Rancho Juristac 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

Santa Clara County, California Santa Clara County, officially the County of Santa Clara, is the sixth-most populous county in the U.S. state of California, with a population of 1,936,259 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Santa Clara County and neighboring Sa ...

given in 1835 by Governor

José Castro José Antonio Castro (1808 – February 1860) was a Californio politician, statesman, and general who served as interim Governor of Alta California and later Governor of Baja California. During the Bear Flag Revolt and the American Conque ...

to Antonio and Faustino German. The rancho (also called "La Brea") was once noted for its liquid petroleum deposits. Rancho Juristac, five miles south of Gilroy, is the southernmost rancho in Santa Clara County, and encompasses Sargent.

History

Antonio and his brother Faustino received the one square league Rancho Juristac land grant in 1835. Cristobal Antonio German (1790–), son of Ysidro German and Maria Manuela Ochoa, was also known as Antonio German and was a soldier in the

Presidio of Santa Barbara El Presidio Real de Santa Bárbara, also known as the Royal Presidio of Santa Barbara, is a former military installation in Santa Barbara, California, United States. The presidio was built by Spain in 1782, with the mission of defending the Span ...

. In 1814 he married Maria de la Luz Martina Pena (1796–) in Santa Barbara. Faustino Jose German (1795–) married Antonia Maria de Jesus Garcia (1797–) in 1816. James P. Sargent (1823–1890) was 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 ...

who came to California in 1849 with his three brothers, Jacob L. (1818–1890), Roswell C. (1821–1903), and Bradley V. (1828–1893). In 1856 he bought Rancho Juristac, where he resided, and it became known as the Sargent Ranch. The Sargent Brothers also owned

Rancho Potrero de San Carlos Rancho or Ranchos may refer to: Settlements and communities *Rancho, Aruba, former fishing village and neighbourhood of Oranjestad *Ranchos of California, 19th century land grants in Alta California ** List of California Ranchos * Ranchos, Buenos ...

and Rancho San Francisquito in

Monterey County Monterey County ( ), officially the County of Monterey, is a county located on the Pacific coast in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States census, its population was 439,035. The county's largest city and county seat is ...

. 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, claims for Rancho Juristac were filed by Antonio and Faustino German 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 Robert S. Carlisle, Bradley V. Sargent, Jacob L. Sargent, and Roswell C. Sargent in 1871. Report of the Surveyor General 1844 - 1886

References

{{California history Jur Gilroy, California Jur