The Battle of Santa Clara, nicknamed the "Battle of the Mustard Stalks", was a skirmish during the Mexican–American War

Mexican–American War

The Mexican–American War, also known as the First American Intervention, the Mexican War, or the U.S.–Mexican War, was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848 in the wake of the 1845 U.S...

, fought on January 2, 1847, 2½ miles west of Mission Santa Clara de Asís

Mission Santa Clara de Asís

Mission Santa Clara de Asís was founded on January 12, 1777 and named for Santa Clara de Asis , the foundress of the order of the Poor Clares. Although ruined and rebuilt six times, the settlement was never abandoned.-History:...

 in California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

. It was the only engagement of its type in Northern California during the war.

Background

Californio

Californio

Californio is a term used to identify a Spanish-speaking Catholic people, regardless of race, born in California before 1848...

s were angry at United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 immigrants settling on their ranchos

Ranchos of California

The Spanish, and later the Méxican government encouraged settlement of territory now known as California by the establishment of large land grants called ranchos, from which the English ranch is derived. Devoted to raising cattle and sheep, the owners of the ranchos attempted to pattern themselves...

. Six men of the U.S. sloop

Sloop

A sloop is a sail boat with a fore-and-aft rig and a single mast farther forward than the mast of a cutter....

 Warren

USS Warren (1827)

The fourth USS Warren was a second-class sloop-of-war in the United States Navy.Warren was built at the Boston Navy Yard between 1825 and 1827 and was commissioned at her builders on 14 January 1827, Master Commandant Lawrence Kearny in command....

, who had gone ashore to buy cattle from Mexicans for food, were taken hostage by a group under Francisco Sánchez. One of the hostages was Lieutenant Washington Allon Bartlett

Washington Allon Bartlett

Washington Allon Bartlett was the first alcalde of the American-era San Francisco serving from August 14, 1846 to January 31, 1847.-Early life and career:...

, the alcalde

Alcalde

Alcalde , or Alcalde ordinario, is the traditional Spanish municipal magistrate, who had both judicial and administrative functions. An alcalde was, in the absence of a corregidor, the presiding officer of the Castilian cabildo and judge of first instance of a town...

 of Yerba Buena (soon to be renamed San Francisco). Captains Joseph Aram and Charles Maria Weber, commanding U.S. volunteers at Santa Clara and San Jose

San Jose, California

San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...

 respectively, were sent to free them. Sánchez had command of 200 men, so U.S. marines

United States Marine Corps

The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...

 and artillery under Captain Marston were dispatched as reinforcement. James F. Reed

James F. Reed

James Frazier Reed was a businessman, soldier and, most notably, an organizing member of the ill-fated 1846 Donner Party emigration to California.-Early life:...

, acting lieutenant of the San Jose volunteer contingent, was in the area to muster a rescue party for his family, members of the Donner Party

Donner Party

The Donner Party was a group of American pioneers who set out for California in a wagon train. Delayed by a series of mishaps, they spent the winter of 1846–47 snowbound in the Sierra Nevada...

 snowbound in the high Sierras. The war made volunteers hard for him to find.

Battle

The Americans were in a mustard field in a dry creek when the Mexicans opened fire. Once the Americans reached open ground the fighting turned their way. An armistice was agreed after two hours, by which time four Mexicans were killed, with four Mexicans and two Americans injured. Tinkham writes, "The women stood on the housetops at Santa Clara and anxiously watched the battle. After the battle the regulars marched into the pueblo and were given a rousing reception and a dinner."

Aftermath

The putative site of the "Armistice Oak" is marked beside El Camino Real

El Camino Real (California)

El Camino Real and sometimes associated with Calle Real usually refers to the 600-mile California Mission Trail, connecting the former Alta California's 21 missions , 4 presidios, and several pueblos, stretching from Mission San Diego de Alcalá in San Diego...

 near Lawrence Expressway. The Mexicans retreated to the Santa Cruz Mountains

Santa Cruz Mountains

The Santa Cruz Mountains, part of the Pacific Coast Ranges, are a mountain range in central California, United States. They form a ridge along the San Francisco Peninsula, south of San Francisco, separating the Pacific Ocean from San Francisco Bay and the Santa Clara Valley, and continuing south,...

. On January 8, the Marines having arrived, Sánchez surrendered. The Americans did agree to respect the Californios' property.

External links

• Historical Marker Database:
  • The Battle of Santa Clara; January 2-7, 1847
  • Armistice Oak Tree Site