CA History Flashcards
influential leader in establishing the Mission System in CA. He was a well-respected Spanish Priest. In 1767, the Spanish King put him in charge of establishing the CA Missions. In 1769, he and his fellow Spaniards began their expedition.
Father Junipero Serra
the nearest mission to Cal Poly Pomona. It was founded in 1771. The majority of the mission is original, but there have been some replacements due to an earthquake in 1804. Fountain Square is located in the middle, decorated with beautiful fountains and gardens
The San Gabriel Mission
was first consecrated in 1778. It is the oldest cemetery in LA county
Campo Santo Cemetery
miners squatted by a stream, filled a flat-bottomed pan with dirt and water and then swirled the pan with the contents for a few minutes. Any gold would settle to the bottom of the pan due to its weight
Panning
a box-like contraction that allowed miners to sift through more dirt and hopefully reach their mine goals
Rocker
invented by the end of 1849; this 12-foot-long trough let water and dirt flow through at a quicker pace and in larger quantities.
Long tone
written by James Hutchings; handled the list of ten guidelines, which then turned mining code into simple rules. They revolved around not imposing on someone else’s claim, working too hard, no drinking, and no stealing. It also listed some punishments if people chose to disobey.
Miner’s Ten Commandments
- The Spanish Mission System in CA began in 1769.
- The goal of the Missions was to gain a foothold in CA before the Russians.
- Another goal was to spread the Christian faith to the Native American Indians living in CA
Mission System
- Over 54 days, 21 California Missions were established. They spanned over 650 miles on the historic rout El Camino Real from San Francisco to modern-day Sonoma
- Some Native Americans came to live in the mission willingly. However, they were not treated the same as the Spaniards. Often, the Native Americans were mistreated by the Spanish Soldiers.
- The Native Americans lived in straw huts called kilys
- While living in the missions, Native Americans were taught how to speak Spanish, farm, and other skills
- Every mission has a memorial statue of Father Junipero Serra to acknowledge the founder of the missions
Mission System
- 1848-1852
- January 1848, James Marshall (a carpenter) working at Sutter’s Mill found a glittery metal within the shallows of the American River
- The discovery was meant to keep a secret. Nearly 6,000 people rushed to CA with dreams of striking it rich
- Spring of 1849, the Gold Rush turned into a global epidemic. People flocked here from all over. Sea routes were the most popular, bringing in people over the Isthmus of Panama and Cape Hope. The land routes were more desirable
- Disease killed many, fatal accidents, dehydration, famine, and heat exhaustion all contributed to large number of deaths
Gold Rush
- Bands of hunters and gatherers from Central Asia crossed a land bridge in Alaska across the Bering Strait and systematically populated North and South America. For about 15,000 years ancestors of Native Americans have been living throughout the America’s in the New World. CA’s history goes back over 15,000 years
- In what is now known as the state of CA, the Native American population was about 275,000 to 500,000 in the 18th century before the first Europeans had arrived.
- There were 250 distinct cultures and 300 dialects with over 100 languages spoken making communicating with neighbors challenging.
CA’s Earliest Inhabitants: Native American Origins
- Native Americans in CA typically organized themselves in hunter and gatherer societies.
- There was also no written language for Native Americans in CA, which meant our knowledge of their past is found through archeological evidence and the stories of modern Native Americans
- Vikings settled parts of North America off the coast of northern Canada as early as 1000 C.E. (A.D)
- Chinese landed on shores of CA in 400 C.E. (A.D.)
CA’s earliest inhabitants
tribes such as the Shasta and Wiyot lived in northern “rainforest” environments and lived along lagoons, coastal bays and rivers capitalizing on the abundant food sources. They often used dugout canoes and built redwood and cedar planked homes
Native American Tribes: North
Tribes such as the Miwok and Lassick lived along the vast central valley and lived throughout the Sierra Nevada’s along rivers and streams. The staple here was acorns and salmon, and they lived in dome homes built with pine, grass, or tule
Native American Tribes: Central
tribes such as the Kumeyaay and the Chumash lived in Southern California and built ewas (homes built with willow branches or reeds) and often traveled seasonally with the food sources. Acorns, deer, rabbits, and native plants were the staple of these Southern tribes.
Native American Tribes: Southern
tribal villages were organized independently and governed internally. Each tribe would consist of a chieftain who would organize events and settle conflicts. Most tribes were organized around a system of lineage or family descent which was a small group of extended family members living together. A grouping of lineages would form a clan which was also very common. CA tribes never reached the massive size and governing capabilities of the Iroquois Confederacy which contributed heavily to the founding ideas and principles of the Declaration of Independence and our national identity
Tribal organization
CA Indian religion was animistic in nature and natural elements were worshipped and revered. The shaman, or medicine man was the central leader of religious activities and the tribe’s doctor and healer. Rituals and religious activities were central to these tribes and were tragically labeled witchcraft by the coming European colonists.
religion
worship of nature and a belief that the natural world is alive with spirits
animism
organizational unit of a tribe in large groups of extended families
Clan
tribal system of organization based on family descent
Lineage
hollowed out stone (or cottonwood log) for grinding seeds, nuts, or clay
Mortar
designs painted on rock
pictograph
religious and medical practitioner of a tribe
Shaman
Acorns have been the most important staple plant food of CA’s Native Americans. They are harvested from one of the many varieties of oak trees found throughout the state of CA. they are gathered in autumn and stored in above ground granary baskets. The bitter tannic acid needs to be removed by pouring water over the acorn meal in a process called leaching. This food was made into a break or acorn meal. Evidence of grinding rocks called morteros or morters and are found throughout CA. acorn production is labor intensive and requires skillful manipulation of a seemingly inedible food
Acorn Culture
essential and groups throughout CA would trade for salt, spices and various other prized foods and goods. Inland Mojave Indians would trade corn and beans they planted for costal shells. The unique climates and physical geography of CA influenced this economic opportunity of each group
Trade
- Queen Isabella and the Spanish monarchy had an interest in spreading Christianity and making Spain more powerful
- The same year Christopher Columbus set sail to the New World, Queen Isabella expelled all the Muslims and Jews from Spain. Columbus sailed to the Caribbean under Spanish patronage in the 1490’s. His voyages created a buzz in Spain and exploration and exploitation became a national interest
- Conquistadors such as Hernan Cortes who conquered the Aztec, and Francisco Pizarro who conquered the Inca also became famous. Their stories of trickery filled volumes of books
- As explorers moved west, they heard of a body of water connecting the Atlantic to the Pacific. The slave labor, cash crops, and gold also served as an incentive for these explorers
Roots of Spanish Exploration
in an attempt to find the famed passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific (which did not exist until the Panama Canal of 1912) sailed from the coast of Mexico (New Spain) to San Diego off Ballast Point. He was also the first European to step foot in CA in 1542
Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo
unable to find the lost city of gold, or any spice islands reached CA in 1579 on his way to complete his voyage around the world
Sir Francis Drake
was sent to find a new port for the Spanish galleons which were large ships used by Spanish from 1400-1700. He was famous for naming San Diego after Saint Didacus de Alcala and creating highly accurate maps of CA used until the 1790’s. He also discovered the port of Monterey
Sebastian Vizcaino
also sailed and charted the coast of CA on his way to the Bering Strait on his failed attempt to find the Northwest Passage.
Captain James Cook
- Russian expeditions and trading companies along the west coast of the Pacific also led to the Spanish efforts to colonize CA
- The spread of infectious diseases by the Spanish throughout the New World, and brutal mistreatment decimated the indigenous populations of the New World
- the decimation of the population of Mexico was mostly by the exchange of deadly diseases by the European colonists. CA would be no exception.
Effects of Exploration and Colonization
Spanish explorer who looked for the passage between the Atlantic and the Pacific. He was the first European to step foot in CA
Juan Rodrigues Cabrillo
conquistador who conquered the Aztec in Mexico
Hernan Cortes
first European to rediscover the New World
Christopher Columbus
sailed along CA looking for Northwest passage
Captain James Cook
sailed along CA in his voyage around the world
Sir Francis Drake
Spanish explorer who sailed along CA and gave San Diego its name. He created detailed maps.
Sebastian Vizcaino
Spanish ship
Galleon
a more powerful and technologically advanced country taking over and occupying a weaker one
Colonization
Spanish explorers and soldiers who brought much of the New World under the control of Spain
Conquistador
North and South America
New World
Europe, Asia, and Africa
Old World
- The Spanish did not become really interested in colonizing Alta California (upper CA) until the Russians started trading and exploring down the west coast of North America
- In 1768, the governor of New Spain sent 3 expeditions to San Diego and Monterey led by Gaspar de Portola
- Father Junipero Serra led one of these famed expeditions and established the first mission in 1769. A mission is a religious, cultural, and economic center often constructed of wood and adobe.
- There were 21 missions stretching from San Diego to Sonoma. The chain of mission is known as the El Camino Real and the missions are spaced every 30 miles, or one day’s ride on a horse or wagon.
Mission system
- From a Spanish point of view, the main objective of the Missions was to convert Native Americans to Catholicism, to establish cultural and agricultural centers and to populate Alta CA
- From the Native American’s perspective, the intention was to enslave native peoples by the sword and the cross with forced labor and slave-like conditions
- The controversial benefits of the Mission System was the spread of cultural/technological advancements brought by Spain and the spread of Christianity. Agricultural self-sufficiency was a primary objective
- The negative effects include the dehumanization of Native Americans, virtual slavery, along with whippings and keeping subjects in chains. There was an active yet ineffective resistance.
Mission System
- Some Native Americans came voluntarily to the missions, but some were bribed or tricked. Children were often baptized as infants and then when those babies came of age, the Spanish took them from their families because they were considered “Christians” and religious subjects. The Native Americans were not allowed to leave.
- CA began to change from a traditional hunter and gather society with pockets of farming to more of a agriculturally dominated society.
- The primary goal of the mission was to create self-sufficient communities that were able to produce an agricultural surplus. The Spanish used missions, pueblos (towns), and presidios (forts) to gain social and economic control of CA. the main function of the missions was to regulate the daily activities of the “Indians”, whereas the presidios were to suppress rebellions from European settlers and Native Americans.
- The native population declined by 75% during the Mission System.
Mission System
in 1768, the governor of New Spain sent 3 expeditions to San Diego and Monterey
Gaspar de Portola
Franciscan priest who established the first mission in San Diego in 1769
Father Junipero Serra
Spanish name for present day CA
Alta CA
