Between 1822 and 1846, Mexican governors carved the Salinas Valley into ranchos held by Californio families and by foreigners who converted, naturalized, and married into them. Then California changed flags, and the Land Act of 1851 forced every grantee to prove title in English, at a cost paid in land. Flood, drought, and sheriff's sales finished the job, and David Jacks assembled the pieces by purchase.
Who's who
- Juan Bautista AlvaradoMonterey-born governor who signed most of the valley's grants
- William E. P. Hartnell+1 more episodeEnglish trader who converted, married into the de la Guerra family
- David SpenceScottish trader who married an Estrada daughter and received Rancho Encinal
- José Mariano EstradaArtillery lieutenant and grantee of Buena Vista; father-in-law to Spence and Malarín
- Juan MalarínPeruvian sea captain who married an Estrada daughter and held Chualar
- José Eusebio BorondaGrantee of Rincón del Sanjón; his adobe still stands
- Ygnacio PastorMission neophyte who received the 43,281-acre Milpitas grant
- David Jacks+1 more episodeScottish-born landowner who took about 36,000 acres by purchase and sale
Where it happens
- Salinas, California+7 more episodesCity on ten thousand acres once described by river, hills, oak
- Monterey, California+2 more episodesWhere the flag changed in 1846 and Americans took over
- Boronda Adobe, Salinas, CaliforniaSurviving rancho-era adobe northwest of Salinas
- Rancho Milpitas, CaliforniaLargest valley grant, held by a former mission neophyte
- Chualar, California+2 more episodesRancho granted to Juan Malarín in 1839
Timeline
- 1825Hartnell marries María Teresa de la Guerra, after converting to Catholicism the year before.
- 1829David Spence marries an Estrada daughter and later receives an adjoining grant.
- July 1846Sloat's squadron takes Monterey without a shot.
- February 1848Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo promises existing property will be respected.
- March 1851The Land Act requires grantees to prove title before a commission and courts.
- 1861-1864The Great Flood and then drought kill the cattle; sheriff's sales follow.
Still debated
Counts of Mexican grants vary by whether concessions, confirmed grants, or filed claims are counted. Historians also disagree on whether the Land Act betrayed grantees or cleared title, and whether David Jacks was a land shark or a fair dealer.