Rancho Ex-Mission San Fernando
Encyclopedia
Rancho Ex-Mission San Fernando was a 116858 acres (472.9 km²) Mexican land grant
in present day Los Angeles County, California
granted in 1846 by Governor Pío Pico
to Eulogio de Celis. The grant derives its name from the secularized Mission San Fernando Rey de España
, but was called ex-Mission because of a division made of the lands held in the name of the Mission — the church retaining the grounds immediately around, and all of the lands outside of this were called ex-Mission lands. The grant encompassed most of the present day San Fernando Valley
.
, had settled in California in 1836. De Celis operated a hide trading business with Henry D. Fitch
, Jonathan Temple
and Abel Stearns. He married Josefa Argüello, daughter of Governor Luís Antonio Argüello
. In 1846, to raise war funds during the Mexican–American War
, the Pico government sold the secularized lands from the Mission San Fernando to Eulogio de Celis.
With the cession
of California to the United States following the Mexican-American War, the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
provided that the land grants would be honored. As required by the Land Act of 1851, a claim was filed with the United States Public Land Commission
in 1852 and the land grant was patented to Eulogio de Celis in 1873. De Celis, with his wife and family, went back to Spain in 1854, where he died in 1869.
The grant, which was supposed to contain fourteen square leagues, was bounded on the north by Rancho San Francisco
and the Santa Susana Mountains
, on the west by the Simi Hills
, on the east by Rancho Tujunga
, and on the south by the Montañas de Portesuelo (Santa Monica Mountains
). When the Rancho Ex-Mission San Fernando grant was patented in 1873, it was surveyed at nearly twenty six square leagues, the single largest land grant in California.
Before the De Celis grant, Andrés Pico
, brother of Governor Pío Pico, had leased the Rancho Ex-Mission San Fernando in 1845. In 1853, Andrés Pico acquired an undivided half interest, and Rancho Ex-Mission San Fernando was split in half, along present day Roscoe Boulevard, between Andrés Pico (who had the southern half of the ranch to the Santa Monica Mountains) and Eulogio de Celis (who had the northern half of the ranch to the Santa Susana Mountains).
In debt, Andrés Pico had sold his southern half-interest in the Rancho ex-Mission San Fernando to his brother Pío Pico in 1862. Pio Pico sold his half share of the Ex-San Fernando Mission land to Isaac Lankershim (operating as the "San Fernando Farm Homestead Association") in 1869. In 1873, Isaac Lankershim's son, James Boon (J. B.) Lankershim, and future son-in-law, Isaac Newton Van Nuys
, moved to the San Fernando Valley and took over management of the property. During the 1880s, the San Fernando Farm Homestead Association was succeeded by the "Los Angeles Farm & Milling Company".
After De Celis died in 1869, his son, Eulogio F. de Celis, returned from Spain to Los Angeles. In 1874, the heirs of Eulogio de Celis sold their northern half of Rancho Ex-Mission San Fernando to northern Californians, California State Senator
Charles Maclay
and his partners George K. Porter, a San Francisco shoe manufacturer, and his brother Benjamin F. Porter. The Porters land was west of present day Sepulveda Boulevard
, and the Maclay land was east of Sepulveda Boulevard.
Ranchos of California
The Spanish, and later the Méxican government encouraged settlement of territory now known as California by the establishment of large land grants called ranchos, from which the English ranch is derived. Devoted to raising cattle and sheep, the owners of the ranchos attempted to pattern themselves...
in present day Los Angeles County, California
Los Angeles County, California
Los Angeles County is a county in the U.S. state of California. As of 2010 U.S. Census, the county had a population of 9,818,605, making it the most populous county in the United States. Los Angeles County alone is more populous than 42 individual U.S. states...
granted in 1846 by Governor Pío Pico
Pío Pico
Pío de Jesús Pico was the last Governor of Alta California under Mexican rule.-Origins:...
to Eulogio de Celis. The grant derives its name from the secularized Mission San Fernando Rey de España
Mission San Fernando Rey de España
Mission San Fernando Rey de España was founded on "The Feast of the Birth of Mary" , 1797. The settlement is located on the former Encino Rancho in the Mission Hills community of northern Los Angeles, near the site of the first gold discovery in Alta California.-History:Mission San Fernando Rey de...
, but was called ex-Mission because of a division made of the lands held in the name of the Mission — the church retaining the grounds immediately around, and all of the lands outside of this were called ex-Mission lands. The grant encompassed most of the present day San Fernando Valley
San Fernando Valley
The San Fernando Valley is an urbanized valley located in the Los Angeles metropolitan area of southern California, United States, defined by the dramatic mountains of the Transverse Ranges circling it...
.
History
Eulogio de Celis, a native of SpainSpain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, had settled in California in 1836. De Celis operated a hide trading business with Henry D. Fitch
Henry D. Fitch
Henry Delano Fitch was an early settler of San Diego, California.-Life:Henry D. Fitch was born 1799 in New Bedford, Massachusetts. He was a sea captain and trader...
, Jonathan Temple
Jonathan Temple
Jonathan Temple came to Los Angeles in 1828 and became a large landowner, cattle rancher and one of the area's wealthiest citizens.-Biography:...
and Abel Stearns. He married Josefa Argüello, daughter of Governor Luís Antonio Argüello
Luis Antonio Argüello
Luis Antonio Argüello was the first native governor of Alta California from 1822 to 1825, during the period California was under Mexican rule, twelfth overall. He was the only governor to serve under the Mexican empire, and the first native Californian to hold that office...
. In 1846, to raise war funds during the Mexican–American War
Mexican–American War
The Mexican–American War, also known as the First American Intervention, the Mexican War, or the U.S.–Mexican War, was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848 in the wake of the 1845 U.S...
, the Pico government sold the secularized lands from the Mission San Fernando to Eulogio de Celis.
With the cession
Mexican Cession
The Mexican Cession of 1848 is a historical name in the United States for the region of the present day southwestern United States that Mexico ceded to the U.S...
of California to the United States following the Mexican-American War, the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo is the peace treaty, largely dictated by the United States to the interim government of a militarily occupied Mexico City, that ended the Mexican-American War on February 2, 1848...
provided that the land grants would be honored. As required by the Land Act of 1851, a claim was filed with the United States Public Land Commission
Public Land Commission
The Public Land Commission, a former agency of the United States government, was created following the admission of California as a state in 1850 . The Commission's purpose was to determine the validity of prior Spanish and Mexican land grants in California.California Senator William M...
in 1852 and the land grant was patented to Eulogio de Celis in 1873. De Celis, with his wife and family, went back to Spain in 1854, where he died in 1869.
Rancho San Francisco
Rancho San Francisco was a land grant in present day northwestern Los Angeles County and eastern Ventura County, California. It was of by Governor Juan B. Alvarado to Antonio del Valle, a Spanish army officer, in recognition for his service to the state of Alta California...
and the Santa Susana Mountains
Santa Susana Mountains
The Santa Susana Mountains are a transverse range of mountains in southern California, north of the city of Los Angeles, in the United States. The range runs east-west separating the San Fernando Valley and Simi Valley on its south, from Santa Clara River Valley to the north, and Santa Clarita...
, on the west by the Simi Hills
Simi Hills
The Simi Hills are a low rocky mountain range of the Transverse Ranges, located in eastern Ventura County and western Los Angeles County, of southern California, United States.-Geography:...
, on the east by Rancho Tujunga
Rancho Tujunga
Rancho Tujunga was a Mexican land grant in present day Los Angeles County, California given in 1840 by Mexican governor Juan Alvarado to Francisco Lopez and Pedro Lopez. The rancho lands included the present day Los Angeles communities of Lake View Terrace, Sunland, Tujunga.-History:The Mexican...
, and on the south by the Montañas de Portesuelo (Santa Monica Mountains
Santa Monica Mountains
The Santa Monica Mountains are a Transverse Range in Southern California, along the coast of the Pacific Ocean in the United States.-Geography:...
). When the Rancho Ex-Mission San Fernando grant was patented in 1873, it was surveyed at nearly twenty six square leagues, the single largest land grant in California.
Before the De Celis grant, Andrés Pico
Andrés Pico
Andrés Pico was a Californio who became a successful rancher, served as a military commander during the Mexican-American War; and was elected to the state assembly and senate after California became a state, when he was also commissioned as a brigadier general in the state militia.-Early...
, brother of Governor Pío Pico, had leased the Rancho Ex-Mission San Fernando in 1845. In 1853, Andrés Pico acquired an undivided half interest, and Rancho Ex-Mission San Fernando was split in half, along present day Roscoe Boulevard, between Andrés Pico (who had the southern half of the ranch to the Santa Monica Mountains) and Eulogio de Celis (who had the northern half of the ranch to the Santa Susana Mountains).
In debt, Andrés Pico had sold his southern half-interest in the Rancho ex-Mission San Fernando to his brother Pío Pico in 1862. Pio Pico sold his half share of the Ex-San Fernando Mission land to Isaac Lankershim (operating as the "San Fernando Farm Homestead Association") in 1869. In 1873, Isaac Lankershim's son, James Boon (J. B.) Lankershim, and future son-in-law, Isaac Newton Van Nuys
Isaac Newton Van Nuys
Isaac Newton Van Nuys was an American businessman, real estate developer, banker, and agricultural entrepreneur. He founded the community of Van Nuys in the San Fernando Valley of Southern California in 1911...
, moved to the San Fernando Valley and took over management of the property. During the 1880s, the San Fernando Farm Homestead Association was succeeded by the "Los Angeles Farm & Milling Company".
After De Celis died in 1869, his son, Eulogio F. de Celis, returned from Spain to Los Angeles. In 1874, the heirs of Eulogio de Celis sold their northern half of Rancho Ex-Mission San Fernando to northern Californians, California State Senator
California State Senate
The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature. There are 40 state senators. The state legislature meets in the California State Capitol in Sacramento. The Lieutenant Governor is the ex officio President of the Senate and may break a tied vote...
Charles Maclay
Charles Maclay
Charles Maclay was a California State Senator and the funder of the city of San Fernando, California in the San Fernando Valley.-History:Charles Maclay's heritage was from Ireland and Scotland...
and his partners George K. Porter, a San Francisco shoe manufacturer, and his brother Benjamin F. Porter. The Porters land was west of present day Sepulveda Boulevard
Sepulveda Boulevard
Sepulveda Boulevard is a street in Los Angeles, California, which stretches some 42.8 miles from Rinaldi Street at the north end of the San Fernando Valley to the city limits of Hermosa Beach, where it "jumps" east and continues on to Long Beach. It generally runs north-south, passing underneath...
, and the Maclay land was east of Sepulveda Boulevard.
See also
- History of the San Fernando Valley to 1915History of the San Fernando Valley to 1915The history of the San Fernando Valley from its exploration by the 1769 Portola expedition to the annexation of much of it by the City of Los Angeles in 1915 is a story of booms and busts, as cattle ranching, sheep ranching, large-scale wheat farming, and fruit orchards flourished and faded...
- List of Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monuments in the San Fernando Valley
- Rómulo Pico AdobeRómulo Pico AdobeRómulo Pico Adobe, also known as Ranchito Rómulo and Andres Pico Adobe, was built in 1853 and is the oldest residence in the San Fernando Valley, and the second oldest residence in the City of Los Angeles. Located in the Mission Hills section of Los Angeles, the Rómulo Pico Adobe is a short...
- Ranchos of CaliforniaRanchos of CaliforniaThe Spanish, and later the Méxican government encouraged settlement of territory now known as California by the establishment of large land grants called ranchos, from which the English ranch is derived. Devoted to raising cattle and sheep, the owners of the ranchos attempted to pattern themselves...