Sonoma State Historic Park facts for kids
Sonoma State Historic Park is a special place in the middle of Sonoma, California. It's a California State Park that helps us learn about history. The park has six important spots: the Mission San Francisco Solano, the Sonoma Barracks, the Blue Wing Inn, La Casa Grande, Lachryma Montis, and the Toscano Hotel.
The park started in 1909 with just the Mission. Over the years, the State of California added more historic places. Many of these places are connected to Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo. He was a very important person who helped close the Mission, build the town of Sonoma when it was Mexican, and later helped it grow as an American city.
Historic Sites to Explore
Mission San Francisco Solano: The Last Mission
Mission San Francisco Solano was the 21st and last mission built in Alta California. It was started in 1823. This mission was special because it was the only one built after Mexico became independent from Spain. The Mexican Governor wanted a strong Mexican presence north of San Francisco Bay. This was to stop the Russians, who had a fort called Fort Ross on the coast, from moving further inland. A young Franciscan friar also wanted to move to a better place with more people to teach.
In 1833, the Mexican government decided to close all the missions in Alta California. Governor Figueroa made rules about how to share the mission's land, animals, and tools with the Native American people who lived there. Mariano Vallejo was chosen to manage the closing of the Mission.
Even though it was only open for eleven years, the Mission was successful. However, it was smaller and had fewer industries than the older California missions.
Sonoma Barracks: Soldier's Home
The Sonoma Barracks is a two-story adobe building with a wide balcony. It faces the main plaza in Sonoma. Lieutenant Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo ordered it to be built to house Mexican soldiers. These soldiers had moved from the Presidio of San Francisco in 1835 when the Mission was closing. The soldiers and their commander, Lieutenant Vallejo, also had to control the Native Americans living on the northern border of Mexican California.
On June 14, 1846, a group of American settlers took over Sonoma. They wanted to create their own California Republic. The Barracks became their main building for this short uprising, which is now known as the Bear Flag Revolt.
Blue Wing Inn: Sonoma's First Hotel
The Blue Wing Inn was one of the very first hotels in California north of San Francisco. The first building, made in 1836, was a simple one-story adobe house. But in 1848, during the California Gold Rush, two men bought it. They made it bigger and added a saloon. They added an upper floor and more rooms. At first, it was called Sonoma House. In 1853, one of the owners named it the Blue Wing.
La Casa Grande: Vallejo Family Home
La Casa Grande was the first home for the Vallejo family. At the time, it was one of the biggest and most beautiful private homes in California. It had a wide second-story balcony looking over the town plaza. Even though the house wasn't finished until 1840, part of it was ready for Vallejo's second daughter to be born there in 1837. In total, eleven Vallejo children were born in this house.
Over the years, La Casa Grande became the center of social life north of San Francisco Bay. Around 1843, Mariano Vallejo added a three-story adobe tower to one corner of the house. From this tower, he could see for miles across the Sonoma Valley. The back part of the house had a kitchen and sleeping rooms for Vallejo’s Native American staff.
On June 14, 1846, leaders of the Bear Flag Revolt came to La Casa Grande. After talking for several hours, Vallejo, his brother, and his brother-in-law were taken prisoner and sent to Sutter's Fort.
The Vallejo family lived at La Casa Grande until 1852. That's when their new home, Lachryma Montis, was finished. However, Vallejo kept an office at La Casa Grande. In the 1860s, he worked there on his history of California. He also rented rooms to other people. In 1853, a school for young ladies opened in La Casa Grande. Sadly, a sickness spread in 1856, and the school had to close.
The main part of the house was destroyed by fire in 1867. Only the two-story servants' wing is still standing today.
Lachryma Montis: Vallejo's New Estate
Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo started buying land for his new home in November 1849. He named it Lachryma Montis which means "mountain tear" in Latin. This was a rough translation of the Native American name for a spring on the property. The estate was located a short distance west and north of Sonoma's main plaza. Vallejo decided to move his growing family from La Casa Grande after returning from a big meeting in 1849.
Vallejo's new home was built next to the spring in 1851-1852. This two-story wooden house was special because it was built in pieces on the east coast of the United States. Then, it was shipped all the way around Cape Horn on a sailing ship and put together at its current spot. The house had a beautiful Victorian style with a large Gothic window, porches, and fancy carved wood. Bricks were put inside the walls to keep the house warm in winter and cool in summer. Each room had its own white marble fireplace. Many beautiful items, like crystal chandeliers and a grand piano, were brought from Europe.
The estate also had other buildings, like a large barn and houses for the staff. The Cook House was a wooden building behind the main house. The cook lived in one room, and the other two rooms were for preparing food. El Delirio was a small wooden building in the garden. It was a quiet place for the Vallejo family and their guests to relax. A special warehouse was built in 1852 to store wine, fruit, and other goods. Later, this building became known as the "Swiss Chalet."
Grapevines, fruit trees, and pretty shrubs were planted at the new estate. The long driveway was lined with cottonwood trees and Castilian roses. A pathway around the spring's pool was shaded by vines, and there were also decorative fountains and small, charming buildings on the grounds.
Toscano Hotel: A Place to Stay
The land where the Toscano Hotel stands was sold by Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo in 1852. Soon after, a woman named Mrs. Nathanson built a two-story building there using extra wood from a new church. At first, it was a store and a library called Nathanson’s. Over the years, it changed owners and names, becoming Leiding’s Store from 1860 to 1877.
After a fire destroyed another hotel nearby in 1877, a man named Frank McKeague rented the building. He opened a new Eureka Hotel there. For safety, a second staircase was added. The hotel also got a new front and balcony. Later, it was run by other people and was even a "temperance hotel," meaning no alcohol was allowed.
Around 1886, the hotel was listed as Tuscano, and by 1897, its name changed to the Toscano. In 1898, Stefano Martinoni bought the hotel. More buildings were added, including a kitchen and dining room.
In 1914, the owner's daughter, Amelia, and her husband, Jack Walton, took over the hotel. They continued to run it as a boarding house for workers and a summer place for families. A brochure from 1925 said the hotel could hold seventy-five guests, and it cost $12 a week for adults. Jack Walton became well-known for his friendly welcome and his special "Old Fashioned" drinks. When he passed away in 1955, Amelia closed the hotel. She sold it to the State of California in 1957.
Today, the Toscano Hotel is filled with old furniture and looks much like it did around 1900.
Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo's Role
Vallejo's Important Beginnings
Lieutenant Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo was in charge of the soldiers in San Francisco in 1833. At that time, a new California Governor arrived with orders to build a strong military presence north of San Francisco Bay. The main concern was to stop the Russian America Company from moving further into California from their coastal settlements.
In the same year, the Mexican government decided to close all the missions in Alta California. Mission San Francisco Solano officially closed in 1834. Lieutenant Vallejo was chosen to manage this closing. Vallejo was also told to start a new town where the old Mission was. He began planning Sonoma with its homes, central square, and main road.
At this time, the Governor also gave Vallejo a large piece of land called Rancho Petaluma. This ranch was to the west of the new town. Vallejo was also put in charge of colonization, meaning he could help other Mexican citizens get land grants.
Vallejo was also made the Military Commander of the Northern Frontier. He was responsible for protecting the northern border from outsiders and keeping control over the Native American people north of the Bay. Soldiers from San Francisco moved to Sonoma. The El Cuartel de Sonoma (barracks) was built to house troops, but much of it was used as a headquarters and for storing supplies and weapons. Before the barracks were ready, the soldiers lived in the old Mission buildings.
Vallejo and the Historic Buildings
Vallejo managed the closing of the Mission San Francisco Solano. Over the next few years, he ordered the Sonoma Barracks and La Casa Grande to be built along the northern edge of the plaza. In 1841, he had the current chapel built for the local church. This new chapel replaced the old, worn-out Mission church. In 1851-52, he built Lachryma Montis as his new home, a few blocks northwest of the plaza.
Vallejo also gave the first town lot to Antonio Ortega, a man he hired to help him with the Mission's closing. A small adobe building on that lot later became the core of the Blue Wing Inn. The land for the Toscano Hotel was also bought from Vallejo in 1852. So, Mariano Vallejo had a part in the history of all the important buildings that make up Sonoma State Historic Park.
