Rancho Refugio
Encyclopedia
Rancho Refugio was a 12147 acres (49.2 km²) Mexican land grant
in present day Santa Cruz County, California
given in 1839 by Governor Juan B. Alvarado to María Candida, Jacinta, and María de los Angeles Castro. The grant extended along the Pacific coast from the western city limit of Santa Cruz
to Laguna Creek, a border shared with Rancho Arroyo de la Laguna
(not far from Davenport
).
livestock grazing lands "Arroyo del Matadero" were granted to the three Castro sisters: María Candida, Jacinta, and María de los Angeles Castro. The three were daughters of José Joaquín Castro (1768–1838), deceased grantee of Rancho San Andrés
. Candida Castro married José Antonio Bolcoff in 1822.
José Antonio Bolcoff (1794–1866) was born Osip Volkov in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky
, Siberia
. Working as a fur trader, Bolcoff deserted a Russian ship at Monterey
in 1815. He quickly assimilated into the Spanish culture, and was given the Spanish name José Antonio Bolcoff. Bolcoff acted as an interpreter for Governor Pablo Vicente de Solá
. In 1822, Bolcoff settled in Branciforte
and was alcade in 1833. In 1833, Bolcoff was granted Rancho San Agustin
, which he sold to Joseph Ladd Majors (1806–1868) in 1839. Majors married Bolcoff's sister-in-law, María de los Angeles Castro (1818–1903). Jacinta Castro lived with the Bolcoff family before joining the convent at Monterey. In 1839, Bolcoff replaced Francisco Soto as administrator of Mission Santa Cruz.
Bolcoff's name is not mentioned in the original grant, but he took control of Rancho Refugio in 1841. Bolcoff hoped to disenfranchise the other two sisters, Jacinta and María de los Angeles Castro. Bolcoff, suppressed or destroyed the original grant, and fabricated a pretended grant to himself. Bolcoff transferred the title to Rancho Refugio to his two sons, Francisco Bolcoff and Juan Bolcoff.
With the cession
of California to the United States following the Mexican-American War, the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
provided that the land grants would be honored. As required by the Land Act of 1851, a claim for Rancho Refugio was filed with the Public Land Commission
in 1852, and the grant was patented
to Francisco and Juan Bolcoff in 1860. A claim by Joseph Ladd Majors and his wife, María de los Angeles Castro, for one-third of Rancho Refugio filed with the Land Commission in 1852 was rejected.
In 1846, Moses A. Meder (often spelled Meader in public records) came by ship to San Francisco. Meder moved to Santa Cruz County and made a living building lumber mills and giving small loans on properties. In 1854, Meder foreclosed on Bolcoff's mortgage on part of Rancho Refugio. Meder moved his family onto the ranch in 1859.
Upon Bolcoff's death, his sons sold all their rights to a Charles E. Norton. By that time, perhaps twenty persons held claims for Rancho Refugio. In 1866, Meder took Norton to court to prove his claim on the eastern two-thirds of Rancho Refugio. In 1870, the US Supreme Court ruled that the grant was made of the three sisters, and that the 1860 patent had been based on forged documents by Bolcoff, but that Meder did legally own a two-thirds interest in Rancho Refugio.
With enough of the legal issues resolved, John T. Fairbanks began buying up claims against the eastern two-thirds of Rancho Refugio in 1870. In 1871, Fairbanks sold his 4000 acres (16.2 km²) interest in Rancho Refugio to dairyman partners Levi K. Baldwin and Deloss D. Wilder. In 1885, the Baldwin Wilder partnership was dissolved, and the Wilder family moved onto the rancho. The Wilder family lived on and worked their land until 1969, when it was sold for residential and commercial development. Local opposition to this plan led to its purchase by the state in 1974, and the establishment of Wilder Ranch State Park
.
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...
in present day Santa Cruz County, California
Santa Cruz County, California
Santa Cruz County is a county located on the Pacific coast of the U.S. state of California, on the California Central Coast. The county forms the northern coast of the Monterey Bay. . As of the 2010 U.S. Census, its population was 262,382. The county seat is Santa Cruz...
given in 1839 by Governor Juan B. Alvarado to María Candida, Jacinta, and María de los Angeles Castro. The grant extended along the Pacific coast from the western city limit of Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz, California
Santa Cruz is the county seat and largest city of Santa Cruz County, California in the US. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, Santa Cruz had a total population of 59,946...
to Laguna Creek, a border shared with Rancho Arroyo de la Laguna
Rancho Arroyo de la Laguna
Rancho Arroyo de la Laguna was a Mexican land grant in present day Santa Cruz County, California given in 1840 by Governor Juan B. Alvarado to Gil Sanchez...
(not far from Davenport
Davenport, California
Davenport is a census-designated place in Santa Cruz County, California. Davenport sits at an elevation of . The 2010 United States census reported Davenport's population was 408.-Situation:...
).
History
In 1839, the former Mission Santa CruzMission Santa Cruz
Mission Santa Cruz was established in 1791 and named for the feast of the Exultation of the Cross, the name that the explorer Gaspar de Portolà gave to the area when he camped on the banks of the San Lorenzo River on October 17, 1769, and erected a wooden cross...
livestock grazing lands "Arroyo del Matadero" were granted to the three Castro sisters: María Candida, Jacinta, and María de los Angeles Castro. The three were daughters of José Joaquín Castro (1768–1838), deceased grantee of Rancho San Andrés
Rancho San Andrés
Rancho San Andrés was a Mexican land grant in present day Santa Cruz County, California given in 1833 by Governor José Figueroa to José Joaquín Castro. The grant on Monterey Bay extended from La Selva Beach on the north to Watsonville Slough on the south...
. Candida Castro married José Antonio Bolcoff in 1822.
José Antonio Bolcoff (1794–1866) was born Osip Volkov in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky
Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky
Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky is the main city and the administrative, industrial, scientific, and cultural center of Kamchatka Krai, Russia. Population: .-History:It was founded by Danish navigator Vitus Bering, in the service of the Russian Navy...
, Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
. Working as a fur trader, Bolcoff deserted a Russian ship at Monterey
Monterey, California
The City of Monterey in Monterey County is located on Monterey Bay along the Pacific coast in Central California. Monterey lies at an elevation of 26 feet above sea level. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 27,810. Monterey is of historical importance because it was the capital of...
in 1815. He quickly assimilated into the Spanish culture, and was given the Spanish name José Antonio Bolcoff. Bolcoff acted as an interpreter for Governor Pablo Vicente de Solá
Pablo Vicente de Solá
Pablo Vicente de Solá , the last Spanish governor of Alta California from 1815-1822....
. In 1822, Bolcoff settled in Branciforte
Branciforte
Branciforte or as it was named originally, Villa de Branciforte, was a secular pueblo established by the Spanish in the of Las Californias Province of the Viceroyalty of New Spain, in 1797 on the eastern bluff overlooking the San Lorenzo River...
and was alcade in 1833. In 1833, Bolcoff was granted Rancho San Agustin
Rancho San Agustin
Rancho San Agustin was a Mexican land grant in present day Santa Cruz County, California given in 1833 by Governor José Figueroa to José Antonio Bolcoff...
, which he sold to Joseph Ladd Majors (1806–1868) in 1839. Majors married Bolcoff's sister-in-law, María de los Angeles Castro (1818–1903). Jacinta Castro lived with the Bolcoff family before joining the convent at Monterey. In 1839, Bolcoff replaced Francisco Soto as administrator of Mission Santa Cruz.
Bolcoff's name is not mentioned in the original grant, but he took control of Rancho Refugio in 1841. Bolcoff hoped to disenfranchise the other two sisters, Jacinta and María de los Angeles Castro. Bolcoff, suppressed or destroyed the original grant, and fabricated a pretended grant to himself. Bolcoff transferred the title to Rancho Refugio to his two sons, Francisco Bolcoff and Juan Bolcoff.
With the cession
Mexican Cession
The Mexican Cession of 1848 is a historical name in the United States for the region of the present day southwestern United States that Mexico ceded to the U.S...
of California to the United States following the Mexican-American War, the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo is the peace treaty, largely dictated by the United States to the interim government of a militarily occupied Mexico City, that ended the Mexican-American War on February 2, 1848...
provided that the land grants would be honored. As required by the Land Act of 1851, a claim for Rancho Refugio was filed 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 the grant was patented
Land patent
A land patent is a land grant made patent by the sovereign lord over the land in question. To make a such a grant “patent”, such a sovereign lord must document the land grant, securely sign and seal the document and openly publish the same to the public for all to see...
to Francisco and Juan Bolcoff in 1860. A claim by Joseph Ladd Majors and his wife, María de los Angeles Castro, for one-third of Rancho Refugio filed with the Land Commission in 1852 was rejected.
In 1846, Moses A. Meder (often spelled Meader in public records) came by ship to San Francisco. Meder moved to Santa Cruz County and made a living building lumber mills and giving small loans on properties. In 1854, Meder foreclosed on Bolcoff's mortgage on part of Rancho Refugio. Meder moved his family onto the ranch in 1859.
Upon Bolcoff's death, his sons sold all their rights to a Charles E. Norton. By that time, perhaps twenty persons held claims for Rancho Refugio. In 1866, Meder took Norton to court to prove his claim on the eastern two-thirds of Rancho Refugio. In 1870, the US Supreme Court ruled that the grant was made of the three sisters, and that the 1860 patent had been based on forged documents by Bolcoff, but that Meder did legally own a two-thirds interest in Rancho Refugio.
With enough of the legal issues resolved, John T. Fairbanks began buying up claims against the eastern two-thirds of Rancho Refugio in 1870. In 1871, Fairbanks sold his 4000 acres (16.2 km²) interest in Rancho Refugio to dairyman partners Levi K. Baldwin and Deloss D. Wilder. In 1885, the Baldwin Wilder partnership was dissolved, and the Wilder family moved onto the rancho. The Wilder family lived on and worked their land until 1969, when it was sold for residential and commercial development. Local opposition to this plan led to its purchase by the state in 1974, and the establishment of Wilder Ranch State Park
Wilder Ranch State Park
Wilder Ranch State Park is a California State Park on the Pacific Ocean coast north of Santa Cruz, California. The park was formerly a dairy ranch, established in the late 19th century by the Wilder family and operated until 1969. The dairy ranch, in turn, was originally part of Rancho Refugio, a...
.