and
descendants of soldiers there have joined those societies since 1925.
Early in
1997, a delegation from the National Society, SAR, went to Spain to
commemorate the assistance of the Spanish in establishing the United
States.  They recognized King Carlos and Governor GÈílvez.  However, no
descendants from the soldiers on the west coast have been recognized.
We have simply not read our history, and we have not analyzed the
detailed records kept by the Spanish authorities.  We did not know how
aware the Californians were of the war with England, and that each
person in Alta California was asked to  contribute to it.  We did not
know that records show that each soldier contributed 2 pesos, (about a
weekÃÆs pay) to the defray expenses of the war with England.  Now, that
means every soldier both served and contributed.

3. Where did the solders serve between 1779 and 1783?

Four Presidios (forts) at San Diego, Santa Barbara, Monterey, and San
Francisco.  (fighting Indians, training, building, guarding, escort
duty, dispatch duty, hunting, etc)

Two pueblos at San Jose and Los Angeles. (guards, police, and record
keepers)

Nine missions at San Diego, Carmel, Jolon, San Gabriel, San Luis Obispo,
San Francisco, San Juan Capistrano, Santa Clara, and Ventura. (guards,
police, and instructors.)

Escorting the Pobladores/Settlers of Los Angeles across the desert from
Yuma to San Gabriel.

Two mission settlements destroyed on the Colorado and Gila Rivers
(settlers and soldier guards).

With Captain RiveraÃÆs Command when it was massacred by the Yumas at the
same time the two missions were destroyed.

With Governor Pedro Fages in retaliating against the Yumas in 1781.

With Pedro Fages crossing the desert in 1782 to establish the
Santa Barbara Presidio.

4. What kinds of soldiers were they?

The California soldiers were light cavalry, said to be among the best in
the world.  They enlisted for 10 year periods.  The core was from the
First Free Company of Catalonia, called the Catalan Bluecoats, from the
color of their uniforms.  Others were from Mexico and were called
(soldados de cuero) "ÃôLeather Jackets,"Ãö from the fact they wore vests of
5 layers of deerskin or leather for protection against arrows.  They all
fought well, and I have seen no record that one ever surrendered in CA.
Before 1774, the leather jackets from Mexico did go AWOL to see their
families, but most returned to their units.  They were encouraged to
marry and were provided living quarters within the Presidios.  Their
armament was the lance and shield, a sword, and a trabuco, or cavalry
musket.  The Presidios did have cannon for use against sea attack, but
they were never used.  The ranks in the Spanish Army, as seen in CA,
were private, Corporal, Sergeant, Ensign, Lieutenant, Captain, and
Lieutenant Colonel.

5. When did the soldiers come to Alta California?

This is a significant question because some soldiers stayed in
California after each expedition or settlement effort, but others
transferred back to Mexico.  The different efforts follow:

PortolaÃÆs Expedition of 1769/1770.  Established San Diego and Monterey
Presidios and San Diego and Carmel Missions.

RiveraÃÆs 1774 Expedition to bring families and replacements.

De AnzaÃÆs two expeditions, 1775-76 to explore a desert crossing, and
1776-77 to bring the settlers, and soldiers, and livestock  to establish
San Francisco Presidio, San Jose pueblo, and missions near San Francisco
Bay.

Capt RiveraÃÆs 1781 expedition to bring soldiers, settlers, and livestock
to establish Santa Barbara Presidio, Los Angeles pueblo, and San
Bueneventura Mission.

Lt Col Pedro Fages last trip across the desert in 1782.

6. PortolaÃÆs 1769/1770 Expedition

>From Baja, 3 ships, 2 land parties, to establish San Diego and
Monterey.  350 started. We have names of 169 who survived.  The ships
got separated and one was lost with all aboard.  One got into San Diego
harbor and waited and waited for the other ship and the land parties.
The second ship came with a sick crew from scurvy and malnutrition.
Half died.  The surgeon went mad.  Finally the land parties arrived,
also out of food.  All awaited a supply ship which finally arrived.
Then Portola was ready to move north to find Monterey.  One ship was
sent back for supplies with all surviving sailors, and the other was
left with two soldier guards.

Portola moved north along old CA Highway 1, now partly 101.  Portola
searched for Monterey Bay as described in sightings from the sea.  He
could not recognize it, but got to San Francisco Bay, discovered by Sgt
Ortega.  Portola ran out of food and returned to San Diego, forced
finally to eat his own supply mules.

He built a makeshift Presidio and mission at San Diego, then moved north
again in 1770 to find Monterey.  This time he was successful by taking
latitude readings.  He left Lt Pedro Fages to build the Presidio at
Monterrey and the mission at Carmel and went back to Mexico.

7. Rivers, Earthquakes, Indians, Camacho

As PortolaÃÆs party moved north, they were the first land party from
Mexico to set foot on Alta California.  (Francis Drake had first claimed
the whole western coast for England in 1579 as Nova Albion.  Spanish sea
parties had later landed briefly and explored some bays.  They had
mainly coasted along the shores and mapped the land as far as they could
see inland.  Portola had to stay fairly close to shore or he was lost.)
His party camped on the Santa Ana River and experienced a bone-rattling
earthquake.  They found the Indians to be peaceable and self-sufficient
on game and nuts and roots.  Along the coast, the Indians were fishermen
who built strong boats.  La Carpenteria was named for the boat
construction they found there.  The Indian villages fed them fish and
put on dances. As they went north along the Indian towns, the leaders
and chiefs would party and dance at night; but the soldiers were getting
acquainted with the Indian women. They ate well until they entered the
mountains north of Santa Barbara.  Then game was more scarce and the
going was rough.  They struggled through to beaches, but they could see
no potential harbor.  They went on and did discover San Francisco Bay.
Then they began to run out of food.

When they got back through the mountains from the unsuccessful search
for Monterey, starved and disappointed, they again got food and
recovered; but the Indian men were not as friendly.  They were surprised
to find all the Indian women asking for Camacho! Camacho!  It took a
while to understand.  What had happened was that the Indian women had
compared experiences after the expedition had gone north and had
concluded that Camacho was the best lover.  They all wanted to go down
to the beach with Camacho.  When the other soldiers finally got on to
it, and the Indian women called for Camacho, they all raised their
hands, SI, CAMACHO!!.

  Back in San Diego, they studied their notes and found they had been in
Monterey, but had not recognized it.  In 1770, Portola went back and
located a Presidio, and Father Serra located the mission at Carmel.

8. Building Monterey and the missions.

Lt Pedro Fages was left to build the Presidio at Monterey and the
mission at Carmel.  He was a diligent and authoritarian Spaniard who
must have been the original time and motion man.  He knew exactly how
many logs each soldier could move and install in one day and he set 50
logs as a quota.  He also had times for all other tasks.  The supply
ship did not arrive and they ran out of food, but there was a food
source.  The grizzly bears of the area had long feasted on the Indians
and had lost their fear of humans.  Each had a name and was well known.
Fages personally hunted down all the grizzly bears in the area and dried
the meat, which he rationed out to his men.  He used the hides for
leather to secure the walls and logs of the presidio.  He wasted
nothing.  He continued to hunt and explore and exploit his soldiers
until his own Catalonian men filed complaints against him, both in and
out of Army channels.  He and his Catalonians were reassigned back to
Mexico in 1774, and Captain Rivera was left in charge of Alta
California.

Six members of FagesÃÆ command did not go back to Mexico, as they had
married Indian Christian neophytes.  They had been promised that they
could stay in California and retire with land grants if they married
natives.  They were Jose Antonio Yorba, Manuel Butron, Domingo Arus,
Francisco Cayuelas, Antonio Montana, and Geronimo Bulferic.

9. Wives, at last.

The settlement of CA had hung in the balance until 1774, when Capt
Rivera made an expedition to Baja to collect all the soldier families
and to recruit replacements.  Then he returned to CA and continued to
build missions.  The wives settled in with their soldier husbands in the
presidios or at the missions.  This period was marred by the rebellion
of the San Diego Indians and destruction of the Mission there.

10.  Anza and the land passage.

  De Anza believed a way could be found over the California desert from
the Mexican frontier settlements in Arizona and Sonora.  In 1775, he set
out and found a way, down the Gila River to the Colorado, then along the
base of the mountains into Mexico, then up the eastern slopes of the
mountains through the Anza/Borrego desert to Coyote Creek Canyon, then
through the Canyon to Anza Valley, to Hemet, to Riverside, and on to San
Gabriel.  It was dry, dry, and hot, hot; but there were water holes if
you knew where to find them.  After he reported it could be done, he was
told to recruit settlers, soldiers, and move livestock along this trail
to the San Francisco Bay, which had been explored in 1775.

He went back to Sonora and Arizona and got the soldiers and the
livestock, but he had to promise 5 years pay and allowances to get any
families interested in moving.  He started with about 20 families in
late 1776.  This time it was dry and cold, cold; but he was able to
bring 242 people through to establish San Francisco Presidio, San Jose
Pueblo, and Mission Santa Clara and Mission Delores.  He doubled the
population of livestock and California Spanish-speaking people.

11.  The Yumas

To secure the critical area at the Colorado and Gila Rivers, Anza
recommended a Presidio be established with missions for the Yumas and
Pimas.  Two were established in 1780.  They were combination missions,
pueblos, and presidios.

  Captain Rivera was sent to get more soldiers, livestock, and settlers
in Sinaloa and Sonora, which he did in the spring of 1781.  He was a
good recruiter and was able to get about 15 farm families with only two
years guaranteed pay and support. He moved them to Yuma, then sent the
settlers across the desert with a soldier escort first.  They arrived in
San Gabriel in July 1781, then later established Los Angeles.  Captain
Rivera then sent a group of soldiers on to establish the Presidio at
Santa Barbara It arrived at San Gabriel in August 1781.  While he was
preparing to leave with the livestock and remainder of the contingent,
he allowed the livestock to fatten up on the Yuma mesquite and bean
fields.  The Yumas rose up in rebellion and wiped out the missions,
settlements, and Captain RiveraÃÆs men.  At least 30 were killed,
possibly 100.  Over 70 women and children were captured and later
ransomed.  Now, about Captain Rivera.  He was 70 years old when the
Indians killed him.  He had served all his life in the Spanish Army as a
Mexican mestizo.  He was passed over for promotion many times by those
born in Spain.  He came to hate them all, the so-called peninsulares.

12. The Los Angeles Pueblo.

Eight families finally got to the site of Los Angeles in late 1781,
though they formally received their lots some time later.  The only person
who could read and write with the pueblo was Corporal Vicente Feliz.
When he retired, he received Rancho Los Feliz, north of the pueblo.  His
ranch includes what is now Griffith Park, which includes the Los Angeles
Zoo and Gene AutryÃÆs museum.  In this museum are the abstracts of
service records of all Spanish soldiers who served in CA from 1769
through the Independence of Mexico.  It took one person three months of
work at the Archives of the Indies in Seville to copy those records.

13.  Pedro Fages Becomes Governor

Capt Pedro Fages was called on to punish the Yumas and reopen the way to
California.  He lead an expedition against them in 1781, recovered the
bones of victims, killed a few Yumas, and ransomed the women and
children; but he never was able to induce the Yumas into fighting
anything more than a skirmish.

He went back to Sinaloa and received his commission to become governor
of Alta California.  In early 1782, he gathered 38 soldiers and set out
across the Sonoran desert to Yuma.  There he marched through the Yuma
nation ready to be attacked.  He then tried a new route to California.
He marched north along the West side of the Colorado, then through the
sand dunes into the depression south of where the Salton Sea is now
located.  The water there collected in sandy depressions, which you
could get to by digging out the sand and collecting water in
containers.  They had to water each animal out of the same pots and pans
they used for cooking.  So, Pedro Fages, being himself, had every animal
taken care of before anyone else could rest.  The water was so brackish
that the animals took it with great reluctance.  After they would take
no more, the men were able to use the same utensils to cook some food
for themselves.

  They got across this desert, then followed the path taken by de Anza
through Coyote Canyon, then on to San Gabriel.  They arrived at San
Gabriel with every soldier they started with, and every animal, less one
mule that died at Agua Caliente.  The soldiers were among those who
established Santa Barbara Presidio and reinforced other presidios.  This
1782 trip was the last use of the land route across the desert for many
years.  By default, the Spanish let the Yumas have the Colorado crossing
and all the land near it.

14.  California takes off.

With the war over in Europe in 1783, Spain made only one more effort to
establish a pueblo, that at Brancheforte.  It was not successful.  The
mission building continued until there were 21 in all.  California
became self-sustaining.  Bitter hardships were soon forgotten.  As soon
as soldiers began to retire, they got their land grants and developed a
new way of life and a new approach to colonizing.  They made
California.  They held it in trust (unwittingly) for future generations
of Americans.

But what is different between those who served under GÈílvez and those
who served under Fages and Rivera?  They took orders from the same King
and fought where they were needed.  They were part of the same effort to
protect the Spanish domain from English forces.  In fact, the California
veterans were not militia called up for a one-time effort.  They were
full time soldier-settlers called on by Spain to fortify a remote area
threatened by English claims and encroachment.  The South Coast Chapter,
SAR, believes they deserve recognition, and is willing to take the lead
in bringing descendants into full membership of our organization.

Presentation, Hough, to South Coast Chapter, 2004. The NSSAR now accepts
descendants of Spanish soldiers.