Rancho Los Capitancillos facts for kids

Rancho Los Capitancillos was a large piece of land, about 3,360-acre (13.6 km²), given out by the Mexican government in 1842. This land grant was located in what is now Santa Clara County, California. The name "Los Capitancillos" means "The Little Captains" in Spanish.

The rancho was given to a person named Justo Larios by Governor Juan B. Alvarado. It was located south of today's San Jose and bordered another rancho called Rancho San Vicente, which belonged to José de los Reyes Berreyesa.

A Look Back at Rancho Los Capitancillos

Who Owned the Rancho?

Justo Larios, who was born in 1808, was a soldier who worked with cannons at the Presidio of San Francisco. In 1842, he was given the Rancho Los Capitancillos, which was about one square league in size. In 1845, Justo Larios sold the entire rancho to Grove C. Cook. Then, in 1848, Cook sold the northern part of the land, known as Rancho Cañada de los Capitancillos, to a company called the Guadalupe Mining Company. After Cook passed away in 1852, Charles Fossat bought three-quarters of the rancho in a special sale.

How the Land Became Part of the U.S.

After the Mexican-American War, California became part of the United States in 1848. The peace agreement, called the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, promised that the land grants given by Mexico would still be valid. To make sure these land claims were official, a special process was set up. In 1852, a claim for Rancho Los Capitancillos was filed with the Public Land Commission. This commission was like a court that decided who truly owned the land. The commission approved the grant in 1854. Later, a U.S. District Court also approved it in 1857. Even though the U.S. Supreme Court first disagreed, they eventually approved the grant. Finally, in 1865, Charles Fossat was officially given the legal document, called a patent, for the land.

The Big Mine Discovery

In 1845, important mines were found in the area, known as the New Almaden Quicksilver Mines. Quicksilver is another name for mercury, which was very useful. Mining started in 1847, just in time for the California Gold Rush, when many people were looking for valuable metals. There was a big disagreement about who owned the mine. José Reyes Berreyesa said the mine was on his land, Rancho San Vicente. Justo Larios also claimed it was on his Rancho Los Capitancillos. Even the United States government said the mine was on public land. This led to a very complicated legal case. The New York Times newspaper called it "one of the most remarkable civil trials." The case, called United States v. Andres Castillero, eventually went all the way to the United States Supreme Court. In 1862, the Supreme Court finally decided that the mine itself was on Rancho Los Capitancillos. However, the buildings and equipment used for mining, located at the bottom of the hill, were on Rancho San Vicente. The mining company then bought the rights to both parts of the land. In 1864, they sold the entire mining operation to the Quicksilver Mining Company.