Yerba Buena (town)
Encyclopedia
Yerba Buena was the original name of San Francisco when in the Spanish Las Californias
Province of New Spain
, and then after 1822 in the Mexican
territory of Alta California
, until the Mexican American War ended with the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
, when California
became a territory of the United States
. It was located near the northern end of the San Francisco Peninsula
, as a pueblo
to support the Presidio of San Francisco and the Mission San Francisco de Asís
.
, "Mission Dolores". The plant's common name, Yerba buena
, the same in English and Spanish, is an alternate form of the Spanish
hierba buena (meaning "good herb"). The herb, a native plant
, was given its name by the pioneer missionary
botanists of Las Californias
when they settled the Ohlone peoples area where the plant was part of the habitat
.
The earliest report of the use of the name Yerba Buena comes from the log of George Vancouver
, who in 1792 sailed his ship HMS Discovery
into San Francisco Bay
and anchored "about a league below the presidio
in a place they called Yerba Buena".
, led by Don Gaspar de Portolà
, arriving on November 2, 1769, was the first documented European visit to San Francisco Bay
, claiming it for Spain
as part of the Viceroyalty of New Spain. Seven years later a Spanish mission, Mission San Francisco de Asís
(Mission Dolores), was established, and a small settlement with an associated military fort was built in what is now the Presidio
. In order to build the mission a group of settlers were led to San Francisco Bay in June 1776, by the Spanish officer José Joaquín Moraga
. For housing they built a pueblo and named it Yerba Buena. A supply ship arrived about two months later and the settlers began building the mission. The Yerba Buena pueblo was apparently not located at the future site of the town of Yerba Buena, which was founded much later, in 1835.
Upon independence from Spain
in 1821, the territory of Alta California
became part of Mexico
. In 1835, Englishman William A. Richardson erected the first significant homestead outside the immediate vicinity of the Mission Dolores, near the boat anchorage of Yerba Buena Cove. Over the years Yerba Buena Cove was filled-in; the site of the town of Yerba Buena was on the shore, but today is centered around Portsmouth Square
. Together with Mission Alcalde
Francisco de Haro
, he laid out a street plan for the expanded settlement, and the town, which was named Yerba Buena, began to attract American settlers.
In early 1841 James Douglas of the Hudson's Bay Company
(HBC), operating on the Pacific coast from Fort Vancouver
, went to Yerba Buena to establish an HBC trading post. A large building on the water's edge was purchased. The HBC post had several purposes. It operated as a wholesale store, selling goods exported from Fort Vancouver such as salmon, lumber, and British manufactures in exchange for hides and tallow. The post improved diplomatic relations between the British HBC and the Mexican government of California, making the HBC's fur trapping expeditions into California's Central Valley politically acceptable. Despite the mercantile potential of the HBC store in Yerba Buena, in 1842 it was ordered to be closed by George Simpson
as part of Simpson's general reorganization of the HBC's Columbia District
. The HBC store in Yerba Buena was sold in 1846, two years before the California Gold Rush
transformed Yerba Buena into the major city of North America's west coast.
On July 7, 1846, US Navy Commodore John D. Sloat
claimed California for the United States
during the Mexican-American War, and US Navy Captain John Berrien Montgomery and US Marine Second Lieutenant
Henry Bulls Watson of the USS Portsmouth arrived to claim Yerba Buena two days later by raising the American flag over the town plaza, which is now Portsmouth Square
in honor of the ship. Henry Bulls Watson was placed in command of the garrison there. On July 31, 1846, Yerba Buena doubled in population when about 240 Mormon
migrants from the East coast arrived on the ship Brooklyn, led by Sam Brannan. In August 1846, Lt. Washington Allon Bartlett
was named alcalde
of Yerba Buena. On January 30, 1847, Lt. Bartlett's proclamation changing the name Yerba Buena to San Francisco took effect. The city and the rest of Alta California officially became a United States military territory in 1848 by the terms of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
, which ended the Mexican-American War. California
was admitted for statehood to the United States
on September 9, 1850. The State soon chartered San Francisco as both a City and a County.
Las Californias
The Californias, or in — - was the name given by the Spanish to their northwestern territory of New Spain, comprising the present day states of Baja California and Baja California Sur on the Baja California Peninsula in Mexico; and the present day U.S. state of California in the United States of...
Province of New Spain
New Spain
New Spain, formally called the Viceroyalty of New Spain , was a viceroyalty of the Spanish colonial empire, comprising primarily territories in what was known then as 'América Septentrional' or North America. Its capital was Mexico City, formerly Tenochtitlan, capital of the Aztec Empire...
, and then after 1822 in the Mexican
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
territory of Alta California
Alta California
Alta California was a province and territory in the Viceroyalty of New Spain and later a territory and department in independent Mexico. The territory was created in 1769 out of the northern part of the former province of Las Californias, and consisted of the modern American states of California,...
, until the Mexican American War ended with 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...
, when California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
became a territory of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It was located near the northern end of the San Francisco Peninsula
San Francisco Peninsula
The San Francisco Peninsula is a peninsula in the San Francisco Bay Area that separates the San Francisco Bay from the Pacific Ocean. On its northern tip is the City and County of San Francisco. Its southern base is in Santa Clara County, including the cities of Palo Alto, Los Altos, and Mountain...
, as a pueblo
Pueblo
Pueblo is a term used to describe modern communities of Native Americans in the Southwestern United States of America. The first Spanish explorers of the Southwest used this term to describe the communities housed in apartment-like structures built of stone, adobe mud, and other local material...
to support the Presidio of San Francisco and the Mission San Francisco de Asís
Mission San Francisco de Asís
Mission San Francisco de Asís, or Mission Dolores, is the oldest surviving structure in San Francisco and the sixth religious settlement established as part of the California chain of missions...
.
Name
The name of the town was taken from the plant with the same name that grew around the settlement that was adjacent to the Mission San Francisco de AsísMission San Francisco de Asís
Mission San Francisco de Asís, or Mission Dolores, is the oldest surviving structure in San Francisco and the sixth religious settlement established as part of the California chain of missions...
, "Mission Dolores". The plant's common name, Yerba buena
Yerba Buena
Yerba buena is a rambling aromatic herb of western and northwestern North America, ranging from maritime Alaska southwards to Baja California Sur...
, the same in English and Spanish, is an alternate form of the Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
hierba buena (meaning "good herb"). The herb, a native plant
Native plant
Native plant is a term to describe plants endemic or naturalized to a given area in geologic time.This includes plants that have developed, occur naturally, or existed for many years in an area...
, was given its name by the pioneer missionary
Missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...
botanists of Las Californias
Las Californias
The Californias, or in — - was the name given by the Spanish to their northwestern territory of New Spain, comprising the present day states of Baja California and Baja California Sur on the Baja California Peninsula in Mexico; and the present day U.S. state of California in the United States of...
when they settled the Ohlone peoples area where the plant was part of the habitat
Habitat
* Habitat , a place where a species lives and grows*Human habitat, a place where humans live, work or play** Space habitat, a space station intended as a permanent settlement...
.
The earliest report of the use of the name Yerba Buena comes from the log of George Vancouver
George Vancouver
Captain George Vancouver RN was an English officer of the British Royal Navy, best known for his 1791-95 expedition, which explored and charted North America's northwestern Pacific Coast regions, including the coasts of contemporary Alaska, British Columbia, Washington and Oregon...
, who in 1792 sailed his ship HMS Discovery
HMS Discovery (1789)
HMS Discovery was a Royal Navy ship launched in 1789 and best known as the lead ship in George Vancouver's exploration of the west coast of North America in his famous 1791-1795 expedition. She was converted to a bomb vessel in 1798 and participated in the Battle of Copenhagen. Thereafter she...
into San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay is a shallow, productive estuary through which water draining from approximately forty percent of California, flowing in the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers from the Sierra Nevada mountains, enters the Pacific Ocean...
and anchored "about a league below the presidio
Presidio
A presidio is a fortified base established by the Spanish in North America between the sixteenth and nineteenth centuries. The fortresses were built to protect against pirates, hostile native Americans and enemy colonists. Other presidios were held by Spain in the sixteenth and seventeenth...
in a place they called Yerba Buena".
History
A Spanish exploration partySpanish colonization of the Americas
Colonial expansion under the Spanish Empire was initiated by the Spanish conquistadores and developed by the Monarchy of Spain through its administrators and missionaries. The motivations for colonial expansion were trade and the spread of the Christian faith through indigenous conversions...
, led by Don Gaspar de Portolà
Gaspar de Portolà
Gaspar de Portolà i Rovira was a soldier, governor of Baja and Alta California , explorer and founder of San Diego and Monterey. He was born in Os de Balaguer, province of Lleida, in Catalonia, Spain, of Catalan nobility. Don Gaspar served as a soldier in the Spanish army in Italy and Portugal...
, arriving on November 2, 1769, was the first documented European visit to San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay is a shallow, productive estuary through which water draining from approximately forty percent of California, flowing in the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers from the Sierra Nevada mountains, enters the Pacific Ocean...
, claiming it for Spain
Spain
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...
as part of the Viceroyalty of New Spain. Seven years later a Spanish mission, Mission San Francisco de Asís
Mission San Francisco de Asís
Mission San Francisco de Asís, or Mission Dolores, is the oldest surviving structure in San Francisco and the sixth religious settlement established as part of the California chain of missions...
(Mission Dolores), was established, and a small settlement with an associated military fort was built in what is now the Presidio
Presidio of San Francisco
The Presidio of San Francisco is a park on the northern tip of the San Francisco Peninsula in San Francisco, California, within the Golden Gate National Recreation Area...
. In order to build the mission a group of settlers were led to San Francisco Bay in June 1776, by the Spanish officer José Joaquín Moraga
José Joaquín Moraga
José Joaquín de la Santísima Trinidad Moraga was an early explorer to Alta California...
. For housing they built a pueblo and named it Yerba Buena. A supply ship arrived about two months later and the settlers began building the mission. The Yerba Buena pueblo was apparently not located at the future site of the town of Yerba Buena, which was founded much later, in 1835.
Upon independence from Spain
Spain
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...
in 1821, the territory of Alta California
Alta California
Alta California was a province and territory in the Viceroyalty of New Spain and later a territory and department in independent Mexico. The territory was created in 1769 out of the northern part of the former province of Las Californias, and consisted of the modern American states of California,...
became part of Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
. In 1835, Englishman William A. Richardson erected the first significant homestead outside the immediate vicinity of the Mission Dolores, near the boat anchorage of Yerba Buena Cove. Over the years Yerba Buena Cove was filled-in; the site of the town of Yerba Buena was on the shore, but today is centered around Portsmouth Square
Portsmouth Square
Portsmouth Square is a one-block park in Chinatown, San Francisco, California, that is bounded by Kearny Street on the east, Washington Street on the north, Clay Street on the south, and Walter Lum Place on the west....
. Together with Mission Alcalde
Alcalde
Alcalde , or Alcalde ordinario, is the traditional Spanish municipal magistrate, who had both judicial and administrative functions. An alcalde was, in the absence of a corregidor, the presiding officer of the Castilian cabildo and judge of first instance of a town...
Francisco de Haro
Francisco de Haro
Francisco de Haro was the first Alcalde of Yerba Buena in 1834.-Life:De Haro was born in Compostela, Nayarit, Mexico and came to San Francisco in 1819. He was the first Alcalde of Yerba Buena in 1834. He was instrumental in planning the street grid of the town along with Englishman William A....
, he laid out a street plan for the expanded settlement, and the town, which was named Yerba Buena, began to attract American settlers.
In early 1841 James Douglas of the Hudson's Bay Company
Hudson's Bay Company
The Hudson's Bay Company , abbreviated HBC, or "The Bay" is the oldest commercial corporation in North America and one of the oldest in the world. A fur trading business for much of its existence, today Hudson's Bay Company owns and operates retail stores throughout Canada...
(HBC), operating on the Pacific coast from Fort Vancouver
Fort Vancouver
Fort Vancouver was a 19th century fur trading outpost along the Columbia River that served as the headquarters of the Hudson's Bay Company in the company's Columbia District...
, went to Yerba Buena to establish an HBC trading post. A large building on the water's edge was purchased. The HBC post had several purposes. It operated as a wholesale store, selling goods exported from Fort Vancouver such as salmon, lumber, and British manufactures in exchange for hides and tallow. The post improved diplomatic relations between the British HBC and the Mexican government of California, making the HBC's fur trapping expeditions into California's Central Valley politically acceptable. Despite the mercantile potential of the HBC store in Yerba Buena, in 1842 it was ordered to be closed by George Simpson
George Simpson (administrator)
Sir George Simpson was a Scots-Quebecer and employee of the Hudson's Bay Company . His title was Governor-in-Chief of Rupert's Land and administrator over the Northwest Territories and Columbia Department in British North America from 1821 to 1860.-Early years:George Simpson was born in Dingwall,...
as part of Simpson's general reorganization of the HBC's Columbia District
Columbia District
The Columbia District was a fur trading district in the Pacific Northwest region of British North America in the 19th century. It was explored by the North West Company between 1793 and 1811, and established as an operating fur district around 1810...
. The HBC store in Yerba Buena was sold in 1846, two years before the California Gold Rush
California Gold Rush
The California Gold Rush began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The first to hear confirmed information of the gold rush were the people in Oregon, the Sandwich Islands , and Latin America, who were the first to start flocking to...
transformed Yerba Buena into the major city of North America's west coast.
On July 7, 1846, US Navy Commodore John D. Sloat
John D. Sloat
John Drake Sloat was a commodore in the United States Navy who, in 1846, claimed California for the United States.-Life:...
claimed California for the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
during the Mexican-American War, and US Navy Captain John Berrien Montgomery and US Marine Second Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...
Henry Bulls Watson of the USS Portsmouth arrived to claim Yerba Buena two days later by raising the American flag over the town plaza, which is now Portsmouth Square
Portsmouth Square
Portsmouth Square is a one-block park in Chinatown, San Francisco, California, that is bounded by Kearny Street on the east, Washington Street on the north, Clay Street on the south, and Walter Lum Place on the west....
in honor of the ship. Henry Bulls Watson was placed in command of the garrison there. On July 31, 1846, Yerba Buena doubled in population when about 240 Mormon
Mormon
The term Mormon most commonly denotes an adherent, practitioner, follower, or constituent of Mormonism, which is the largest branch of the Latter Day Saint movement in restorationist Christianity...
migrants from the East coast arrived on the ship Brooklyn, led by Sam Brannan. In August 1846, Lt. Washington Allon Bartlett
Washington Allon Bartlett
Washington Allon Bartlett was the first alcalde of the American-era San Francisco serving from August 14, 1846 to January 31, 1847.-Early life and career:...
was named alcalde
Alcalde
Alcalde , or Alcalde ordinario, is the traditional Spanish municipal magistrate, who had both judicial and administrative functions. An alcalde was, in the absence of a corregidor, the presiding officer of the Castilian cabildo and judge of first instance of a town...
of Yerba Buena. On January 30, 1847, Lt. Bartlett's proclamation changing the name Yerba Buena to San Francisco took effect. The city and the rest of Alta California officially became a United States military territory in 1848 by the terms of the 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...
, which ended the Mexican-American War. California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
was admitted for statehood to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
on September 9, 1850. The State soon chartered San Francisco as both a City and a County.
External links
- Yerba Buena Cove, map from 1851-1852 showing Yerba Buena Cove
- View of San Francisco, formerly Yerba Buena, in 1846-7 before the discovery of gold, American Memory Map Collections, Library of Congress; a panoramic map of Yerba Buena Cove and early San Francisco