Rancho de la Nación was a
Mexican land grant in present-day southern
San Diego County, California
San Diego County (), officially the County of San Diego, is a county (United States), county in the southwest corner of the U.S. state of California, north to its Mexico-United States border, border with Mexico. As of the 2020 United States Cen ...
, given in 1845 by Governor
Pío Pico
Don (honorific), Don Pío de Jesús Pico IV (May 5, 1801 – September 11, 1894) was a California politician, ranchero, and entrepreneur, famous for serving as the List of governors of California before 1850, last governor of Alta California und ...
to
John (Don Juan) Forster
Don Juan Forster (born ''John''; 1814 – February 20, 1882) was an English-born Californio ranchero and merchant. Born in England, he emigrated to Mexico at age 16 and became a Mexican citizen. Soon after, he moved to California (then a prov ...
. The grant encompassed present-day
National City,
Chula Vista
Chula Vista ( ; , ) is a city in San Diego County, California, United States. It is the second-most populous city in the San Diego metropolitan area, the seventh-most populous city in Southern California, the 15th-most populous city in the ...
,
Bonita,
Sunnyside and the western
Sweetwater Valley.
History
Known as the Rancho del Rey (Ranch of the King) under Spain, this land south of the
Presidio of San Diego
El Presidio Real de San Diego (Royal Presidio of San Diego) is a historic fort in San Diego, California. It was established on May 14, 1769, by Gaspar de Portolá, leader of the first European land exploration of Alta California—at that time a ...
served since 1795 as a presidial cattle grazing ground. The ranch was renamed Rancho de la Nación (Ranch of the Nation) by the Mexican authorities after its independence. In 1828, a report stated that the Rancho de la Nación, kept two hundred and fifty cattle and twenty-five horses for the Presidio.
In 1845, this six square league land grant was made by Governor Pico to his brother-in-law, John Forster. John Forster (1815–1882), born in England, came to California in 1833. In 1837, he married Ysidora Pico, sister of Pío and
Andrés Pico
Andrés Pico (November 18, 1810 – February 14, 1876) was a Californio who became a successful rancher, fought in the contested Battle of San Pascual during the Mexican–American War, and negotiated promises of post-war protections for Calif ...
. John Forster was later the owner of the
Rancho Santa Margarita y Las Flores, and
Rancho Valle de San Felipe.
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 de la Nación 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, 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 John Forster in 1866.
In 1854, Forster sold Rancho de la Nación to François Louis Alfred Pioche (1818–1872), a San Francisco financier. Pioche sold the rancho in 1868 to
Frank A. Kimball, a native of
New Hampshire
New Hampshire ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...
, and his brothers, Warren and Levi.
[Marilyn Carnes, Matthew Nye, 2008, ''Early National City'', Arcadia Publishing, ]
See also
*
Ranchos of California
In Alta California (now known as California) and Baja California, ranchos were concessions and land grants made by the Viceroyalty of New Spain, Spanish and History of Mexico, Mexican governments from 1775 to 1846. The Spanish concessions of l ...
*
List of Ranchos of California
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nacion
de la Nación
National City, California
1845 establishments in Alta California