Rancho Yerba Buena facts for kids

Rancho Yerba Buena, also known as Rancho Socayre, was a very large piece of land in what is now Santa Clara County, California. It was about 24,332 acres (98.5 square kilometers)! In 1833, the Mexican government gave this land as a "land grant" to a person named Antonio Chaboya. This huge ranch was located between Coyote Creek and the nearby hills. Today, parts of it include the Evergreen neighborhood in southeast San José.

History of Rancho Yerba Buena

Antonio Chaboya (1803–1865) was an important figure in the history of this land. His father, Marcos Chaboya, was a soldier who traveled with the famous De Anza Expedition. Antonio also had a brother named Anastasio Chaboya, who received his own land grant called Rancho Sanjon de los Moquelumnes. Antonio Chaboya married Maria Juliana Feliciana Rosario Buitron in 1826. After she passed away, he married Maria Ramona Encarnacion Higuera in 1846.

California Becomes Part of the United States

After the Mexican-American War, California became part of the United States in 1848. The peace agreement, called the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, said that the US government would respect the land grants given by Mexico.

To make sure these land grants were official under US law, a new rule called the Land Act of 1851 was created. Antonio Chaboya filed a claim for Rancho Yerba Buena in 1852. His ownership of the land was officially confirmed in 1859.

Changes to the Rancho Land

Over time, parts of Rancho Yerba Buena were sold. Gustave Touchard (1818–1888), a businessman from San Francisco, bought some of the land from Antonio Chaboya.

There were some disagreements about the exact borders of the rancho. During a long court case about these boundaries, some people started living on parts of the property without permission. These people were called squatters. In 1861, the local sheriff helped to remove them from the land.

Antonio Chaboya passed away in 1865. He left the rancho property to his family. His son, Francisco Chaboya, and his nephew, Salvador Chaboya, were in charge of managing his will.

Modern-Day Rancho Area

A marshy part of the rancho, known as Laguna Socayre, was eventually drained so it could be used for farming. Today, this area is home to Lake Cunningham Park and Eastridge Mall in San José. Lake Cunningham now helps to collect rainwater and prevent floods.