Page:History of California (Bancroft) volume 6.djvu/28



10      CAUFORNIA  JUST  PRIOR  TO  THE  GOLD  DISCOVERY.

the upper  Alameda. Here lives  the  venturesome English sailor,  Robert  Livermore,  by  whose  name  the nook is  becoming  known,  and  whose  rapidly  increasing possessions embrace  stock-ranges,  wheat-fields,  vine- yards, and orchards,  with  even  a  rude  grist-mill. ^^ Ad- joining him are  the  ranchos  Valle  de  San  Jos^  of J.  and  A.  Bernal,  and  Suflol  and  San  Ramon  of  J.  M. Amador,  also  known  by  his  name. Northward, along the bay,  lies  the  Rancho  Arroyo  de  la  Alameda  of Jos^  Jesus  Vallejo;  the  San  Lorenzo  of  G.  Castro and F.  Soto;  the  San  Leandro  of  J.  J.  Estudillo;  the Sobrante of  J.  I.  Castro;  and  in  the  hills  and  along the shore,  covering  the  present  Oakland  and  Alameda, the San  Antonio  of  Luis  M.  Peralta  and  his  sons.^^

Similar to  the  Alameda  Valley,  and  formed  by  the rear of  the  same  range,  enclosing  the  towering  Monte del Diablo,  lies  the  vale  of  Contra  Costa,  watered  by several  creeks,  among  them  the  San  Pablo  and  San Ramon, or  Walnut,  and  extending  into  the  marshes of the  San  Joaquin. Here also  the  most  desirable tracts are  covered  by  grants,  notably  the  San  Pablo tract of  F.  Castro;  El  Pinole  of  Ignacio  Martinez, with vineyards  and  orchards;  the  Acalanes  of  C. Valencia,  on  which  are  now  settled  Elam  Brown, justice of  the  peace,  and  Nat. Jones ;^* the  Palos Colorados of  J.  Moraga;  the  Monte  del  Diablo  of  S. Pacheco;  the  M^danos  belonging  to  the  Mesa  fam- ily; and the  M^ganos  of  Dr  John  Marsh,  the  said doctor being  a  kind  of  crank  from  Harvard  college,

1' His  neighbor  on  Rancho  Los  Pozitos,  of  two  sauare  leagues,  was  Jos4 Noriega; and  west  and  south  in  the  valley  extended  Rancho  Valie  de  San Joe6, 48,000  acres,  Santa  Rita,  9,000  acres,  belonging  to  J.  D.  Pacheco,  the San Ramon  rancho  of  Amador,  four  square  leagues,  and  Canada  de  los  Va- queros of  Livermore. Both Colton,  Three  Years,  266,  and  Taylor,  El  Dorado, i. 73,  refer  to  the  spot  as  Livermore  Pass,  leadmg  from  San  Jos^  town  to  the valley of  the  Sacramento.

^ D.  Peralta  received  the  Berkeley  part,  V.  the  Oakland,  M.  the  East  Oak- land and Alameda,  and  I.  the  south-east. The grant  covered  five  leagues. The extent  of  the  Alameda,  San  Lorenzo,  and  San  Leandro  grants  was  in square  leagues  respectively  about  four,  seven,  and  one;  Sobrante  was  eleven leaffues.

'* By  purchase  in  1847,  the  latter  owning  one  tenth  of  the  three-quarter