Rancho Topanga Malibu Sequit
Encyclopedia
Rancho Topanga Malibu Sequit was a 13316 acres (53.9 km²) Spanish land grant
in present day Los Angeles County, California
given by Spanish Governor José Joaquín de Arrillaga
in 1804 to José Bartolomé Tapia.
In 1848 Tapia's widow (Maria Francisca Mauricia Villalobo) sold the rancho to her grandson-in-law, Leon Victor Prudhomme who had married a daughter of Tiburcio Tapia, grantee of Rancho Cucamonga
.
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, Prudhomme filed a claim for Rancho Topanga Malibu Sequit but could not document the Tapia title and the claim was rejected. In 1857 he sold his undefined interest in the land to Irishman Matthew (Mateo) Keller (1811–1881). Keller was able to perfect his claim to the land, and receive a patent
in 1872.
Eleven years after Keller's death, the rancho was sold to Boston and Los Angeles businessman and philanthropist Frederick Hastings Rindge
in 1891.
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 Los Angeles County, California
Los Angeles County, California
Los Angeles County is a county in the U.S. state of California. As of 2010 U.S. Census, the county had a population of 9,818,605, making it the most populous county in the United States. Los Angeles County alone is more populous than 42 individual U.S. states...
given by Spanish Governor José Joaquín de Arrillaga
José Joaquín de Arrillaga
José Joaquín de Arrillaga was interim governor of Las Californias from 1792 to 1794, governor of Las Californias from 1800 to 1804 and governor of Alta California from 1804 to 1814.-Death:...
in 1804 to José Bartolomé Tapia.
History
José Bartolomé Tapia was the eldest of nine children of Felipe Santiago Tapia, a soldier in the De Anza Expedition of 1775. In 1800, José Bartolomé Tapia applied, as a reward for his own Army service, for a grant of the land he saw as a youth. The grant was made in 1804, and Tapia settled on the land, to graze his cattle and raise his family.In 1848 Tapia's widow (Maria Francisca Mauricia Villalobo) sold the rancho to her grandson-in-law, Leon Victor Prudhomme who had married a daughter of Tiburcio Tapia, grantee of Rancho Cucamonga
Rancho Cucamonga
Rancho Cucamonga was a Mexican land grant in present day San Bernardino County, California given in 1839 to dedicated soldier, smuggler and politician, Tiburcio Tapia by Mexican governor Juan Bautista Alvarado. The grant encompassed present day Rancho Cucamonga...
.
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, Prudhomme filed a claim for Rancho Topanga Malibu Sequit but could not document the Tapia title and the claim was rejected. In 1857 he sold his undefined interest in the land to Irishman Matthew (Mateo) Keller (1811–1881). Keller was able to perfect his claim to the land, and receive a patent
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...
in 1872.
Eleven years after Keller's death, the rancho was sold to Boston and Los Angeles businessman and philanthropist Frederick Hastings Rindge
Frederick Hastings Rindge
Frederick Hastings Rindge was an American businessman, philanthropist, and writer, of Los Angeles, California. He was a major benefactor to his home town of Cambridge, Massachusetts.-Early life:...
in 1891.
Historic sites of the Rancho
- Adamson HouseAdamson HouseAdamson House, also known as Vaquero Hill, is a historic house and gardens in Malibu, California that has been called the "Taj Mahal of Tile" due to its extensive use of decorative ceramic tiles created by the Malibu Potteries. The house was built in 1930 for Rhoda Rindge Adamson and Merritt...
. A home designed by Stiles O. ClementsStiles O. ClementsStiles Oliver Clements was a Los Angeles architect trained at the École des Beaux-Arts, Paris, and a key figure in the art deco movement of 1920s Los Angeles...
, and completed in 1929 for Rindge's daughter, Rhoda Agatha Rindge, and her husband, Merritt Huntley Adamson.
Tapia family
- Felipe Santiago Tapia (1745–1811), soldier in the de Anza Expedition.
- Jose Bartolome Tapia (1766–1824), son of Felipe Santiago Tapia, eldest of nine children, grantee of Rancho Topanga Malibu Sequit.
- Tiburcio Tapia (1789–1845), son of Jose Bartolome Tapia, grantee of Rancho CucamongaRancho CucamongaRancho Cucamonga was a Mexican land grant in present day San Bernardino County, California given in 1839 to dedicated soldier, smuggler and politician, Tiburcio Tapia by Mexican governor Juan Bautista Alvarado. The grant encompassed present day Rancho Cucamonga...
, Mayor of Los Angeles 1830, 1839 and 1840. Married María Tomasa Valdéz. - Maria Merced Tapia de Prudhomme, daughter of Tiburcio Tapia, married Leon Victor Prudhomme.