Rancho Panoche de San Juan y Los Carrisolitos facts for kids
Rancho Panoche de San Juan y Los Carrisalitos was a very large piece of land in what is now Merced County, California. It was about 22,175 acres, which is like having over 16,000 football fields! This land was given out by the Mexican government in 1844. The governor at the time, Manuel Micheltorena, gave it to two people named Julian Ursua and Pedro Romo.
The name "Panoche de San Juan y Los Carrisalitos" comes from Spanish. It means "raw sugar of San Juan and the little patches of reeds." The rancho was located in the eastern part of the Diablo Range mountains. It was south of another large rancho called Rancho San Luis Gonzaga and near where the San Luis Reservoir is today. The land stretched along Los Carrisalitos Creek. To the north, it was bordered by Los Baños Creek, and to the south, by Ortigalita Creek.
How the Rancho Came to Be
In 1844, Julian Ursua and Pedro Romo officially received the land grant for Rancho Panoche de San Juan y Los Carrisalitos. This grant was for about five square leagues, which is how land was often measured back then.
California Becomes Part of the U.S.
After the Mexican–American War ended in 1848, California became part of the United States. This change was agreed upon in a document called the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. A very important part of this treaty said that the United States would respect the land grants that Mexico had given out. This meant that people who had received land from Mexico, like Julian Ursua and Pedro Romo, would still own their land.
Making the Land Official
To make sure these land claims were clear, the U.S. government passed a law in 1851. This law, called the Land Act of 1851, required people to prove they owned their land. So, in 1853, a claim for Rancho Panoche de San Juan y Los Carrisalitos was submitted to a special group called the Public Land Commission. After reviewing the claim, the government officially recognized the grant. The land was formally given to Julian Ursua and Pedro Romo in 1867. This process is called getting a "land patent," which is like a special certificate proving ownership.
