Damian Bacich
Damian Bacich, Ph.D. writes about California and the West. He is also a professor, translator and historical researcher. You can learn more about Damian here.
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California in 1834: The Memoirs of Carlos N. Híjar
Carlos N. Híjar was eight years old when he came to California from Jalisco, Mexico, in 1834. Four decades later, he described his recollections of Mexican California to an interviewer working for historian Hubert Howe Bancroft. Bancroft was interested in collecting the oral testimonies of people who had lived through California’s Spanish and Mexican periods. This three-part series explores excerpts from Carlos’ memoirs to better understand life in Rancho Era California. Key points of Part 1: Key points of Part 2: Key points of Part 3:
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The Coast Miwok: People of the Northern California Coast (Part 2)
Read Part 1 here. First Encounters with Europeans Early Explorations The Coast Miwok people’s encounters with Europeans date back to the sixteenth century. In 1579, the English privateer Francis Drake made landfall along the northern California coast. There, he probably met Coast Miwok people. Portuguese explorer Sebastião Rodrigues Soromenho — also known as Sebastián Rodríguez Cermeño — surveyed the northern California coast for the Spanish crown in 1595-96. Historians believe he interacted with the Coast Miwok. Spanish Missions The Coast Miwok began to enter the Spanish missions as early as the 1770s at Mission San Francisco de Asís. Later, they entered San Rafael (founded in 1817) and San Francisco…
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The Coast Miwok: People of the Northern California Coast (Part 1)
The Coast Miwok are indigenous people of the area north of San Francisco Bay. Coast Miwok Territory The name “Coast Miwok” refers to the Native American communities who lived along the California coast north of the San Francisco Bay, in what is today Marin and parts of Sonoma Counties. The terrain of that area is made up of coastal beaches, bays, lagoons and marshes, as well as low hills and open valleys. Mount Tamalpais, the peak with the highest elevation, dominates the area. The Coast Miwok Language The Coast Miwok share a similar language with other Miwok groups, such as the Bay, Plains and Sierra Miwok. The name “Miwok” comes…
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Three Californianas You Should Know
The early history of California is made up of many remarkable women. Fortunately, some of them left behind stories that give us important glimpses into life in frontier times.
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Mission San Francisco Solano: 10 Interesting Facts
2023 marked the 200th anniversary of the founding of Mission San Francisco Solano. Nestled in the Valley of the Moon, in the heart of California’s wine country, the mission is an unmistakable landmark. The simple 2,400-square-foot church stands along Sonoma’s main square, across the street from the barracks that General Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo built to house the troops that protected Mexico’s northern frontier. The mission represents a rich history that includes native peoples, the area’s Spanish and Mexican heritage, the U.S. conquest of California and statehood. Below are ten interesting facts about Mission San Francisco Solano. The Final Link in the Chain Mission San Francisco Solano is the last and northernmost of…
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The Rise and Fall of Captain Folsom
During his short life, William Alexander Leidesdorff accumulated great wealth. Yet, what happened to his wealth after he died is a story in itself. The Aftermath of Leidesdorff’s Death In addition to his riches, Leidesdorff left many debts. Many of those were a result of his financing of businesses and other ventures like Fremont’s expeditions. According to Sue Bailey Thurman, author of Pioneers of Negro Origin in California, at the time of his death, Leidesdorff’ ‘s property was saddled with $50,000 in debts. In today’s money that is almost $2 million. The discovery of gold in 1848, the same year he died increased Leidesdorff’s property’s value immensely. Soon his estate…
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San Francisco’s Overlooked Pioneer: William Alexander Leidesdorff
Although little known today, the name of William Alexander Leidesdorff is enshrined on streets in San Francisco and a town along the American River. He was also one of California’s pioneers of African descent and instrumental in bringing about the American annexation of California.
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The Luiseño of Southern California
The Luiseño people are an indigenous group of coastal Southern California with a unique language and culture. The introduction of the mission introduced major changes into Luiseño life, including a new religion (Christianity) and the adoption of the farming and ranching lifestyle. Since its founding, the mission was supervised by Fr. Antonio Peyrí. Fr. Peyrí remained at San Luis Rey until it was secularized in the 1830s. At that time, he returned to Europe accompanied by two young Luiseño men, Pablo Tac and Agapito Amamix. Both Pablo and Agapito went to Rome to train for the Catholic priesthood. While in Rome, Pablo wrote a history and grammar of the Luiseño…
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Routes to Mexican California
In the early decades of the nineteenth century, growing numbers of people came to Alta California. The routes they took and the lives they established changed the history of the region. Immigration by Sea After independence from Spain, the Mexican government relaxed trade and immigration rules. In the 1820s and 1830s, small numbers of English-speaking merchants and sailors began to come to Alta California, mostly by ship. Many of them married local Hispanic women and started families. They joined the Catholic Church and their children grew up speaking Spanish. James Alexander Forbes, who was born in Scotland, came to Santa Clara in 1829. He married María Ana Galindo, the daughter…
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The Legend of Chief Solano
“He was of gigantic stature, standing six feet seven inches–without his stockings, for he had none. And he was large all over in proportion, with the strength of several men. His name by baptism was Francisco Solano, and by that name he was best known.” – Platon Vallejo Joining the Mission When young Sina was baptized at Mission Dolores in 1810, he received the name Francisco Solano. Sina probably didn’t know much about his patron saint, a Franciscan missionary in 17th-century Peru, and he likely didn’t know that someday people would call him “Chief Solano.” Sina/Francisco Solano was born a member of the Suisun people. The Suisun were a Patwin-speaking…
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Todavía Estamos Aquí (We are Still Here)
246 years ago a group of some two hundred people arrived at the Presidio of San Francisco after an arduous trek from Tubac in what is today southern Arizona.
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How We Almost Lost El Camino Real (and the Women Who Saved It)
Imagine California with no landmarks from before 1848, no structures dating to the Spanish and Mexican periods. How different might the state be?
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“The Americanos Played for Keeps”
In his memoirs about life in rancho era California, José Jesús López describes how his father joined the "California Army."
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Bad for the Lungs but Wonderful for Memories
If doors and windows were primitive in Californio homes, you can also imagine that furniture was not much better.
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Life in Rancho Era Los Angeles: Hardships and Joys
José Jesús López grew up in the Pueblo of Los Angeles in the 1850s, in the neighborhood of *El Paredón Blanco* (today's Boyle Heights).
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The Forgotten Lives of a California Adobe
Preserving historical landmarks means more than just saving old buildings. It often means preserving the link to the lives lived there.
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Tiburcio Vásquez and Vaquero Vengeance
Shortly after the end of the Mexican-American War, William Rich Hutton recalled visiting Doña Angustias de la Guerra Jimeno in Monterey...
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The Castaway of Whalers Cove
After coming to Mexican California in 1822 on a whaling ship, Englishman William Richardson decided to stay.
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The Bear Flag Revolt: California’s Insurgency
The Bear Flag Revolt is one of the central episodes in the events leading to the U.S. annexation of California.
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Juan Bautista de Anza: Son of the Frontier
Juan Bautista de Anza was a military officer, governor, explorer and diplomat. His life had an enormous impact on the history of California, Arizona, Texas and New Mexico, as well as Northern Mexico.
