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In 1773, Juan
Bautista de Anza, captain of the small Presidio of Tubac
in southern Arizona received permission from Antonio María
Bucareli y Ursúa, Viceroy of New Spain, to find an
overland route from Arizona to northern California. Such a
route was needed for supplying the early California
missions and presidios by ship. The king of Spain
wanted the Viceroy to initiate a strong colonizing effort
in "Alta California" in order to combat recent
encroachments by other European powers (most notably
England and Russia) and to ensure Spanish control over the
recently rediscovered San Francisco harbor.
In January
of 1774 Captain Anza, Father Francisco Garcés, a small
group of soldiers and servants, and a herd of about 200
cattle and pack animals left Tubac to explore and open the
needed supply route to California. Under Captain Anza's
leadership this first expedition established formal and
friendly relationships with the Yuma tribe at the juncture
of the Gila and Colorado Rivers, and elicited the active
support of the tribe's chief, Salvador Palma. On
March 22, 1774 Anza and a portion of his expedition
arrived at mission San Gabriel (near what is now the city
of Los Angeles), having successfully found a route through
near waterless deserts and uncharted mountain passes. An
overland route to Alta California was now available for
use in transporting supplies and colonists to the
outermost reaches of northern New Spain.
For his
accomplishments, Anza was promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel
and charged by Bucareli to take an expedition of settlers
over the newly opened route to establish both a presidio
and a mission in the area of San Francisco Bay. Thus, in
March of 1775, Juan Bautista de Anza assumed the
responsibility of recruiting families and organizing
supplies for the first colonizing expedition to northern
California. After numerous months spent preparing the
newly recruited families for the arduous journey and
delays due to Apache raids on the expedition's horses;
Anza, a small military escort, and approximately 240 men,
women and children left Arizona on October 23, 1775. For
nearly five months they traveled by horseback, mule, and
on foot; arriving at the Presidio of Monte Rey on March
10, 1776. In June of 1776, the colonists, led by
Anza's second in command Lieutenant José Joaquin Moraga,
were given permission to continue their journey to the bay
of San Francisco and build there the presidio and mission
for which the colonists had left their homeland. His
expedition continues, leaving San Francisco, venturing
through the East Bay along the ridges and the shoreline.
He was here in
Hercules
as he traveled north through Rodeo to the Carquinez Strait
and onto Martinez and Concord. |
