Los Angeles Under Spanish Rule

Los Angeles Under Spanish Rule. Life in New Spain. , Los Angeles Under Spanish Rule , Spanish explorer Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo was the first European to sail along the California coast in 1542 - 1543. His ship, the San Salvador, stopped in San Pedro Bay, and he named the area "Bahia de los Fumos," (Bay of Smokes) based on his observations of several campfires in the Los Angeles basin. In 1769, Spanish explorer and colonial governor Gaspar de Portola led a land expedition with Franciscan Friars Junipero Serra and Juan Crespi to scout for mission sites. In 1781, a group of 44 pobladores (settlers) arrived from northwest Mexico to establish El Pueblo de la Reina Los Angeles de la Porciúncula, or Town of the Queen of Angels on the river. While all of the original founders of the city had Spanish surnames, only two of the pobladores were listed as Español or Spaniard, while 26 were Afro-Mexican of mixed African and Indian ancestry. Many other pobladores were mestizos of mixed Indian, African and European ancestry. , Life in New Spain , Agriculture and cattle-raising were the primary industries in Los Angeles during the Spanish Colonial period in California from 1769 to 1821. During this era the location of the pueblo changed at least two times due to flooding of the Los Angeles River. Separation from the mission also brought greater cultural fusion between the indigenous Tongva and pobladores; and intermarriage was common. Even so, the Native American was always at the bottom of the social structure and subject to various forms of abuse. , The Era of the Californio , When Mexico gained independence from Spain in 1821 California was ruled by Mexico. The vast properties controlled by the missions became private ranchos. Geographically distant from the central government in Mexico City, a regional culture and economy based on cattle raising emerged in Alta California, and Los Angeles became the center of this new culture and economy. In recognition of Los Angeles's role as the social and political center of rancho society, in 1835 the Mexican Congress elevated its status from a pueblo or town, to a ciudad or city. More and more, as Mexicans born in California identified with their geographic region and rancho culture, they referred to themselves as Californios.