February 27, 2025 • 34 mins
Tales of Mexican California: Antonio Coronel's Memoirs - Part 2
To hear Part 1, go to Episode 065.
In this episode of the California Frontier Podcast, Damian Bacich continues exploring the memoirs of Antonio Franco Coronel. Coronel's account provides a riveting look into his experiences as a Superior Court Judge in Mexican California during the 1840s, a time marked by political instability and frequent criminal conduct by soldiers.
The memoir sheds light on key historical moments, including the failed colonization efforts, the uprising against Governor Manuel Micheltorena, and the early signs of American annexation. Coronel's detailed recounting of robberies and kidnappings from New Mexico and his interactions with notable figures like Pio Pico, Jose Castro, and John Sutter offer valuable insights into a tumultuous period in California history.
00:00 Introduction to Antonio Franco Coronel's Memoirs
00:21 Arrival and Early Challenges in Alta California
01:36 Political Instability and New Governance
03:34 The Crimes of the Permanent California Battalion
05:25 The Great Robbery at Don Vicente Sanchez's House
12:13 Banditry and Contraband on the Old Spanish Trail
13:18 The Case of the Stolen Turkeys
20:52 Rebellion Against Governor Micheltorena
25:17 Failed Negotiations and Micheltorena's Dilemma
30:16 Conclusion and Reflections on Coronel's Memoirs
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Yeah.
Damian Bacich's video recor (00:05):
I'm Damian Basich, host of the
California Frontier Podcast, andon this episode I'm going to
bring you some more of thememoirs of Antonio Franco
Coronel, entitled Tales ofMexican California.
Now, as you might recall,Coronel arrived in California in
(00:26):
the 1830s as part of acolonizing expedition sent from
Mexico.
In fact, he arrived in 1834, tobe precise.
And if you haven't, I recommendyou go back and listen to
episode 65, Tales of MexicanCalifornia, part one, where
you'll hear about Antonio'sorigin story and how he and his
(00:49):
family arrived in AltaCalifornia from Mexico.
Now, they came with what wascalled the Ijar Padres
Expedition, and it was meant toestablish a new pueblo in Alta
California, which wouldbasically become its
administrative capital, and itsmembers would become the ruling
(01:09):
class of the territory.
They were, however, rejected bythe local population, and the
plan was eventually disbanded.
The town was never founded.
and its members were eventuallyabsorbed into the local
population.
Antonio, after a while, moved toLos Angeles, and when we pick up
(01:32):
here, he's working as a superiorcourt judge.
Now, over the previous years,Mexican Alta California had
experienced a degree ofinstability with locally born
officials moving from state tostate.
actually rebelling against someof the governors sent from
Mexico City to administer theterritory.
(01:53):
Now in 1842, due to constantbickering between political
factions in Alta California, theMexican government again sent a
governor, but this time he was ageneral, an army general, a real
button up guy named ManuelMichel Torrena.
And he was accompanied by agroup of 800 soldiers known as
(02:16):
the Permanent CaliforniaBattalion.
And it was said that they weremostly convicts, right?
At least among the localpopulation said that.
Now the soldiers basically livedup to their reputation, and
their criminality wound uppushing again the population to
(02:39):
support.
throwing off this new governor.
So when we listen to, uh,Antonio's memoirs here, we're
going to hear about this, thebeginnings of this uprising and
the problems that itrepresented.
And we're also basically goingto be brought up to the eve of
(03:06):
US, uh, annexation ofCalifornia, almost.
And we're going to hear howNichel Turena, who was the last
governor sent from Mexico torule over California,
eventually, uh, goes down thepath of, of himself being
(03:27):
expelled from the territory.
We're going to pick up here in1842.
Antonio says, As Superior CourtJudge, I was kept busy with
constant robberies committed bythe Permanent Battalion of
California, which I justmentioned.
If I told about all their crimesin detail, I'd never be done.
(03:52):
So I will only relate a few ofthe most interesting cases.
One night, when there was a ballat Don Vicente Sanchez's house,
which is no longer standing, nowremember he, he wrote down these
memoirs or dictated them in the1870s, I stationed a guard of
(04:13):
twelve soldiers in what I hadrequested from Michel Turena,
since that was the only way tokeep order in those times.
There was a great crowd at thedance.
And this is a dance that theyhad organized in order to
welcome the new governor.
In high spirits, most of theprincipal people of the town
(04:34):
were there.
We entered on the ground floor.
The guard was posted next to thebedroom of the lady of the
house, who happened to be there.
In the room were eight or tentrunks full of the lady's
clothes and ornaments.
At that time, it was not unusualto have wardrobes.
(04:55):
The common custom was to keep,Oh, excuse me.
At that time, it was not usualto have wardrobes.
The common custom was to keepthings in Chinese trunks.
And this is also veryinteresting because it points to
the fact that trade with the farEast was an important factor in
(05:17):
California at that time.
Chinese trunks means trunks fromChina or the Philippines.
At about four in the morning,Senor Sanchez came down to his
wife's room a little while afterthe guard was dismissed.
Immediately he noticed that onetrunk containing money Jewelry
(05:38):
and valuable clothing wasmissing.
He ran back upstairs, and heinformed me.
I immediately went down to takeappropriate measures.
I ordered the streets closedoff, so no one could leave until
dawn.
There was an Indian villagenearby, and I had the chiefs
(06:01):
keep it closed up too.
so I could examine the tracks ortraces and find out which
direction the trunk had beentaken.
Daylight came, and between theIndians and practiced
Californians, the tracks of thefour of Michel Torrena's booted
soldiers were discovered.
(06:23):
With my men, I followed thetrail along an alley between two
walled gardens some eighthundred or a thousand yards.
where we found the broken andemptied trunk.
The footprints showed they hadsplit up the loot there.
I followed the clearest trailacross an orchard on what is now
(06:47):
Main Street, and back then wasthe only street in that part of
the city.
I went towards the hills to thewest of the populated area,
following a creek in the socalled Ditch of the Kings.
About halfway up it, I foundsome of the loot buried in the
(07:08):
bank and suspected there wasmore nearby, which turned out to
be the case.
I went on searching and foundsome more things buried under
the stones in the Abila Brook.
All I found were clothes, nojewels nor money.
(07:28):
And here I want to stop theDitch of the Kings, which I
imagine was Zanja de los Reyesand Avila Brook.
If somebody's familiar with, uh,L.
A.
geography or nomenclature, it'dbe interesting to know if those
two place names, uh, still existor what they referred to.
(07:48):
Back to the text.
Now, it remained for me todetermine the culprits.
I continued my investigationwith the exactitude required by
the judicial practice of thattime and discovered the guilty
parties.
Michel Torreina permitted me tosupersede military privilege in
(08:08):
making a case against them andpresenting it to him.
Michel Torreina was convinced oftheir guilt in spite of their
experience in defendingthemselves against criminal
charges.
and sentenced them to theterrible punishment of lashes
and prison.
(08:29):
The leader of the criminals hadbeen in attendance to the
general the night of therobbery.
They all suffered the lashes andprison term, but they never
revealed what became of thejewels and money.
The jewels were well knownbecause so few people lived in
the country.
(08:50):
And fewer still had jewelry.
It would have been verydifficult to dispose of them
without being caught.
However, they never did turn up.
A little Paiute Indian girl.
And here I'm, I suppose he'sreferring to Paiute Indians, uh,
(09:10):
in that extend, you know, in theGreat Basin.
Into Utah, a little PaiuteIndian girl who had been raised
as a daughter in the Sanchez'shousehold gave the information
leading to the capture of theprincipal thief.
Sanchez had bought her from someNew Mexicans in exchange for
(09:34):
some animals.
It should be noted that althoughit was forbidden by law, At that
time, the buying of Indians fromNew Mexico was tolerated in view
of the great benefits to theIndians.
They were educated and treatedas members of the family.
(09:55):
And here he's mentioningsomething which, which was very
true that along the Santa FeTrail from New Mexico, excuse
me, the Old Spanish Trail.
from New Mexico into L.
A.
and further up, you had partiesof people who were basically
(10:19):
trafficking in Indian children.
And he mentions here this girlwho had been bought and was
raised as a family member in theSanchez household.
So, like I said, this happened alot, and it's not clear, right?
I'm sure that some of thefamilies, uh, raised them, uh,
(10:43):
in all charity and like theirown children, and I'm sure that,
that some of these children weredefinitely exploited.
So, as he mentions, this wasillegal, in effect.
Slavery of indigenous people wasillegal in the Spanish Empire
back to the 1600s.
(11:04):
Um, so anyway, a part ofCalifornia history that we need
to be aware of.
So going on.
At that time, and before andafter it, bands of New Mexicans
came with loads of goods toexchange for broodmares, horses,
and mules.
On each trip, they took back oneor two thousand head.
(11:28):
Occasionally, they came asthieves and stole immense herds.
One of these great robberiesoccurred in the time of General
Figueroa, so that would havebeen between 1833 and 1840, I
believe.
And the last big one I heard wasthe work of a Frenchman or
(11:49):
Canadian called Charlie Foe.
who got away with something like2, 000 horses and mules between
1844 and 1845 during the warwith Michel Torrena.
Armed men from Los Angelespursued them, but the thieves
outnumbered and outgunned theAngelinos, who returned
(12:11):
disappointed.
So this points to an issue thatwas taking place at that time of
banditry, contraband, raidsalong this so called Old Spanish
Trail between Los Angeles andSanta Fe.
(12:33):
Right?
And it's something thatcontinued very much into, uh,
the 1840s.
Another curious episode, andhere I'm quoting, uh, Coronel
again, about Michel Torrena'smestizos.
And that was one of the thingsthat was also mentioned is that
they were, uh, Michel Torrena'ssoldiers were all, uh, mestizos,
(12:55):
uh, mixed ethnicity.
Which I think was used in thiscase as a, um, pejorative, even
though most of the population ofCalifornia at that time were
also, uh, mixed race, mixedethnicity.
So, another curious episodeabout them.
(13:18):
Don Manuel Requena sent word tome that some turkeys had been
stolen from his poultry yard.
And he had been told it was oneof the soldiers who took them.
An Indian woman described thethief and when she was taken to
the barracks, identified him.
(13:39):
But before that, I had asked theofficer on duty if a soldier
hadn't come in with somedomestic fouls.
He said no.
The only thing any soldier hadbrought into the barracks was a
violin.
When the thief was identified,the officer demanded why he had
(14:01):
said it was a violin he hadunder his arm in the bundle.
The soldier answered, Sir,that's what we call young
turkeys.
Asked what happened to theturkey, he said, Well, didn't
you get some chili from mywoman?
You ate it up, and so did we.
(14:23):
Damian.
He claimed he hadn't stolen theturkey.
He had only used a bit of brokenneedle to tie kernels of corn to
a piece of string.
For amusement, passing Requeña'shouse, he had thrown the string
and the corn over the wall tosee if it would catch a crow or
(14:44):
something like that.
He felt a tug on the line andreeled it in with some
difficulty, afraid it wouldbreak.
And he saw that he had caught aturkey polt, a young turkey.
He decided it was his by right,and wrapped it up in his sarape.
(15:08):
The officer told him that wastheft, and he answered the theft
was when you took somethingagainst the wishes of the owner,
but the turkey had come to himout of its own free will.
This argument didn't save himfrom the whipping the officer
commanded.
(15:29):
There you go.
Uh, the lash, which was a commonpunishment, not just in Alta,
California, but in all of 19thcentury society.
In fact, if you If you read, um,Richard Henry Dana's Two Years
Before the Mast, he has a very,uh, graphic account of a sailor
(15:55):
who, uh, receives a bunch oflashes, whipping for an offense
that he committed on board theship.
So, back to Corona.
Those soldiers stole so often Iwas in perpetual motion.
I must say, General MichelTurena was aware his men were a
(16:17):
bad lot, and didn't toleratesuch behavior.
Both as civil governor andmilitary commander, he fully
supported whatever measures Iwanted to take to preserve
order, and he dealt out severepunishment to anyone found
guilty of a crime.
(16:39):
The General, in privateconversations with me, lamented
his precarious situation.
Abandoned by the centralgovernment, struggling with the
depravity of the troops givenhim.
He was aware that their conductreflected unfavorably on
himself, in spite of his earnestdesire to win the esteem of the
(17:02):
Californians by good government.
At the end of 1843, MichelTorrena marched north with most
of his troops and all of hisofficers, but two or three.
During the long stay in LosAngeles, Captain José María
Flores, who comes into thishistory later, married the
(17:26):
daughter of Colonel AgustínVicente Zamorano, and Ensign
Garfías married Luisa Ávila.
On the journey to Monterey,Michel Torrena had to depend
entirely on the charity ofprivate citizens and a few
missions that still had thewherewithal.
(17:50):
One of his first acts of economywas to suppress the prefectures
and the sub prefectures and thesuperior courts.
I don't remember what happenedin that part of the territory
during the rest of his term.
The same complaints we had hereabout the permanent battalion of
California's transgressionsbecame a pretext for the
(18:13):
rebellion in Monterey.
The principal citizens reallywanted to control and benefit
from the territorial income inthe form of salaries.
So it was the, the principalleaders of the, of the
population there.
that led the uprising againsthim.
(18:34):
And in particular, we're talkingJuan Bautista Alvarado, who
would, who had been governor,would become governor of
California again, and JoseCastro, who would be the
military commander in, uh,Mexican California.
Since before the revolt, andhere I return, since before the
(18:57):
revolt, the general hadrecognized The grave danger of
invasion by the Americans.
And in consequence, he set aboutorganizing militias according to
the law.
He sent captain Andres Pico toLos Angeles with the rank of
battalion commander to work withthe civil authorities in forming
(19:21):
an auxiliary militia.
So they're already concernedabout American designs on Alta,
California.
The justices of the peaceordered the enrollment of
recruits and tried to persuadethe citizens to cooperate
voluntarily.
But there was resistance,particularly from a group headed
(19:44):
by Hilario Barela and others,even armed defiance.
So the militia was never formed.
So there was no California widemilitia.
To resist against a U.
S.
(20:04):
invasion when it came ultimatelyin 1846.
Things stayed in this sorrystate for some time, during
which Don Joaquin de la Torreappeared one night.
with a small band to surprisethe guard at the house of the
parish priest, which wasLieutenant Medina's temporary
(20:27):
headquarters.
Although surprised andoutnumbered, the guard fought
back, losing one man butwounding De La Torre in the leg.
The rebels took the house Andarrested the mayor, Don Vicente
Sanchez.
(20:47):
I think there were other arreststoo.
That was the beginning of therevolt against Michel Torrena in
this part of the country.
Shortly afterwards, Castro andAlvarado arrived with their band
of revolutionaries pursued byMichel Torrena in person.
(21:11):
Alvarado and Castro beginorganizing their forces here,
mustering all the prominentcitizens capable of bearing
arms.
The territorial assemblyconvened, presided over by Don
Pio Pico.
Pio Pico would eventually be thelast Mexican governor of
(21:31):
California, not sent fromMexico, but born in California.
Don Pio Pico, senior member.
and declared it did notrecognize the authority of
Michel Torrena.
There were some communiquesprevious to the declaration, but
I omit them as I assume theymust be in the public records.
(21:55):
Now here, we're going to hearhow the confrontation took
place.
Michel Torrena's armyapproached.
including a rifle company offoreigners and a disciplined
force of Indians commanded byCaptain John A.
Sutter.
(22:15):
And if you've never heard ofSutter, he was basically, he was
a Swiss, um, colonist who cameand set up himself in, along the
Sacramento River.
Uh, became a Mexican citizen,received a big land grant along
the Sacramento River, which hecalled New Helvetia, after
(22:37):
Switzerland.
And that eventually was, um, hewas the epicenter of the
discovery of gold in California,and he was also an important,
um, ally of the Bear FlagRevolt.
So, already early on, Sutter isinvolved in the struggles
(23:00):
between Californios, native bornCalifornians, and the Mexican
governor.
The rebels turned out to opposethem under Don Jose Castro and
Don Juan Bautista Alvarado,getting to San Buenaventura.
So, Mission San Buenaventura iswhere the city of Ventura is
(23:21):
today.
And Michel Turena got as far asthe Rincón, this side of
Carpentaria, nine miles fromSanta Barbara.
So if you're familiar with thatpart of the coast, this is all
near, uh, between Ventura andSanta Barbara.
(23:42):
Uh, the Rincón, this side ofCarpentaria.
Rincon, as it's known today, avery famous surfing spot.
Um, but it's that area along thecoast between Ventura and Santa
Barbara.
Michel Torrena barricadedhimself in the Rincon, and the
rebels did the same in SanBuenaventura for several days.
(24:07):
Senor Pico, who styled himselfgovernor of the insurgents,
appointed a negotiatingcommittee to see if the matter
could be settled without theinconvenience of fighting.
The committee was made up of DonVicente Sanchez, Don Juan
Wilson, and myself.
(24:29):
Sanchez and I set out as soon aspossible for Michelturena's
camp, where Wilson, who styledwho lived in Santa Barbara,
would meet us.
So according to the notes here,uh, this Don Juan Wilson was
actually a man named BenjaminDavis Wilson, who later wrote
his own memories of the eventsthat took place here.
(24:52):
Before approaching MichelTurena, we held a meeting at
Wilson's house to give himPico's instructions and those of
the insurgent leaders.
with whom we had consulted onthe way.
Having agreed on the mainpoints, we then proceeded to
Santa Barbara, where MichelTouraine was staying, although
(25:14):
his troops were encamped at theRincón.
This was about 8 p.
m.
on the 4th of February, 1845.
We presented our credentials,and explain to the General our
desire to see if some amicable,honorable, and fair resolution
could be found for the currentdifficulties.
(25:37):
Michel Torrena answered that hisconscience was clear, and he saw
no excuse for the uprising atall.
In public and private conduct,he had demonstrated his
affection for the Californians.
If he had been unable to do morefor them, It was the fault of
the central government inMexico.
(26:00):
He had no personal ambitions asgovernor.
He wanted only order and peacein his term.
Then honorable retirement inrecognition of his duty done.
He was always ready tocompromise amicably and make any
personal sacrifice in accordancewith the law and justice.
(26:25):
We were to inform the insurgentsthey had proceeded illegally up
to this point.
If they presented their claimthrough the proper channels, he
would listen.
And if it were just, he wouldconcede even to resigning the
governorship.
In addition, he would notproceed against any of the
(26:46):
insurgents, but let them presenttheir case in the full enjoyment
of their legal rights.
Since Wilson was not well, andSanchez was somewhat tired, they
commissioned me to take theGeneral's reply to San
Buenaventura.
(27:07):
I set out at 1 a.
m.
and got to Castro and Alvarado'scamp.
At dawn with the message.
Alvarado reacted first.
He said Michel Torrena hadignored the authority of the
territorial assembly, that hewas obliged to accept the
reconciliation which the legallyconstituted body offered to
(27:30):
settle the current unrest, andthat he had refused all amicable
solutions.
Therefore, I was to tell theGeneral.
that he must resign thegovernorship on honorable terms
to be arranged.
Castro approved everything hesaid.
(27:51):
I returned to Santa Barbaraimmediately and acquainted my
colleagues with the reply.
And we all went back toMicheltorena.
The general said he would answerthe message, although he
considered it a waste of time.
Since there was no possibilityof an agreement.
(28:12):
I went to rest a little in SantaBarbara.
While I was asleep, Wilson andSanchez tried to convince Michel
Torrena to accept the terms.
Or at least to make a counteroffer, which they would
immediately communicate to theother side.
Then, I They went to SanBuenaventura with no more
(28:33):
results than I had gotten.
Neither side would budge.
Back in Santa Barbara, MichelTorena expressed his
appreciation to all three of usfor trying to keep the peace,
although he was sorry we had notbeen successful.
He also wished, if it werenecessary for him to leave the
(28:54):
country, to do so in a mannercompatible with his dignity.
Later the same day, he told meprivately that he had sufficient
force to resist the rebellion,and possibly crush it.
But his position was critical.
The government failed to supporthim, and he had no confidence in
(29:19):
his troops.
The Californians considered himtheir enemy.
An American invasion wasinevitable.
It was just a year away.
And he didn't want it all toexplode in his face.
He considered the present crisisa way out.
(29:39):
If not exactly honorable, atleast acceptable to the
government.
And he begged me not to worryanymore about the negotiations,
because he knew how they wouldturn out.
I took leave of Michel Turena toreturn to Los Angeles.
(30:00):
Castro and Alvarado detained meat San Buenaventura, but I told
them the same thing I told thembefore.
No compromise on either side.
I went back to Los Angeles.
So, we're going to leave offhere.
I think this narrative is prettyinteresting because you hear
(30:25):
Cornell's wanting to stay out oftrouble between the two sides,
but he clearly has some sympathyfor General Michel Torina.
He portrays him as a reasonableand honorable man who's stuck in
a difficult.
Situation.
(30:47):
And I think part of it has to dowith the fact that cord, even
though he came to AltaCalifornia as a young boy, he
was born in the Republic ofMexico.
And so when he comes toCalifornia, he still, he has a,
he has an innate loyalty also tohis home country, even though.
(31:08):
He also loves his adoptedcountry or his adopted
territory.
Obviously California is part ofMexico, so it's not a question
of a different country, but youcan see that his sympathies are
not entirely with the, um, theofficials like PO Pico Alvarado
(31:28):
Castro, who are rebellingagainst Michel Tona, although he
does.
He obviously acknowledged theproblems that his soldiers had
caused in the country, but he,he portrays Michel Tona as
someone who's seeking to do thebest he can, and clearly Cornell
(31:48):
portrays himself as somebodycaught in the middle of a
difficult situation.
And the next time we take upwith Antonio Coronel, we'll hear
about the U.
S.
Mexico war in California, andget into some of his adventures
during the gold rush.
As always, it's important toremember that these are memoirs.
(32:13):
that are written down multipledecades after the events in
question, and they represent hispersonal views and
recollections.
For that reason, I personallydon't take everything that is
said here as gospel truth, sincemuch of it would need to be
verified and checked againstother sources.
(32:35):
And as you see, even in the, uh,the footnotes, I didn't read all
the footnotes, but many of themcorrect.
Some of the assertions he makes,names of people, etc.
But I still think that thistestimony gives us a very, very
good insight from an eyewitnessto a period in California's
history that was very chaoticand is still very poorly
(32:59):
understood.
And for that reason, I considerit very valuable.
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(34:09):
out.
Yeah.
Damian Bacich's video recor (00:05):
I'm Damian Basich, host of the
California Frontier Podcast, andon this episode I'm going to
bring you some more of thememoirs of Antonio Franco
Coronel, entitled Tales ofMexican California.
Now, as you might recall,Coronel arrived in California in
(00:26):
the 1830s as part of acolonizing expedition sent from
Mexico.
In fact, he arrived in 1834, tobe precise.
And if you haven't, I recommendyou go back and listen to
episode 65, Tales of MexicanCalifornia, part one, where
you'll hear about Antonio'sorigin story and how he and his
(00:49):
family arrived in AltaCalifornia from Mexico.
Now, they came with what wascalled the Ijar Padres
Expedition, and it was meant toestablish a new pueblo in Alta
California, which wouldbasically become its
administrative capital, and itsmembers would become the ruling
(01:09):
class of the territory.
They were, however, rejected bythe local population, and the
plan was eventually disbanded.
The town was never founded.
and its members were eventuallyabsorbed into the local
population.
Antonio, after a while, moved toLos Angeles, and when we pick up
(01:32):
here, he's working as a superiorcourt judge.
Now, over the previous years,Mexican Alta California had
experienced a degree ofinstability with locally born
officials moving from state tostate.
actually rebelling against someof the governors sent from
Mexico City to administer theterritory.
(01:53):
Now in 1842, due to constantbickering between political
factions in Alta California, theMexican government again sent a
governor, but this time he was ageneral, an army general, a real
button up guy named ManuelMichel Torrena.
And he was accompanied by agroup of 800 soldiers known as
(02:16):
the Permanent CaliforniaBattalion.
And it was said that they weremostly convicts, right?
At least among the localpopulation said that.
Now the soldiers basically livedup to their reputation, and
their criminality wound uppushing again the population to
(02:39):
support.
throwing off this new governor.
So when we listen to, uh,Antonio's memoirs here, we're
going to hear about this, thebeginnings of this uprising and
the problems that itrepresented.
And we're also basically goingto be brought up to the eve of
(03:06):
US, uh, annexation ofCalifornia, almost.
And we're going to hear howNichel Turena, who was the last
governor sent from Mexico torule over California,
eventually, uh, goes down thepath of, of himself being
(03:27):
expelled from the territory.
We're going to pick up here in1842.
Antonio says, As Superior CourtJudge, I was kept busy with
constant robberies committed bythe Permanent Battalion of
California, which I justmentioned.
If I told about all their crimesin detail, I'd never be done.
(03:52):
So I will only relate a few ofthe most interesting cases.
One night, when there was a ballat Don Vicente Sanchez's house,
which is no longer standing, nowremember he, he wrote down these
memoirs or dictated them in the1870s, I stationed a guard of
(04:13):
twelve soldiers in what I hadrequested from Michel Turena,
since that was the only way tokeep order in those times.
There was a great crowd at thedance.
And this is a dance that theyhad organized in order to
welcome the new governor.
In high spirits, most of theprincipal people of the town
(04:34):
were there.
We entered on the ground floor.
The guard was posted next to thebedroom of the lady of the
house, who happened to be there.
In the room were eight or tentrunks full of the lady's
clothes and ornaments.
At that time, it was not unusualto have wardrobes.
(04:55):
The common custom was to keep,Oh, excuse me.
At that time, it was not usualto have wardrobes.
The common custom was to keepthings in Chinese trunks.
And this is also veryinteresting because it points to
the fact that trade with the farEast was an important factor in
(05:17):
California at that time.
Chinese trunks means trunks fromChina or the Philippines.
At about four in the morning,Senor Sanchez came down to his
wife's room a little while afterthe guard was dismissed.
Immediately he noticed that onetrunk containing money Jewelry
(05:38):
and valuable clothing wasmissing.
He ran back upstairs, and heinformed me.
I immediately went down to takeappropriate measures.
I ordered the streets closedoff, so no one could leave until
dawn.
There was an Indian villagenearby, and I had the chiefs
(06:01):
keep it closed up too.
so I could examine the tracks ortraces and find out which
direction the trunk had beentaken.
Daylight came, and between theIndians and practiced
Californians, the tracks of thefour of Michel Torrena's booted
soldiers were discovered.
(06:23):
With my men, I followed thetrail along an alley between two
walled gardens some eighthundred or a thousand yards.
where we found the broken andemptied trunk.
The footprints showed they hadsplit up the loot there.
I followed the clearest trailacross an orchard on what is now
(06:47):
Main Street, and back then wasthe only street in that part of
the city.
I went towards the hills to thewest of the populated area,
following a creek in the socalled Ditch of the Kings.
About halfway up it, I foundsome of the loot buried in the
(07:08):
bank and suspected there wasmore nearby, which turned out to
be the case.
I went on searching and foundsome more things buried under
the stones in the Abila Brook.
All I found were clothes, nojewels nor money.
(07:28):
And here I want to stop theDitch of the Kings, which I
imagine was Zanja de los Reyesand Avila Brook.
If somebody's familiar with, uh,L.
A.
geography or nomenclature, it'dbe interesting to know if those
two place names, uh, still existor what they referred to.
(07:48):
Back to the text.
Now, it remained for me todetermine the culprits.
I continued my investigationwith the exactitude required by
the judicial practice of thattime and discovered the guilty
parties.
Michel Torreina permitted me tosupersede military privilege in
(08:08):
making a case against them andpresenting it to him.
Michel Torreina was convinced oftheir guilt in spite of their
experience in defendingthemselves against criminal
charges.
and sentenced them to theterrible punishment of lashes
and prison.
(08:29):
The leader of the criminals hadbeen in attendance to the
general the night of therobbery.
They all suffered the lashes andprison term, but they never
revealed what became of thejewels and money.
The jewels were well knownbecause so few people lived in
the country.
(08:50):
And fewer still had jewelry.
It would have been verydifficult to dispose of them
without being caught.
However, they never did turn up.
A little Paiute Indian girl.
And here I'm, I suppose he'sreferring to Paiute Indians, uh,
(09:10):
in that extend, you know, in theGreat Basin.
Into Utah, a little PaiuteIndian girl who had been raised
as a daughter in the Sanchez'shousehold gave the information
leading to the capture of theprincipal thief.
Sanchez had bought her from someNew Mexicans in exchange for
(09:34):
some animals.
It should be noted that althoughit was forbidden by law, At that
time, the buying of Indians fromNew Mexico was tolerated in view
of the great benefits to theIndians.
They were educated and treatedas members of the family.
(09:55):
And here he's mentioningsomething which, which was very
true that along the Santa FeTrail from New Mexico, excuse
me, the Old Spanish Trail.
from New Mexico into L.
A.
and further up, you had partiesof people who were basically
(10:19):
trafficking in Indian children.
And he mentions here this girlwho had been bought and was
raised as a family member in theSanchez household.
So, like I said, this happened alot, and it's not clear, right?
I'm sure that some of thefamilies, uh, raised them, uh,
(10:43):
in all charity and like theirown children, and I'm sure that,
that some of these children weredefinitely exploited.
So, as he mentions, this wasillegal, in effect.
Slavery of indigenous people wasillegal in the Spanish Empire
back to the 1600s.
(11:04):
Um, so anyway, a part ofCalifornia history that we need
to be aware of.
So going on.
At that time, and before andafter it, bands of New Mexicans
came with loads of goods toexchange for broodmares, horses,
and mules.
On each trip, they took back oneor two thousand head.
(11:28):
Occasionally, they came asthieves and stole immense herds.
One of these great robberiesoccurred in the time of General
Figueroa, so that would havebeen between 1833 and 1840, I
believe.
And the last big one I heard wasthe work of a Frenchman or
(11:49):
Canadian called Charlie Foe.
who got away with something like2, 000 horses and mules between
1844 and 1845 during the warwith Michel Torrena.
Armed men from Los Angelespursued them, but the thieves
outnumbered and outgunned theAngelinos, who returned
(12:11):
disappointed.
So this points to an issue thatwas taking place at that time of
banditry, contraband, raidsalong this so called Old Spanish
Trail between Los Angeles andSanta Fe.
(12:33):
Right?
And it's something thatcontinued very much into, uh,
the 1840s.
Another curious episode, andhere I'm quoting, uh, Coronel
again, about Michel Torrena'smestizos.
And that was one of the thingsthat was also mentioned is that
they were, uh, Michel Torrena'ssoldiers were all, uh, mestizos,
(12:55):
uh, mixed ethnicity.
Which I think was used in thiscase as a, um, pejorative, even
though most of the population ofCalifornia at that time were
also, uh, mixed race, mixedethnicity.
So, another curious episodeabout them.
(13:18):
Don Manuel Requena sent word tome that some turkeys had been
stolen from his poultry yard.
And he had been told it was oneof the soldiers who took them.
An Indian woman described thethief and when she was taken to
the barracks, identified him.
(13:39):
But before that, I had asked theofficer on duty if a soldier
hadn't come in with somedomestic fouls.
He said no.
The only thing any soldier hadbrought into the barracks was a
violin.
When the thief was identified,the officer demanded why he had
(14:01):
said it was a violin he hadunder his arm in the bundle.
The soldier answered, Sir,that's what we call young
turkeys.
Asked what happened to theturkey, he said, Well, didn't
you get some chili from mywoman?
You ate it up, and so did we.
(14:23):
Damian.
He claimed he hadn't stolen theturkey.
He had only used a bit of brokenneedle to tie kernels of corn to
a piece of string.
For amusement, passing Requeña'shouse, he had thrown the string
and the corn over the wall tosee if it would catch a crow or
(14:44):
something like that.
He felt a tug on the line andreeled it in with some
difficulty, afraid it wouldbreak.
And he saw that he had caught aturkey polt, a young turkey.
He decided it was his by right,and wrapped it up in his sarape.
(15:08):
The officer told him that wastheft, and he answered the theft
was when you took somethingagainst the wishes of the owner,
but the turkey had come to himout of its own free will.
This argument didn't save himfrom the whipping the officer
commanded.
(15:29):
There you go.
Uh, the lash, which was a commonpunishment, not just in Alta,
California, but in all of 19thcentury society.
In fact, if you If you read, um,Richard Henry Dana's Two Years
Before the Mast, he has a very,uh, graphic account of a sailor
(15:55):
who, uh, receives a bunch oflashes, whipping for an offense
that he committed on board theship.
So, back to Corona.
Those soldiers stole so often Iwas in perpetual motion.
I must say, General MichelTurena was aware his men were a
(16:17):
bad lot, and didn't toleratesuch behavior.
Both as civil governor andmilitary commander, he fully
supported whatever measures Iwanted to take to preserve
order, and he dealt out severepunishment to anyone found
guilty of a crime.
(16:39):
The General, in privateconversations with me, lamented
his precarious situation.
Abandoned by the centralgovernment, struggling with the
depravity of the troops givenhim.
He was aware that their conductreflected unfavorably on
himself, in spite of his earnestdesire to win the esteem of the
(17:02):
Californians by good government.
At the end of 1843, MichelTorrena marched north with most
of his troops and all of hisofficers, but two or three.
During the long stay in LosAngeles, Captain José María
Flores, who comes into thishistory later, married the
(17:26):
daughter of Colonel AgustínVicente Zamorano, and Ensign
Garfías married Luisa Ávila.
On the journey to Monterey,Michel Torrena had to depend
entirely on the charity ofprivate citizens and a few
missions that still had thewherewithal.
(17:50):
One of his first acts of economywas to suppress the prefectures
and the sub prefectures and thesuperior courts.
I don't remember what happenedin that part of the territory
during the rest of his term.
The same complaints we had hereabout the permanent battalion of
California's transgressionsbecame a pretext for the
(18:13):
rebellion in Monterey.
The principal citizens reallywanted to control and benefit
from the territorial income inthe form of salaries.
So it was the, the principalleaders of the, of the
population there.
that led the uprising againsthim.
(18:34):
And in particular, we're talkingJuan Bautista Alvarado, who
would, who had been governor,would become governor of
California again, and JoseCastro, who would be the
military commander in, uh,Mexican California.
Since before the revolt, andhere I return, since before the
(18:57):
revolt, the general hadrecognized The grave danger of
invasion by the Americans.
And in consequence, he set aboutorganizing militias according to
the law.
He sent captain Andres Pico toLos Angeles with the rank of
battalion commander to work withthe civil authorities in forming
(19:21):
an auxiliary militia.
So they're already concernedabout American designs on Alta,
California.
The justices of the peaceordered the enrollment of
recruits and tried to persuadethe citizens to cooperate
voluntarily.
But there was resistance,particularly from a group headed
(19:44):
by Hilario Barela and others,even armed defiance.
So the militia was never formed.
So there was no California widemilitia.
To resist against a U.
S.
(20:04):
invasion when it came ultimatelyin 1846.
Things stayed in this sorrystate for some time, during
which Don Joaquin de la Torreappeared one night.
with a small band to surprisethe guard at the house of the
parish priest, which wasLieutenant Medina's temporary
(20:27):
headquarters.
Although surprised andoutnumbered, the guard fought
back, losing one man butwounding De La Torre in the leg.
The rebels took the house Andarrested the mayor, Don Vicente
Sanchez.
(20:47):
I think there were other arreststoo.
That was the beginning of therevolt against Michel Torrena in
this part of the country.
Shortly afterwards, Castro andAlvarado arrived with their band
of revolutionaries pursued byMichel Torrena in person.
(21:11):
Alvarado and Castro beginorganizing their forces here,
mustering all the prominentcitizens capable of bearing
arms.
The territorial assemblyconvened, presided over by Don
Pio Pico.
Pio Pico would eventually be thelast Mexican governor of
(21:31):
California, not sent fromMexico, but born in California.
Don Pio Pico, senior member.
and declared it did notrecognize the authority of
Michel Torrena.
There were some communiquesprevious to the declaration, but
I omit them as I assume theymust be in the public records.
(21:55):
Now here, we're going to hearhow the confrontation took
place.
Michel Torrena's armyapproached.
including a rifle company offoreigners and a disciplined
force of Indians commanded byCaptain John A.
Sutter.
(22:15):
And if you've never heard ofSutter, he was basically, he was
a Swiss, um, colonist who cameand set up himself in, along the
Sacramento River.
Uh, became a Mexican citizen,received a big land grant along
the Sacramento River, which hecalled New Helvetia, after
(22:37):
Switzerland.
And that eventually was, um, hewas the epicenter of the
discovery of gold in California,and he was also an important,
um, ally of the Bear FlagRevolt.
So, already early on, Sutter isinvolved in the struggles
(23:00):
between Californios, native bornCalifornians, and the Mexican
governor.
The rebels turned out to opposethem under Don Jose Castro and
Don Juan Bautista Alvarado,getting to San Buenaventura.
So, Mission San Buenaventura iswhere the city of Ventura is
(23:21):
today.
And Michel Turena got as far asthe Rincón, this side of
Carpentaria, nine miles fromSanta Barbara.
So if you're familiar with thatpart of the coast, this is all
near, uh, between Ventura andSanta Barbara.
(23:42):
Uh, the Rincón, this side ofCarpentaria.
Rincon, as it's known today, avery famous surfing spot.
Um, but it's that area along thecoast between Ventura and Santa
Barbara.
Michel Torrena barricadedhimself in the Rincon, and the
rebels did the same in SanBuenaventura for several days.
(24:07):
Senor Pico, who styled himselfgovernor of the insurgents,
appointed a negotiatingcommittee to see if the matter
could be settled without theinconvenience of fighting.
The committee was made up of DonVicente Sanchez, Don Juan
Wilson, and myself.
(24:29):
Sanchez and I set out as soon aspossible for Michelturena's
camp, where Wilson, who styledwho lived in Santa Barbara,
would meet us.
So according to the notes here,uh, this Don Juan Wilson was
actually a man named BenjaminDavis Wilson, who later wrote
his own memories of the eventsthat took place here.
(24:52):
Before approaching MichelTurena, we held a meeting at
Wilson's house to give himPico's instructions and those of
the insurgent leaders.
with whom we had consulted onthe way.
Having agreed on the mainpoints, we then proceeded to
Santa Barbara, where MichelTouraine was staying, although
(25:14):
his troops were encamped at theRincón.
This was about 8 p.
m.
on the 4th of February, 1845.
We presented our credentials,and explain to the General our
desire to see if some amicable,honorable, and fair resolution
could be found for the currentdifficulties.
(25:37):
Michel Torrena answered that hisconscience was clear, and he saw
no excuse for the uprising atall.
In public and private conduct,he had demonstrated his
affection for the Californians.
If he had been unable to do morefor them, It was the fault of
the central government inMexico.
(26:00):
He had no personal ambitions asgovernor.
He wanted only order and peacein his term.
Then honorable retirement inrecognition of his duty done.
He was always ready tocompromise amicably and make any
personal sacrifice in accordancewith the law and justice.
(26:25):
We were to inform the insurgentsthey had proceeded illegally up
to this point.
If they presented their claimthrough the proper channels, he
would listen.
And if it were just, he wouldconcede even to resigning the
governorship.
In addition, he would notproceed against any of the
(26:46):
insurgents, but let them presenttheir case in the full enjoyment
of their legal rights.
Since Wilson was not well, andSanchez was somewhat tired, they
commissioned me to take theGeneral's reply to San
Buenaventura.
(27:07):
I set out at 1 a.
m.
and got to Castro and Alvarado'scamp.
At dawn with the message.
Alvarado reacted first.
He said Michel Torrena hadignored the authority of the
territorial assembly, that hewas obliged to accept the
reconciliation which the legallyconstituted body offered to
(27:30):
settle the current unrest, andthat he had refused all amicable
solutions.
Therefore, I was to tell theGeneral.
that he must resign thegovernorship on honorable terms
to be arranged.
Castro approved everything hesaid.
(27:51):
I returned to Santa Barbaraimmediately and acquainted my
colleagues with the reply.
And we all went back toMicheltorena.
The general said he would answerthe message, although he
considered it a waste of time.
Since there was no possibilityof an agreement.
(28:12):
I went to rest a little in SantaBarbara.
While I was asleep, Wilson andSanchez tried to convince Michel
Torrena to accept the terms.
Or at least to make a counteroffer, which they would
immediately communicate to theother side.
Then, I They went to SanBuenaventura with no more
(28:33):
results than I had gotten.
Neither side would budge.
Back in Santa Barbara, MichelTorena expressed his
appreciation to all three of usfor trying to keep the peace,
although he was sorry we had notbeen successful.
He also wished, if it werenecessary for him to leave the
(28:54):
country, to do so in a mannercompatible with his dignity.
Later the same day, he told meprivately that he had sufficient
force to resist the rebellion,and possibly crush it.
But his position was critical.
The government failed to supporthim, and he had no confidence in
(29:19):
his troops.
The Californians considered himtheir enemy.
An American invasion wasinevitable.
It was just a year away.
And he didn't want it all toexplode in his face.
He considered the present crisisa way out.
(29:39):
If not exactly honorable, atleast acceptable to the
government.
And he begged me not to worryanymore about the negotiations,
because he knew how they wouldturn out.
I took leave of Michel Turena toreturn to Los Angeles.
(30:00):
Castro and Alvarado detained meat San Buenaventura, but I told
them the same thing I told thembefore.
No compromise on either side.
I went back to Los Angeles.
So, we're going to leave offhere.
I think this narrative is prettyinteresting because you hear
(30:25):
Cornell's wanting to stay out oftrouble between the two sides,
but he clearly has some sympathyfor General Michel Torina.
He portrays him as a reasonableand honorable man who's stuck in
a difficult.
Situation.
(30:47):
And I think part of it has to dowith the fact that cord, even
though he came to AltaCalifornia as a young boy, he
was born in the Republic ofMexico.
And so when he comes toCalifornia, he still, he has a,
he has an innate loyalty also tohis home country, even though.
(31:08):
He also loves his adoptedcountry or his adopted
territory.
Obviously California is part ofMexico, so it's not a question
of a different country, but youcan see that his sympathies are
not entirely with the, um, theofficials like PO Pico Alvarado
(31:28):
Castro, who are rebellingagainst Michel Tona, although he
does.
He obviously acknowledged theproblems that his soldiers had
caused in the country, but he,he portrays Michel Tona as
someone who's seeking to do thebest he can, and clearly Cornell
(31:48):
portrays himself as somebodycaught in the middle of a
difficult situation.
And the next time we take upwith Antonio Coronel, we'll hear
about the U.
S.
Mexico war in California, andget into some of his adventures
during the gold rush.
As always, it's important toremember that these are memoirs.
(32:13):
that are written down multipledecades after the events in
question, and they represent hispersonal views and
recollections.
For that reason, I personallydon't take everything that is
said here as gospel truth, sincemuch of it would need to be
verified and checked againstother sources.
(32:35):
And as you see, even in the, uh,the footnotes, I didn't read all
the footnotes, but many of themcorrect.
Some of the assertions he makes,names of people, etc.
But I still think that thistestimony gives us a very, very
good insight from an eyewitnessto a period in California's
history that was very chaoticand is still very poorly
(32:59):
understood.
And for that reason, I considerit very valuable.
I hope you enjoyed this episodeof the California Frontier Show.
If you'd like to support theshow, the best thing to do is to
(33:22):
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And if you want to give a onetime donation, just below you'll
see where it says, give a onetime donation.
(33:45):
Finally, the show is supportedby California History Teachers,
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(34:09):
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