1. No category

4/19/2015
Social Studies Fact Cards
SOCIAL STUDIES FACT CARDS CALIFORNIA HISTORY BY
DECADES
Copyright © by Toucan Valley Publications, Inc. | Source Citation 1800s
Battle of San Diego took place between Spanish settlers and
the crew of the American ship Lelia Byrd
As the new century opened, the region that is now California
remained under the control of Spain. Spanish settlers and
missionaries, however, were caught in a dilemma. Spain was having
trouble sending supplies to its colonists in California. American,
British, and others, however, sailed here with the goods the settlers
needed. Even though it was officially illegal for foreign ships to dock
in California waters, many ships smuggled in goods.
One such smuggler was William Shaler. A Connecticut sea captain, he
often put into California ports, trading household goods for valuable
otter skins. Although he usually made deals with the local authorities,
giving them bribes to avoid trouble, Shaler ran into problems in 1803
when the commandant of San Diego took away several hundred otter
skins from him. Shaler hoped that the commandant would secretly
sell him back the skins, but the men he sent ashore to make the offer
were arrested. Shaler sent three more men, armed with pistols, to
rescue the first party. He then sailed his ship, the Lelia Byrd, out past
the battery of Spanish cannon at the end of the bay. They traded
shots. Although the only damage to either side were some torn sails,
the incident is known as the Battle of San Diego. Shaler continued to
smuggle goods, and in 1808 he published the first account of
California by an American, "Journal of a Voyage Between China and
the North­Western Coast of America."
Father Lasuén died at Mission San Carlos Borromeo
In 1803, Father Fermín Francisco de Lasuén, who was the President
http://factcards.califa.org/dec/1800s.html
1/3
4/19/2015
Social Studies Fact Cards
of all missions in Alta California, died at Mission San Carlos
Borromeo. Born in Spain, Lasuén first came to the New World in 1768
as a Franciscan missionary at Loreto, in Baja California. He went
north in 1773 to serve under Serra at Missions San Gabriel, San Juan
Capistrano, and San Diego. After Serra’s death, Lasuén was in charge
of the missions. During his 18 years in that position, he rebuilt the
existing mission churches in what is known as the "mission style."
Tile roofs and stone were added to the early adobe huts, giving the
structures the grandeur he remembered from Spain. Lasuén
dedicated nine new missions, raising the total number to 18. Father
Lasuén was the last strong leader of the mission system in California.
He impressed the British captain George Vancouver; Vancouver later
named Point Fermin of San Pedro Bay for him.
Mission Santa Inés was founded
The chain of Spanish missions in California was almost complete by
1800. During the next 22 years there would be just three more
missions founded here. The first of these was dedicated by Father
Lasuén’s successor, Father Estévan Tápis, on September 17, 1804.
Mission Santa Inés Virgin y Martin was situated where the town of
Solvang now stands, about 25 miles east of Mission La Purísima
Concepción. Named for St. Agnes, a Roman girl noted for her purity,
it also became the name of the Santa Ynez valley, mountains, and
river. It was the last mission founded between San Diego and San
Francisco. Because of its mountainous setting, Santa Inés was called
the Mission of the Passes, and the Hidden Gem of the Missions. Santa
Inés had a water­powered grist mill used to grind corn and wheat
into flour. The grist mill was built in 1820 by Joseph Chapman, who
had escaped from a pirate ship and settled here.
Rezanov obtained trading rights for Russians in northern
California
During the 1800s, the Russian fur traders who had long worked in
Alaska and the Pacific Northwest decided to press for more trading
rights in northern California. On April 5, 1806, Russian Count Nikolai
Petrovich Rezanov entered San Francisco Bay on board the ship Juno.
Rezonov was a founder of the Russian­American Company. He was
sent by the Russian Empress Catherine II to investigate the
opportunities to expand into North America. He had arrived in Sitka,
http://factcards.califa.org/dec/1800s.html
2/3
4/19/2015
Social Studies Fact Cards
the Russian trading post in Alaska, in 1805. He found the Russians
there practically starving, forced to eat pigeons to survive because no
food shipments had arrived. So in April he sailed to San Francisco to
beg for aid from the Spanish.
He was a charming man, and he impressed the commandant of the
port. He also impressed the commandant’s daughter, Concepción
Argüello, and the two of them fell in love. Eventually Rezanov
received permission from the girl’s parents and the Franciscan
priests, and they were married. He then had no trouble persuading
the Spanish to give him supplies for the starving Russian colony at
Sitka. He left for Sitka with wheat, barley, peas, beans, tallow, and
dried meat on May 8, 1806. The plan was for him to return to Russia
to cement alliances between Spain and Russia, and then come back
to San Francisco. He never returned.
Concepción Argüello waited for 36 years before she learned that
Rezanov had died while crossing Siberia towards home. She took the
vows of a nun in 1850. Their tragic romance, as well as starting to
open the doors to trade between Russia and Spain, became the
theme of a poem by Bret Harte.
Go to Top http://factcards.califa.org/dec/1800s.html
3/3