Gilroy in Santa Clara County, California — The American West (Pacific Coastal)

Arrival of the Spanish

La llegada de los españoles

Photographed By Joseph Alvarado, April 17, 2022

1. Arrival of the Spanish Marker

Inscription. Click to hear the inscription.

First contact between the Spanish expeditions and the Ohlone tribes was usually friendly. These encounters, recorded in expedition diaries, indicated that throughout Ohlone territory, the Spanish were treated as "distinguished guests," suggesting that rules of hospitality extended to strangers.

From 1769 to 1797, Spanish attempts to convert and control the Ohlone intensified. With the establishment of the presidios, missions, and ranchos, life for the Ohlone people changed forever. Many Ohlone communities resisted conversion and Spanish rule during this time. The Chitactac area was not effected by mission influence until quite late. Chitactac people were first brought into Mission Santa Cruz in 1795 and again in 1796. The neighboring Unijaima Ohlone of the south Santa Clara Valley and the Ausaimas and Mutsun Ohlone to the south were brought into Mission San Juan Bautista which was built in 1797.

El primer contacto entre los expedicionarios españoles y las tribus ohlone fue grato Y amigable. Tenemos noticias de estas entrevistas gracias a los diarios llevados por los europeos, quienes anotaron que lo largo
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del territorio ohlone fueron tratados como huéspedes distinguidos. Esto comprueba que las reglas de hospitalidad eran extendidas a los extranjeros.

De 1769 a 1797 se intensificaron los intentos evangelizadores y colonizadores de los españoles. Con el establecimiento de presidios, misiones y ranchos, la armoniosa vida de los ohlones cambió para siempre. Durante esos años muchas comunidades presentaron resistencia a la conversión al catolicismo y la yugo español. No fui si no hasta mucho más tarde que los habitantes del área Chictactac se sometieron a las misiones. En dos movimientos, uno acaecido en 1795 y el otro al año siguiente, la gente de Chictactac fue llavada a la Misión de Santa Cruz. Los vecinos unijaima ohlone del valle de Gilroy, los ausaimasy los mutsuns ohlones del sur, llegarona la nueva Misión de San Juan Bautista después de 1797.

Deadly diseases accompanied mission life leaving many children as orphans. Local Ohlone children such as Maria Guadalupe Ortega from the Unijaima Ohlone Tribe were taken in by local landowners such as Ignacio Ortega of Rancho San Ysidro, who gave her his family name. Guadalupe's daughter, Soledad, married John Gilroy's son, Catarino, and their descendants are one of the family lines comprising the present-day Mutsun Ohlones, some of whom belong to Amah Mutsun Ohlone Tribe.

La
Photographed By Joseph Alvarado, April 17, 2022

2. Arrival of the Spanish Marker
vida en las misiones fue triste. Muchos adultos huyeron de las misones debido a epidemias mortales y terribles padecimientos. Un sinnúmero de pequeños quedaron huérfanos y abandonados. Alguno niños ohlones fueron recogidos por algunos terratenientes de la zona. Tal es el caso de Maria Guadalupe Ortega de la tribu unijaima ohlone, adoptada por Ygnacio Ortega del rancho San Idsidro, quien le dio su apellido. La hija de Guadalupe, Soledad, se casó con Catarino, el hijo de John Gilroy. Los descendientes de ambos son hoy en día, una de las ramas del linaje de la tribu mutsun ohlone.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Anthropology & Archaeology • Colonial Era • Exploration • Hispanic Americans • Native Americans • Settlements & Settlers. A significant historical year for this entry is 1769.

Location. 37° 1.803′ N, 121° 39.426′ W. Marker is in Gilroy, California, in Santa Clara County. Marker can be reached from Watsonville Road. The marker is mounted to a metal stand on the trail below the parking lot of Chitactac-Adams Heritage County Park. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 10001 Watsonville Road, Gilroy CA 95020, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Uvas Creek (a few steps from this marker); Chitactac-Adams Heritage County Park (within shouting distance of this

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marker); Food Processing (within shouting distance of this marker); A journey of a Lifetime (within shouting distance of this marker); Ranchos and Growth (within shouting distance of this marker); School Days (within shouting distance of this marker); Round House (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); Ohlone Buildings (about 400 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Gilroy.

Credits. This page was last revised on May 16, 2022. It was originally submitted on May 12, 2022, by Joseph Alvarado of Livermore, California. This page has been viewed 161 times since then and 19 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on May 12, 2022, by Joseph Alvarado of Livermore, California. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.