Rancho Cosumnes (also called "Rancho de Hartnell") was a

Mexican land grant In Alta California (now known as California) and Baja California, ranchos were concessions and land grants made by the Spanish and Mexican governments from 1775 to 1846. The Spanish concessions of land were made to retired soldiers as an indu ...

in present-day

Sacramento County, California Sacramento County () is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 1,585,055. Its county seat is Sacramento, California, Sacramento, which has been the List ...

given in 1844 by Governor

Manuel Micheltorena Joseph Manuel María Joaquin Micheltorena y Llano (8 June 1804 – 7 September 1853) was a brigadier general and adjutant-general of the Mexican Army, List_of_governors_of_California_before_1850#Mexican_governors_of_California_(1837–47), gover ...

William Edward Petty Hartnell William Edward Petty Hartnell (April 24, 1798 – February 2, 1854), later known by his Spanish name Don Guillermo Arnel, was a merchant, schoolmaster, and government official in California. He arrived in California in 1822 as a trader, where he ...

. The grant extended along the south bank of the

Cosumnes River The Cosumnes River is a river in northern California in the United States. It rises on the western slope of the Sierra Nevada and flows approximately into the Central Valley, emptying into the Mokelumne River in the Sacramento-San Joaquin De ...

, across from Rancho Omochumnes.

History

William Edward (Guillermo Eduardo) Petty Hartnell (1798–1854) received the five square league

Rancho Todos Santos y San Antonio Rancho Todos Santos y San Antonio was a Mexican land grant in present-day Santa Barbara County, California given in 1841 by Governor Juan B. Alvarado to William Edward Petty Hartnell. The grant extended along San Antonio Creek and encompasse ...

Santa Barbara County Santa Barbara County, officially the County of Santa Barbara (), is a county located in Southern California. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 448,229. The county seat is Santa Barbara, and the largest city is Santa M ...

from Governor Juan B. Alvarado in 1841 and sold his Rancho El Alisal to Alvarado. In 1844, Hartnell was granted the eleven square league Rancho Cosumnes from Micheltorena. With the

cession The act of cession is the assignment of property to another entity. In international law it commonly refers to land transferred by treaty. Ballentine's Law Dictionary defines cession as "a surrender; a giving up; a relinquishment of jurisdicti ...

of California to the United States following the

Mexican-American War Mexican Americans are Americans of full or partial Mexican descent. In 2022, Mexican Americans comprised 11.2% of the US population and 58.9% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexican Americans were born in the United State ...

, the 1848

Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo officially ended the Mexican–American War (1846–1848). It was signed on 2 February 1848 in the town of Villa de Guadalupe, Mexico City, Guadalupe Hidalgo. After the defeat of its army and the fall of the cap ...

provided that the land grants would be honored. As required by the Land Act of 1851, a claim for Rancho Cosumnes was filed with the

Public Land Commission The California Land Act of 1851 (), enacted following the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and the admission of California as a state in 1850, established the California State Lands Commission to determine the validity of prior Spanish and Mexican l ...

in 1852. Hartnell claimed eleven square leagues for Rancho Cosumnes, but because he had another claim for the five square league Rancho Todos Santos y San Antonio, the Land Commission Rancho Cosumnes was reduced to six square leagues - so that the total would not have exceeded the eleven square league maximum under Mexican law. The

U.S. Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...

affirmed the decree, and the grant was

patented A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an enabling disclosure of the invention."A ...

to William Edward Petty Hartnell in 1869. A second claim was filed by William Hicks and James Martin in 1853 but was rejected.United States. District Court (California : Northern District) Land Case 240 ND
/ref> When Hartnell died in 1854, his widow, Maria Teresa de la Guerra de Hartnell and the 11 children inherited the rancho. Hartnell wrote in his will - "My principal object is to prevent any member of the law from having anything whatsover to do with my property or with my executors or heirs." Maria Teresa de la Guerra's brother,

Pablo de la Guerra Pablo de la Guerra (29 November 1819 – 5 February 1874) was a Californio politician, judge, and signer of the Californian Constitution in 1849. He served several terms in the California State Senate between 1849 and 1862, and as acting lieu ...

was administrator of the estate. The former Rancho Cosumnes lands are east across the

from the town Elk Grove.

References

{{California history, state=collapsed Cosumnes Cosumnes Cosumnes River Elk Grove, California Cosumnes

History

See also

References