Monterey County CA Archives History - Books .....Chapter VII Secularization 1893
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Book Title: Memorial And Biographical History Of The Coast Counties Of Central California.

CHAPTER VII.
SECULARIZATION.

IN the meanwhile, i. e., from 1831 to 1834, the movement which, from the very
exigencies of the case, that is, from inherent and intrinsic causes, had long
been gathering in force, culminated in the decrees passed by Congress, August
17, 1833, and April 16, 1834, ordering the secularization of all the missions of
the republic. Provisional regulations for carrying out these laws were adopted
by the Dipntacion Territorial in August. Whereupon the missionaries abandoned
many of their establishments, and either authorized a general slaughter of
cattle, or so relaxed their authority, that irresponsible parties engaged in the
slaughter of cattle, till the Diputacion prohibited the killing of cattle,
except in the usual quantities, and by responsible persons. During 1834 the
missions of San Antonio, La Soledad and San Juan Bautista were secularized. In
1833, Bandini sought to have San Diego and San Francisco declared by Congress as
the only ports for the admission of foreign vessels; but he was unsuccessful,
and Monterey continued, as before, the principal port of the Territory. Thomas
O. Larkin, who resided so long in Monterey and who became so prominent at the
time of the change of government, arrived on the Newcastle, in 1832; and on the
same vessel, came Mrs. Rachel Holmes, whom Larkin married in 1833, and who was
the first American woman to become a permanent resident.

  Governor Figueroa died at Monterey the 29th of September, 1835. Bancroft,
while conceding his faults, thinks he was "the best Mexican governor ever sent
to rule California," to which, all who intimately study his character, as
illustrated by his public acts, must assent. He was succeeded by Jose Castro as
civil governor, and by Nicolas Gutierrez as military commander, the two
departments having been separated by Figueroa.

  Of Governor Chico's brief administration, in 1836, not much need be said. He
was one of the very worst of the Mexican governors. He was violent in
deportment, and soon secured the cordial emnity of' the Californians. The decent
people of Monterey were scandalized by his undisguised and flagrant
immoralities. And Gutierrez, who preceded and succeed him as governor, was not
much better. Juan B. Alvarado headed an uprising early in November, 1836, which
advanced on Monterey and summarily deposed Gutierrez. This movement, while it
was ostensibly in the direction of independence, practically, was a protest
against dissolute local government, or anarchy, on the one hand, and against
centralism on the other. The people of the south did not indorse the northern
efforts to effect independence; so the plan was modified. California determined
to govern herself, but still as a province of Mexico. Alvarado, a native
Californian, was, on the 7th of December, elected governor by the Diputacion. A
long and profitless quarrel ensued between Alvarado and Carlos Carrillo and
their partisans, which it is unnecessary to detail here. Alvarado was finally
recognized by the Mexican government, news of his appointment as governor being
received in September, 1839. M. G. Vallejo was, at the same time, appointed
military commander, with the rank of colonel.

  The estimated population of the Monterey district, in 1840, was about 1,600,
700 of whom resided at Monterey. This number does not include the mission
Indians. San Miguel mission was secularized, in 1836, by Ignacio Coronel; I.
Garcia was administrator. The several ranches and vineyards, including the
buildings, but excluding church buildings and contents, were inventoried at
upward of $80,000. The secularization of San Antonio de Padua took place in
1835; and Manuel Crespi was the commissioner. La Soledad was secularized by
Commissioner Nicola's Alviso, in 1835. Ex-Prefect Sarria died at this mission
this year, aged nearly seventy years, after which everything went to ruin
rapidly. This same year, Commissioner T. Castro secularized San Juan Bautista,
which was then in what later was a part of Monterey county, but which now is San
Benito county. The estate, aside from church property, amounting to $46,000, was
inventoried at over $90,000. Much destruction was wrought by both gentile and
Christianized Indians.

  The inventory in detail showed: Buildings, $36,000; implements, furniture,
etc., $7,774; church building, $35,000; ornaments, vestments, etc., $7,740;
library, $461; six bells, $1,060; choir furniture, $1,643; vineyards, buildings,
etc., outside the mission, $37,365; ranches: San Justo, $1,300; Todos Santos,
$1,755; San Felipe, $16,052; credits, $1,040; cash, $222; total, $147,413; less
distributed to neophytes, $8,439, and debits, $250; leaving a balance of $138,723.

  In 1840, California in general, and Monterey in particular, were much
disturbed by a plot, or a suspected plot, of Isaac Graham and other Americans to
overturn the existing order. A considerable number of men were arrested, and
forty-seven were sent to San Blas, and thence to Tepic. But eventually they were
all set at liberty.

  Governor Alvarado issued, January 17, 1839, a reglamento, or provisional
regulations, for the government of the administrators of the missions, under
which he appointed as visitor-general W. E. P. Hartnell, who was honest and
capable, who was well known and respected, who was a good Spanish scholar, and
who performed his duties faithfully. In 1840 Alvarado substituted mayordomos for
administrators, specifying clearly their duties in a reglamento dated March 1,
concerning which Padre Duran expressed the opinion that it would "close the door
to fraud and robbery, but also to all improvement; that the doctor was prevented
from killing the patient, but had no power to cure him." In August of this year
Captain Sutter came down from New Helvetia to Monterey to secure his
naturalization papers as a Mexican citizen, which he obtained by making the
necessary proofs, before David Spence, as justice of the peace. He also received
authority to represent the provincial government at New Helvetia, or as he
afterward signed himself, "Encargado de justicia, y representante del gobierno
en las fronteras del Rio del Sacramento."

CALIFORNIA BECOMING KNOWN TO THE WORLD.

  In December, 1837, Captain Belcher, whose "Narrative" was published in London,
in command of the expedition formerly under Beechey, visited Monterey. In
October of this year the French frigate, Venus, Petit-Thouars, commander, with a
force of upward of 300 men, arrived at Monterey, and remained there nearly a
month. His account of California at this period is interesting and valuable. The
book published by Forbes, in 1839, is a standard work. Laplace, commanding the
French frigate Artemise, of fifty guns and 450 men, entered Monterey bay in
August, 1839, and remained a week. He gives an interesting picture of California
as he saw it in his published account of his voyage. W. D. Phelps and T. J.
Farnham visited California in 1840, and afterward published books describing
what they saw. So that the world was gradually acquiring information concerning
this distant region, which prior to that time had been a terra incognita.

   In 1841, the customhouse collections of the department amounted to $100,000.
There was no meeting of the Territorial Diputacion this year. The noted visitors
of 1841, who published accounts of what they saw, were Douglas, de Mofras,
Pierce, Wilkes and Simpson. Numerous overland parties arrived this year, causing
the authorities some apprehension. Alvarado had determined to send commissions
to Mexico to inform the government thoroughly of the condition of affairs in
California. He, therefore, on the 20th of January, 1842, despatched Manuel
Castanares and Francisco Rivera from Monterey, on the schooner California, for
Acapulco. The government decided to send troops to California; Castanares
returned with an appointment as administrator of customs, and brought a
commission for Alvarado as colonel. Manuel Micheltorena had already been
appointed governor and commandante-general, the two offices being again
conferred on one person.

  The Superior Court met in May at Monterey, Juan Malarin presiding. Juan
Bandini, the fiscal or territorial attorney, having resigned, Castanares was
chosen to fill his place.

THE EPISODE OF 1842.

  It was in 1842 that Commodore Thomas Ap Catesby Jones, in command of the
United States fleet on the Pacific coast, because of fears of impending war with
Mexico, and that the British fleet might attempt to occupy California,
determined to seize Monterey, the capital. Accordingly, on the 19th of October,
Jones, with two men of war, the United States and the Cyane, entered the harbor
and demanded of the governor and military commandante the surrender of Monterey.
In view of "the small force at his disposal, affording no hope of successful
resistance against the powerful force brought against him," Alvarado signed
articles of capitulation. But Commodore Jones, learning from Larkin and others
on shore, on the 20th, that the rumors of immediate war were unfounded, as were
his suspicions that England had any present intentions of seizing the country,
decided that, to use his own words, "the motives and only justifiable grounds
for a surrender of the Territory was thus suddenly removed, or at least rendered
so doubtful as to make it my duty to restore things as I had found them, with
the least possible delay,"- which determination he at once proceeded to carry
out on the 21st, his forces retiring to their vessels, which thereupon fired a
salute in honor of the flag of Mexico, which was again raised over the fort.

  The people of Monterey were much annoyed by the soldiers which Governor
Micheltorena had brought with him from Mexico, some of whom were pardoned
convicts. They were known as Micheltorena's "cholos," and they were a pretty
tough lot. The old citizens of the capital and vicinity have no pleasant
remembrances of this villianous gang.


Additional Comments:
Extracted from:

Memorial and Biographical History of the Coast Counties of Central California.

Illustrated.

Containing a History of this Important Section of the Pacific Coast from the
Earliest Period of its Discovery to the Present Time, together with Glimpses of
its Auspicious Future; Illustrations and Full-Page Portraits of some of its
Eminent Men, and Biographical Mention of many of its Pioneers, and Prominent
Citizens of To-day.



HENRY D. BARROWS,
Editor of the Historical Department.

LUTHER A. INGERSOLL,
Editor of the Biographical Department.

"A people that take no pride in the noble achievements of remote ancestors will
never achieve anything worthy to be remembered with pride by remote
descendants."—Macaulay.


CHICAGO: THE LEWIS PUBLISHING COMPANY.
1893.


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