Rancho San Agustin
Encyclopedia
Rancho San Agustin was a 4437 acres (18 km²) Mexican land grant
in present day Santa Cruz County, California
given in 1833 by Governor José Figueroa
to José Antonio Bolcoff. The grant was bounded by the San Lorenzo River
on the west and Rancho Carbonera
on the south, and encompassed present day Scotts Valley
.
, Siberia
. Working as a fur trader, Bolcoff deserted a Russian ship at Monterey
in 1815. He quickly assimilated into the Spanish culture, and was given the Spanish name José Antonio Bolcoff. Bolcoff traveled with Governor Pablo Vicente de Solá
, acting as an interpreter. In 1822, Bolcoff settled in Branciforte
and married María Candida Castro, grantee of Rancho Refugio
. Bolcoff was alcade of Branciforte in 1833. In 1833, Bolcoff was granted the one square league Rancho San Augustin, and moved his family to the rancho and built an adobe. In 1839, Bolcoff replaced Francisco Soto as administrator of Mission Santa Cruz
. In 1839, Bolcoff sold Rancho San Augustin to Joseph Ladd Majors.
Joseph Ladd Majors (1806–1868), a trapper from Tennessee
, came to California over the Santa Fe Trail with Capt. Isaac Graham
in 1834. In 1838, Majors became a naturalized Mexican citizen, and at least temporarily, changed his name to Juan José Crisostomo Mayor. In 1839, Majors married María de los Angeles Castro (1818–1903), daughter José Joaquín Castro of Rancho San Andrés
and a sister-in-law of Bolcoff. Over the next decade, Majors would use his naturalized status as the middleman for a series of land deals, obtaining land holdings in his name, and then leasing or selling the land back to his American partners. In 1841, Governor Alvarado granted Rancho San Agustin along with the abandoned Rancho Zayante
to Mayor / Majors.
With the cession
of California to the United States following the Mexican-American War, the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
provided that the land grants would be honored. As required by the Land Act of 1851, a claim for Rancho San Agustin was filed with the Public Land Commission
in 1852, and the grant was patented
to Joseph Ladd Majors in 1866.
In 1852, Majors started selling Rancho San Agustin to Hiram Daniel Scott (1823–1886). Scott had come from Maine
to California in 1846. In 1850 he opened a hotel in Stockton
. Between 1853 and 1856, Scott brought his relatives from Maine to Rancho San Agustin. In 1856, Hiram Scott, went back to the gold mines, and his father, Captain Daniel Scott, took over the rancho. Scott sold 1115 acres (4.5 km²) to Joseph and Grace Errington in 1865. The Erringtons established the first dairy in Scotts Valley.
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...
in present day Santa Cruz County, California
Santa Cruz County, California
Santa Cruz County is a county located on the Pacific coast of the U.S. state of California, on the California Central Coast. The county forms the northern coast of the Monterey Bay. . As of the 2010 U.S. Census, its population was 262,382. The county seat is Santa Cruz...
given in 1833 by Governor José Figueroa
José Figueroa
General José Figueroa , was a General and the Mexican territorial Governor of Alta California from 1833 to 1835.Figueroa oversaw the initial secularization of the missions of upper California, which included the expulsion of the Spanish Franciscan mission officials.This also involved the issuing of...
to José Antonio Bolcoff. The grant was bounded by the San Lorenzo River
San Lorenzo River
The San Lorenzo River drains a large watershed in Santa Cruz County, California. The headwaters originate in the Santa Cruz Mountains at an elevation of , and the river flows through the San Lorenzo Valley before emptying into the Pacific Ocean at Monterey Bay...
on the west and Rancho Carbonera
Rancho Carbonera
Rancho Carbonera was a Mexican land grant in present day Santa Cruz County, California given in 1838 by Governor Juan B. Alvarado to William Buckle . The grant was north of present day Santa Cruz between the San Lorenzo River and Branciforte Creek...
on the south, and encompassed present day Scotts Valley
Scotts Valley, California
Scotts Valley is a small city in Santa Cruz County, California, United States, about thirty miles south of downtown San Jose and six miles north of Monterey Bay, in the upland slope of the Santa Cruz Mountains. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 11,580...
.
History
José Antonio Bolcoff (1794–1866) was born Osip Volkov in Petropavlovsk-KamchatskyPetropavlovsk-Kamchatsky
Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky is the main city and the administrative, industrial, scientific, and cultural center of Kamchatka Krai, Russia. Population: .-History:It was founded by Danish navigator Vitus Bering, in the service of the Russian Navy...
, Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
. Working as a fur trader, Bolcoff deserted a Russian ship at Monterey
Monterey, California
The City of Monterey in Monterey County is located on Monterey Bay along the Pacific coast in Central California. Monterey lies at an elevation of 26 feet above sea level. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 27,810. Monterey is of historical importance because it was the capital of...
in 1815. He quickly assimilated into the Spanish culture, and was given the Spanish name José Antonio Bolcoff. Bolcoff traveled with Governor Pablo Vicente de Solá
Pablo Vicente de Solá
Pablo Vicente de Solá , the last Spanish governor of Alta California from 1815-1822....
, acting as an interpreter. In 1822, Bolcoff settled in Branciforte
Branciforte
Branciforte or as it was named originally, Villa de Branciforte, was a secular pueblo established by the Spanish in the of Las Californias Province of the Viceroyalty of New Spain, in 1797 on the eastern bluff overlooking the San Lorenzo River...
and married María Candida Castro, grantee of Rancho Refugio
Rancho Refugio
Rancho Refugio was a Mexican land grant in present day Santa Cruz County, California given in 1839 by Governor Juan B. Alvarado to María Candida, Jacinta, and María de los Angeles Castro...
. Bolcoff was alcade of Branciforte in 1833. In 1833, Bolcoff was granted the one square league Rancho San Augustin, and moved his family to the rancho and built an adobe. In 1839, Bolcoff replaced Francisco Soto as administrator of Mission Santa Cruz
Mission Santa Cruz
Mission Santa Cruz was established in 1791 and named for the feast of the Exultation of the Cross, the name that the explorer Gaspar de Portolà gave to the area when he camped on the banks of the San Lorenzo River on October 17, 1769, and erected a wooden cross...
. In 1839, Bolcoff sold Rancho San Augustin to Joseph Ladd Majors.
Joseph Ladd Majors (1806–1868), a trapper from Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, came to California over the Santa Fe Trail with Capt. Isaac Graham
Isaac Graham
Isaac Graham was a fur trader and mountain man. In 1830, he joined a hunting and trapping party at Fort Smith, Arkansas that included George Nidever. Graham attended the rendezvous of 1832 and took part in the battle of Pierre's Hole. From there, Graham joined Joseph R. Walker's party headed for...
in 1834. In 1838, Majors became a naturalized Mexican citizen, and at least temporarily, changed his name to Juan José Crisostomo Mayor. In 1839, Majors married María de los Angeles Castro (1818–1903), daughter José Joaquín Castro of Rancho San Andrés
Rancho San Andrés
Rancho San Andrés was a Mexican land grant in present day Santa Cruz County, California given in 1833 by Governor José Figueroa to José Joaquín Castro. The grant on Monterey Bay extended from La Selva Beach on the north to Watsonville Slough on the south...
and a sister-in-law of Bolcoff. Over the next decade, Majors would use his naturalized status as the middleman for a series of land deals, obtaining land holdings in his name, and then leasing or selling the land back to his American partners. In 1841, Governor Alvarado granted Rancho San Agustin along with the abandoned Rancho Zayante
Rancho Zayante
Rancho Zayante was a Mexican land grant in present day Santa Cruz County, California. The grant, measuring one league by one-half league , straddled Zayante Creek, near its confluence with the San Lorenzo River...
to Mayor / Majors.
With the cession
Mexican Cession
The Mexican Cession of 1848 is a historical name in the United States for the region of the present day southwestern United States that Mexico ceded to the U.S...
of California to the United States following the Mexican-American War, the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo is the peace treaty, largely dictated by the United States to the interim government of a militarily occupied Mexico City, that ended the Mexican-American War on February 2, 1848...
provided that the land grants would be honored. As required by the Land Act of 1851, a claim for Rancho San Agustin was filed with the Public Land Commission
Public Land Commission
The Public Land Commission, a former agency of the United States government, was created following the admission of California as a state in 1850 . The Commission's purpose was to determine the validity of prior Spanish and Mexican land grants in California.California Senator William M...
in 1852, and the grant was patented
Land patent
A land patent is a land grant made patent by the sovereign lord over the land in question. To make a such a grant “patent”, such a sovereign lord must document the land grant, securely sign and seal the document and openly publish the same to the public for all to see...
to Joseph Ladd Majors in 1866.
In 1852, Majors started selling Rancho San Agustin to Hiram Daniel Scott (1823–1886). Scott had come from Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
to California in 1846. In 1850 he opened a hotel in Stockton
Stockton, California
Stockton, California, the seat of San Joaquin County, is the fourth-largest city in the Central Valley of the U.S. state of California. With a population of 291,707 at the 2010 census, Stockton ranks as this state's 13th largest city...
. Between 1853 and 1856, Scott brought his relatives from Maine to Rancho San Agustin. In 1856, Hiram Scott, went back to the gold mines, and his father, Captain Daniel Scott, took over the rancho. Scott sold 1115 acres (4.5 km²) to Joseph and Grace Errington in 1865. The Erringtons established the first dairy in Scotts Valley.