Rancho Pescadero (Gonzalez) facts for kids

Rancho Pescadero (also known as Rancho San Antonio) was a large piece of land in what is now San Mateo County, California. It was about 3,282 acres big. In 1833, the Mexican government gave this land as a "land grant" to a person named Juan José Gonzales. Back then, this area was part of Santa Cruz County. Later, in 1868, the county lines changed, and it became part of San Mateo County. The name "Pescadero" means "fishing place" in Spanish. This land stretched along the Pacific coast and included the town we know today as Pescadero.

History of Rancho Pescadero

Early Days and Land Grants

Juan José Gonzales came to California with his father in 1775. They were part of the De Anza Expedition, a group of settlers. In 1833, Juan José Gonzales was in charge of the Mission Santa Cruz.

During Mexican rule, big changes happened in California. The large mission lands were being broken up. Many settlers asked the government for their own land. Between 1834 and 1836, the Mexican government gave away millions of acres of former mission lands.

The old cattle ranches near Pescadero and Año Nuevo, which used to belong to the missions, were divided. They became three separate land grants for Mexican citizens. These new land grants were Rancho San Antonio (or Pescadero), Rancho Punta del Año Nuevo, and Rancho Butano.

Juan José Gonzales and His Rancho

Juan José Gonzales received the land for Rancho Pescadero. It used to be pasture land for Mission Santa Cruz. He built an adobe house near Pescadero Creek. He also had a wooden house near Butano Creek where his vaqueros (cowboys) lived.

Gonzales had a big family with thirteen children. He lived near Mission Santa Cruz and did not live on the rancho full-time. His vaqueros and other workers took care of the land and the cattle.

Land Claims and New Settlers

After California became part of the United States, people had to prove they owned their land. In 1852, a claim for Rancho Pescadero was filed with the government.

Gonzales had originally asked for a much larger piece of land. However, the official papers said his grant was smaller. It was about one league (around 2.6 miles) along the coast and three-quarters of a league wide. Gonzales tried to get more land, but the U.S. Supreme Court did not agree in 1859. So, in 1866, he was officially given the smaller grant.

In 1852, Juan Gonzales gave a small part of the Pescadero land to his family. He also sold 800 acres of the valley floor to the Moore family. Alexander Moore came to California in 1847 and moved to Pescadero in 1850. He built his house in 1853.

By 1860, other families also started buying land. The Bartlett Weeks Family bought 157 acres in what is now downtown Pescadero. They became neighbors with the Moores. More and more American and other settlers arrived. This changed the coastal area into many smaller pieces of land owned by different people.