Rancho La Merced facts for kids

Rancho La Merced was a large piece of land, about 2,363 acres, given as a Mexican land grant. This happened in 1844 in what is now Los Angeles County, California. Governor Manuel Micheltorena gave this land to Casilda Soto de Lobo.

The name "La Merced" means "Mercy of God" in Spanish. Today, parts of the cities of Montebello and Monterey Park are located where Rancho La Merced once was.

History of Rancho La Merced

How the Rancho Was Granted

In 1844, Governor Micheltorena officially gave Rancho La Merced to Casilda Soto de Lobo. She was the widow of a soldier who worked at the San Gabriel Mission.

Changing Owners of the Rancho

In 1850, a man named William Workman bought Rancho La Merced from Casilda Soto. Just one year later, in 1851, Workman shared the land. He gave half of it to his son-in-law, Francisco P. Temple. The other half went to Juan Matias Sanchez, who used to be the ranch foreman.

The Rancho Becomes Part of the U.S.

After the Mexican-American War, California became part of the United States. This change was agreed upon in the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. This treaty promised that the existing Mexican land grants, like Rancho La Merced, would still be valid.

To make these land grants official under U.S. law, a special claim had to be filed. Temple and Sanchez filed their claim for Rancho La Merced in 1853. The government officially recognized their ownership in 1872. This process is called "patenting" the land.

Losing the Rancho

In 1876, the bank owned by Temple and Workman had serious problems and failed. Because of this, Temple and Sanchez had to give up their land. They had borrowed money from a wealthy businessman named Elias J. "Lucky" Baldwin. When they couldn't pay back the loan, Baldwin took ownership of the rancho. This process is known as "foreclosure."

After losing the rancho, William Workman passed away in 1876. Francisco P. Temple also suffered a stroke and passed away in 1880. Juan Matias Sanchez, who had lived on the land, also passed away in 1885.

Later, Alessandro Repetto, a sheep rancher from Italy, bought the rancho. In 1886, businessman Harris Newmark and four other people purchased the ranch from Repetto.

Historic Sites of the Rancho

The Juan Matias Sanchez Adobe

The Juan Matias Sanchez Adobe is a historic house that was partly built in 1845. Casilda Soto de Lobo and her three sons started building it.

When William Workman gave Juan Matias Sanchez his share of the land in 1851, Sanchez moved into the adobe house. He added a new section to the house, making it the main building of his ranch. Sanchez continued to live in the house and on about 200 acres of land until he passed away in 1885.

Today, the Montebello Historical Society and the city of Montebello own the Juan Matias Sanchez Adobe. They received the deed to the property in 1972 from Josephine Scott Crocker.