Rancho Rincon de las Salinas y Potrero Viejo
Encyclopedia
Rancho Rincon de las Salinas y Potrero Viejo was a 4446 acres (18 km²) Mexican land grant
, largely in present day San Francisco County, California and extending to San Mateo County, California
, given in 1839 by Governor Protem Manual Jimeno to José Cornelio Bernal. The grant consisted of two grants - Rincon de las Salinas ("corner of a salty marsh" - around Islais Creek
) and Potrero Viejo ("old pasture" - part of Mission Dolores). Rincon de las Salinas encompassed the present day south San Francisco neighborhoods of Bernal Heights
, Excelsior, Crocker, and Outer Mission
). Potrero Viejo encompassed present day Bayview and Hunters Point.
. Rancho Rincon de las Salinas in was granted in 1839, and Rancho El Potrero Viejo in 1840. José Cornelio Bernal died in 1842, and the grant inherited by his widow, Carmen Sibrian de Bernal, and their son, José de Jesus Bernal (1829–1870).
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 for Rancho Rincon de las Salinas y Potrero Viejo was filed with the Public Land Commission
in 1852, and the grant was patented
to Carmen Sibrian de Bernal and José Jesús Bernal in 1857.
The family gradually sold off the land. The first portion of the Bernal grant to pass to other hands occurred in 1859, when General William Tecumseh Sherman
foreclosured
on a mortgage. In the 1860s the rancho was subdivided into small lots, primarily populated by immigrants who farmed the land and ran dairy ranches.
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...
, largely in present day San Francisco County, California and extending to San Mateo County, California
San Mateo County, California
San Mateo County is a county located in the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California. It covers most of the San Francisco Peninsula just south of San Francisco, and north of Santa Clara County. San Francisco International Airport is located at the northern end of the county, and...
, given in 1839 by Governor Protem Manual Jimeno to José Cornelio Bernal. The grant consisted of two grants - Rincon de las Salinas ("corner of a salty marsh" - around Islais Creek
Islais Creek
Islais Creek or Islais Creek Channel is a small creek in San Francisco, California...
) and Potrero Viejo ("old pasture" - part of Mission Dolores). Rincon de las Salinas encompassed the present day south San Francisco neighborhoods of Bernal Heights
Bernal Heights, San Francisco, California
-Location:Bernal Heights lies to the south of San Francisco's Mission District. Its most prominent feature is the open parkland and microwave tower on its large rocky hill, Bernal Heights Summit...
, Excelsior, Crocker, and Outer Mission
Outer Mission, San Francisco, California
Outer Mission is a small residential neighborhood on the south edge of San Francisco.-Location:The Outer Mission is a neighborhood in Southeast San Francisco with boundaries of Interstate 280 to the west, Geneva Avenue to the north, and Mission Street and the Daly City border to the south...
). Potrero Viejo encompassed present day Bayview and Hunters Point.
History
José Cornelio Bernal (1796–1842), grandson of Juan Francisco Bernal, who was a Spanish soldier on the Anza Expedition, was also to become a soldier and married Maria Carmen Sibrian (1804–) in 1819. José Cornelio Bernal, was regidor (a member of the ayuntimiento, or town council) of San José starting in 1828. In 1834 as secularization of the Missions began, Bernal was granted 6 acres (24,281.2 m²) at Mission Dolores by Governor José FigueroaJosé Figueroa
General José Figueroa , was a General and the Mexican territorial Governor of Alta California from 1833 to 1835.Figueroa oversaw the initial secularization of the missions of upper California, which included the expulsion of the Spanish Franciscan mission officials.This also involved the issuing of...
. Rancho Rincon de las Salinas in was granted in 1839, and Rancho El Potrero Viejo in 1840. José Cornelio Bernal died in 1842, and the grant inherited by his widow, Carmen Sibrian de Bernal, and their son, José de Jesus Bernal (1829–1870).
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 for Rancho Rincon de las Salinas y Potrero Viejo was filed with the 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 grant was patented
Land patent
A land patent is a land grant made patent by the sovereign lord over the land in question. To make a such a grant “patent”, such a sovereign lord must document the land grant, securely sign and seal the document and openly publish the same to the public for all to see...
to Carmen Sibrian de Bernal and José Jesús Bernal in 1857.
The family gradually sold off the land. The first portion of the Bernal grant to pass to other hands occurred in 1859, when General William Tecumseh Sherman
William Tecumseh Sherman
William Tecumseh Sherman was an American soldier, businessman, educator and author. He served as a General in the Union Army during the American Civil War , for which he received recognition for his outstanding command of military strategy as well as criticism for the harshness of the "scorched...
foreclosured
Foreclosure
Foreclosure is the legal process by which a mortgage lender , or other lien holder, obtains a termination of a mortgage borrower 's equitable right of redemption, either by court order or by operation of law...
on a mortgage. In the 1860s the rancho was subdivided into small lots, primarily populated by immigrants who farmed the land and ran dairy ranches.