José Antonio Castro (1808 – February 1860) was a

Californio Californio (plural Californios) is a term used to designate a Hispanic Californian, especially those descended from Spanish and Mexican settlers of the 17th through 19th centuries. California's Spanish-speaking community has resided there sin ...

politician, statesman, and general who served as interim Governor of Alta California and later

Governor of Baja California The governor of Baja California represents the executive branch of the government of the state of Baja California, Mexico, per the state's constitution. The official title is "Free and Sovereign State of Baja California" (''Estado Libre y Soberan ...

. During the

Bear Flag Revolt The California Republic ( es, La República de California), or Bear Flag Republic, was an unrecognized breakaway state from Mexico, that for 25 days in 1846 militarily controlled an area north of San Francisco, in and around what is now S ...

and the American

Conquest of California The Conquest of California, also known as the Conquest of Alta California or the California Campaign, was an important military campaign of the Mexican–American War carried out by the United States in Alta California (modern-day California), t ...

, Castro led Mexican forces as the Commandante General of

Northern California Northern California (colloquially known as NorCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. Spanning the state's northernmost 48 counties, its main population centers incl ...

Biography

José Castro was a ''

'', born in

Monterey, California Monterey (; es, Monterrey; Ohlone: ) is a city located in Monterey County on the southern edge of Monterey Bay on the U.S. state of California's Central Coast. Founded on June 3, 1770, it functioned as the capital of Alta California under b ...

when it was under Spanish colonial rule. His father José Tiburcio Castro was a soldier, member of the ''Diputación'' (territorial legislature), mayordomo (administrator) of Mission San Juan Bautista after it was secularized, and grantee of

Rancho Sausal Rancho Sausal was a Mexican land grant in the Salinas Valley, in present-day Monterey County, California, given in 1834 by Governor José Figueroa to José Tibúrcio Castro. An additional grant was made by Governor Pío Pico in 1845. The name is ...

. As a young man, Castro was a vocal and active supporter of Californian self-rule and full independence from Mexico. His first public office was as secretary to the Monterey ''ayuntamiento'' (town council). In 1830, Castro was arrested for his opposition to the Mexican governor of

Alta California Alta California ('Upper California'), also known as ('New California') among other names, was a province of New Spain, formally established in 1804. Along with the Baja California peninsula, it had previously comprised the province of , but ...

. By 1835 he was ''Vocal Primero'' (First Member) of the legislature and acting governor. Along with his brother-in-law

Juan Bautista Alvarado Juan Bautista Valentín Alvarado y Vallejo (February 14, 1809 – July 13, 1882) was a Californio politician that served as Governor of Alta California from 1837-42. Prior to his term as governor, Alvarado briefly led a movement for independen ...

, he was a vocal proponent of California-born governors and sought a semi-independent status for Alta California.

Rebellions against Gutiérrez and Micheltorena

A long period in which far-away Mexico City neglected California and sent up scandalous and incompetent governors culminated with six chief executives taking office in Monterey in 1836 alone. In November, 1836, Castro helped lead the overthrow of newly appointed Mexican Governor Nicolás Gutiérrez. An end to the rebellion was negotiated, and Alvarado became the legitimate governor from 1837 to 1842. Castro served under Alvarado as Lieutenant-Colonel of militia. Once again he was appointed First Member of the Diputación as well as Prefect of the District of Monterey. In 1839, governor Alvarado granted him Rancho San Justo, which included the settlement surrounding Mission San Juan Bautista. The grant followed the

secularization In sociology, secularization (or secularisation) is the transformation of a society from close identification with religious values and institutions toward non-religious values and secular institutions. The ''secularization thesis'' expresses ...

of the mission by the Mexican government in 1833, which privatized former mission lands. Castro built an adobe house on San Juan Bautista Plaza in 1841. He used the house as an administrative base for his military operations, and as a residence for his secretary. Back in 1840, Alvarado had arrested about one hundred Americans in California and transported them to San Blas, an action that sparked an international diplomatic incident known as the " Graham Affair". By 1844–45, Castro was a leader of the new revolt against Governor

Manuel Micheltorena Joseph Manuel María Joaquin Micheltorena y Llano (8 June 1804 – 7 September 1853) was a brigadier general of the Mexican Army, adjutant-general of the same, governor, commandant-general and inspector of the department of Las Californias, t ...

, once again becoming Commandante General under new governor Pio Pico.

Conquest of California

During the

of 1846 and the American

that followed, Castro was the commanding general of Alta California's forces during the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the ...

. When California joined the United States in August 1846, Castro left for Baja California, taking up residence in

Sinaloa Sinaloa (), officially the Estado Libre y Soberano de Sinaloa ( en, Free and Sovereign State of Sinaloa), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 18 municipalities and ...

. Castro returned to Alta California in 1848.

Post-Conquest and later life

In February 1848, after the Mexican–American War ended, José Castro opened his adobe

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air cond ...

in San Juan Bautista to an Irish settler, Patrick Breen. Breen and his family were surviving members of the

Donner Party The Donner Party, sometimes called the Donner–Reed Party, was a group of American pioneers who migrated to California in a wagon train from the Midwest. Delayed by a multitude of mishaps, they spent the winter of 1846–1847 snowbound in th ...

. They arrived at San Juan Bautista nearly a year after surviving their arduous journey over the Sierra Nevada. The Breens were the first English-speaking Americans to live in the town. Castro allowed them to live at the house until one of Patrick Breen's teenage sons made a fortune as a gold miner and purchased the house from Castro in 1854. Castro left California for

Baja California Baja California (; 'Lower California'), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Baja California ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California), is a state in Mexico. It is the northernmost and westernmost of the 32 federal entities of Mex ...

in 1853 where he was appointed governor and military commander. Castro never surrendered his Mexican citizenship nor military rank. In February 1860, Castro was killed by Manuel Márquez, in an incident variously described as an assassination or a barroom brawl.

Legacy

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17t ...

's Castro Street, and the Castro District are named after him. The José Castro House in San Juan Bautista is a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places liste ...

. The town of San Juan Bautista was briefly known as San Juan de Castro in the 1830s, owing to the prominence of Castro's family in that town.

References

''This article incorporates content in the public domain from the U.S
National Park Service
an

''

External links

Bancroft, Hubert Howe, History of California Vol. 4 (1840-1845), A. L. Bancroft & Company, San Francisco, 1886. p.751 Pioneer Register and Index: Castro (Jos‚)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Castro, Jose Californios Governors of Mexican California Governors of Baja California Mexican generals Mexican military personnel of the Mexican–American War People of Mexican California Ranchers from California 1808 births 1860 deaths People of the Conquest of California Mexican people of the Mexican–American War Castro District, San Francisco Namesakes of San Francisco streets History of Baja California 19th-century American politicians People from Monterey, California People from San Juan Bautista, California