Rancho Las Bolsas
Encyclopedia
Rancho Las Bolsas was a 33460 acres (135.4 km²) 1834 Mexican land grant
resulting from the partition of Rancho Los Nietos
, located from the coast on inland within present day northwestern Orange County
, California
. The Spanish
name "las bolsas" means "the pockets", and refers to pockets of land amongst the marsh
wetland
s of the Santa Ana River
estuary
. The rancho lands, adjacent to the southeast of Rancho La Bolsa Chica
, include the present day cities of Huntington Beach
, Garden Grove
, Fountain Valley
and Westminster
.
heirs, Governor José Figueroa
in 1834, officially declared the 167000 acres (675.8 km²) Rancho Los Nietos
grant under Mexican
rule and ordered its partition into five smaller ranchos: Las Bolsas, Los Alamitos
, Los Cerritos
, Los Coyotes
, and Santa Gertrudes
.
Maria Catarina Ruiz (widow of Jose Antonio Nieto, son of Manuel Nieto) received Las Bolsas.
A claim was filed by Ramon Yorba with the Public Land Commission
in 1852 and he received a US patent for an undivided half in 1874.
A claim was filed by Maria Cleof'a Nieto Murillo and her husband Juan Jose Murillo with the Land Commission in 1852, but was rejected by the commission in 1855, because the claimants failed to connect themselves with the grant to Maria Catarina Ruiz. On appeal to the US District Court, this decree was reversed in 1857, and a US patent received for an undivided half in 1877.
Abel Stearns became the sole owner of the rancho by 1860, changing the name to Stearns Rancho, and adding it to his land empire. It did not became part of his financial remedy, as his six other ranchos did, as part of the 1868 Robinson Trust. However the ownership of the grant was challenged later in 1886.
Ranchos of California
The Spanish, and later the Méxican government encouraged settlement of territory now known as California by the establishment of large land grants called ranchos, from which the English ranch is derived. Devoted to raising cattle and sheep, the owners of the ranchos attempted to pattern themselves...
resulting from the partition of Rancho Los Nietos
Rancho Los Nietos
Rancho Los Nietos was one of the first, and the largest, Spanish land concession in Alta California. Located in present day Los Angeles County and Orange County, California. Rancho Los Nietos was awarded to Manuel Nieto in 1784...
, located from the coast on inland within present day northwestern Orange County
Orange County, California
Orange County is a county in the U.S. state of California. Its county seat is Santa Ana. As of the 2010 census, its population was 3,010,232, up from 2,846,293 at the 2000 census, making it the third most populous county in California, behind Los Angeles County and San Diego County...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. The Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
name "las bolsas" means "the pockets", and refers to pockets of land amongst the marsh
Marsh
In geography, a marsh, or morass, is a type of wetland that is subject to frequent or continuous flood. Typically the water is shallow and features grasses, rushes, reeds, typhas, sedges, other herbaceous plants, and moss....
wetland
Wetland
A wetland is an area of land whose soil is saturated with water either permanently or seasonally. Wetlands are categorised by their characteristic vegetation, which is adapted to these unique soil conditions....
s of the Santa Ana River
Santa Ana River
The Santa Ana River is the largest river of Southern California in the United States. Its drainage basin spans four counties. It rises in the San Bernardino Mountains and flows past the cities of San Bernardino and Riverside, before cutting through the northern tip of the Santa Ana Mountains and...
estuary
Estuary
An estuary is a partly enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea....
. The rancho lands, adjacent to the southeast of Rancho La Bolsa Chica
Rancho La Bolsa Chica
Rancho La Bolsa Chica was an Mexican land grant in present day coastal northwestern Orange County, California given in 1841 by Governor Juan Alvarado to Joaquín Ruiz. The name means "little pocket", and refers to pockets of land amongst the marsh wetlands of the Santa Ana River estuary...
, include the present day cities of Huntington Beach
Huntington Beach, California
Huntington Beach is a seaside city in Orange County in Southern California. According to the 2010 census, the city population was 189,992; making it the largest beach city in Orange County in terms of population...
, Garden Grove
Garden Grove, California
Garden Grove is a city located in northern Orange County, California. The population was 170,883 at the 2010 census. State Route 22, also known as the Garden Grove Freeway, passes through the city running east-west. The city is known outside the Southern California area for being the home of Robert H...
, Fountain Valley
Fountain Valley, California
Fountain Valley is a city in Orange County, California. The population was 55,313 at the 2010 census. A classic bedroom community, Fountain Valley is a middle-class residential area.- History :...
and Westminster
Westminster, California
-Government:In the state legislature Westminster is located in the 34th, Senate District, represented by Democrat Lou Correa and Republican Tom Harman respectively, and in the 67th and 68th Assembly District, represented by Republicans Jim Silva and Van Tran respectively...
.
History
At the request of the Manuel NietoManuel Nieto
Jose Manuel Nieto was a soldier from the Presidio of San Diego who was assigned to the Mission San Gabriel at the time his land was granted by the Spanish Empire in 1784.-Spanish soldier:...
heirs, Governor José Figueroa
José Figueroa
General José Figueroa , was a General and the Mexican territorial Governor of Alta California from 1833 to 1835.Figueroa oversaw the initial secularization of the missions of upper California, which included the expulsion of the Spanish Franciscan mission officials.This also involved the issuing of...
in 1834, officially declared the 167000 acres (675.8 km²) Rancho Los Nietos
Rancho Los Nietos
Rancho Los Nietos was one of the first, and the largest, Spanish land concession in Alta California. Located in present day Los Angeles County and Orange County, California. Rancho Los Nietos was awarded to Manuel Nieto in 1784...
grant under Mexican
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
rule and ordered its partition into five smaller ranchos: Las Bolsas, Los Alamitos
Rancho Los Alamitos
Rancho Los Alamitos takes its name from a Mexican land grant in southwestern Los Angeles County and northwestern Orange County, California. Los Alamitos means the Little Cottonwoods or Poplars in Spanish, after the native Fremont Cottonwood trees there.Rancho Los Alamitos originally included...
, Los Cerritos
Rancho Los Cerritos
Rancho Los Cerritos was a 1834 land grant in present day eastern Los Angeles County and Orange County, California The grant was the result of a partition of the Rancho Los Nietos grant. "Cerritos" means "little hills" in Spanish...
, Los Coyotes
Rancho Los Coyotes
Rancho Los Coyotes was a 1834 Mexican land grant resulting from the partition of the Rancho Los Nietos grant, in present day southeastern Los Angeles County and northwestern Orange County, California...
, and Santa Gertrudes
Rancho Santa Gertrudes
Rancho Santa Gertrudes was a 1834 Mexican land grant, in present day Los Angeles County, California resulting from a partition of Rancho Los Nietos...
.
Maria Catarina Ruiz (widow of Jose Antonio Nieto, son of Manuel Nieto) received Las Bolsas.
A claim was filed by Ramon Yorba with the Public Land Commission
Public Land Commission
The Public Land Commission, a former agency of the United States government, was created following the admission of California as a state in 1850 . The Commission's purpose was to determine the validity of prior Spanish and Mexican land grants in California.California Senator William M...
in 1852 and he received a US patent for an undivided half in 1874.
A claim was filed by Maria Cleof'a Nieto Murillo and her husband Juan Jose Murillo with the Land Commission in 1852, but was rejected by the commission in 1855, because the claimants failed to connect themselves with the grant to Maria Catarina Ruiz. On appeal to the US District Court, this decree was reversed in 1857, and a US patent received for an undivided half in 1877.
Abel Stearns became the sole owner of the rancho by 1860, changing the name to Stearns Rancho, and adding it to his land empire. It did not became part of his financial remedy, as his six other ranchos did, as part of the 1868 Robinson Trust. However the ownership of the grant was challenged later in 1886.