The
Romance of the
Ranchos
by
E. PALMER CONNER
Chief Title Searcher
Title Insurance and Trust Company
433 South Spring Street
Los Angeles
Reprinted by permission from the Los Angeles Times
Fifth Edition
Old Plaza Church
“Where Los Angeles began”
Ranchos of California
Picture a map of California cut up into Ranchos like a crazy quilt,dotted with twenty-one Missions and a handful of Pueblos. Picture apeople browned by the sun, happy, prosperous and carefree. Picturea white-walled hacienda on each of the ranchos, every one open witha never failing hospitality and welcome. That was California whenthe Americans took it.
With the advent of American ownership the tide of populationturned to California in a never ending stream. By sail, steamboat,covered wagon and finally by train came a new people. The greatSpanish ranchos soon passed to new owners and took on a newcharacter. There is a record of Spanish ranchos traded for nearlyevery commodity and necessity. Ranchos like the Malibu and theCentinela exchanged for wines and groceries, the Los Alamitos boughtwith hides and tallow, the La Canada deeded for an attorney’s fee,ranchos for horses, for vines, for surveyor’s fees and many ranchosfor mortgages.
It was a period of rare honor. Don Abel Stearns refused to takeadvantage of a technicality in his favor and lost a 29,000 acre rancho.Juan Matias Sanchez to help his friends, William Workman andF. P. F. Temple, signed their mortgage to “Lucky” Baldwin and losthis own rancho in the San Gabriel Valley, wholly without consideration.
With progress and development the ranchos gave way to thetowns and farming communities. Many of these towns, now grownto cities, were named for the ranchos on which they were built. InLos Angeles County, Ranchos Santa Monica, San Fernando, Azusa,La Canada, Puente and Tujunga all gave their names to the townsfounded within their borders. Santa Ana and La Habra in OrangeCounty likewise took their names from their ranchos. Santa Barbarawas an original Spanish Pueblo but still farther north in San LuisObispo County, Arroyo Grande, Pismo, Santa Margarita, Atascaderoand Paso Robles all correspond with the rancho of the same name.
Many names of roads and highways all over California can betraced directly to the rancho over which they pass. Many otherswere named for an illustrious owner, who perhaps in bright velvetand astride a silver saddle, rode down the same road when Californiawas a land of great ranchos in the days of the Dons.
Rancho Topanga Malibu Sequit
Among the ranchos of Los Angeles County Rancho TopangaMalibu Sequit, more commonly known as the Malibu Ranch, isoutstanding. Not that it was the first of the grants, although infact it was one of the first, or because it was the largest, although itsacreage of 13,315 was exceeded by few, but the historic rancho has inits almost intact state outlived all others and today it stands as “TheLast of the Ranchos.”
The Malibu was first granted in 1804 to Jose Bartolome Tapiaby Jose Joaquin de A