Rancho de la Nación was a 26632 acres (107.8 km²) Mexican land grant

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 southern San Diego County, California

San Diego County, California

San Diego County is a large county located in the southwestern corner of the US state of California. Hence, San Diego County is also located in the southwestern corner of the 48 contiguous United States. Its county seat and largest city is San Diego. Its population was about 2,813,835 in the 2000...

 given in 1845 by Governor Pío Pico

Pío Pico

Pío de Jesús Pico was the last Governor of Alta California under Mexican rule.-Origins:...

 to John (Don Juan) Forster

John (Don Juan) Forster

John Forster was born in England; became a Mexican citizen of early California, and was one of the largest landowners in California.-Early life:...

. The grant encompassed present day National City

National City, California

National City is a city in San Diego County, California. The population was 58,582 at the 2010 census, up from 54,260 at the 2000 census. National City is the second oldest city in San Diego County and has a historic past.-History:...

, Chula Vista

Chula Vista, California

Chula Vista is the second largest city in the San Diego metropolitan area, the seventh largest city in Southern California, the fourteenth largest city in the State of California, and the seventy seventh largest city in the U.S....

, Bonita

Bonita, California

Bonita is a census-designated place in southern San Diego County, California, nestled between the cities of Chula Vista, National City, and San Diego. The population was 12,538 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Bonita is located at ....

, Sunnyside and the western Sweetwater Valley

Sweetwater River (California)

The Sweetwater River is a long stream in southwestern California in the United States. From its headwaters high in the Cuyamaca Mountains, the river flows generally southwest, first through rugged hinterlands but then into the urban areas surrounding its mouth at San Diego Bay. Its drainage basin...

..

History

Known as the Rancho del Rey (Ranch of the King) under Spain, this land south of the Presidio of San Diego

Presidio of San Diego

El Presidio Reál de San Diego is an historical fort established on May 14, 1769, by Commandant Pedro Fages for Spain. It was the first permanent European settlement on the Pacific Coast of the United States. As the first of the presidios and Spanish missions in California, it was the base of...

 served since 1795 as a presidial cattle grazing ground. The ranch was renamed Rancho de la Nación (Ranch of the Nation) by the Mexican authorities. In 1845, this six square league land grant was made by Governor Pico to his brother-in-law, John Forster. John Forster (1815–1882), born in England, came to California in 1833. In 1837, he married Ysidora Pico, sister of Pío and 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...

. John Forster was later the owner of the Rancho Santa Margarita y Las Flores

Rancho Santa Margarita y Las Flores

Rancho Santa Margarita y Las Flores was a Mexican land grant in present day northwestern San Diego County, California given by governor Juan Alvarado in 1841 to Andrés Pico and Pio Pico...

, and Rancho Valle de San Felipe

Rancho Valle de San Felipe

Rancho Valle de San Felipe was a Mexican land grant in present day San Diego County, California given in 1846 by Governor Pío Pico to Felipe Castillo. The grant was located in the San Felipe Valley in the Laguna Mountains east of present day Julian.-History:...

.

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 de la Nación 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 John Forster in 1866.

In 1854, Forster sold Rancho de la Nación to François Louis Alfred Pioche (1818–1872), a San Francisco financier. Pioche sold the rancho in 1868 to Frank A. Kimball, a native of New Hampshire

New Hampshire

New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...

, and his brothers, Warren and Levi.