Rancho Aguas Frias was a

Mexican land grant The Spanish and Mexican governments made many concessions and land grants in Alta California (now known as California) and Baja California from 1775 to 1846. The Spanish Concessions of land were made to retired soldiers as an inducement for ...

in present-day

Butte County, California Butte County () is a county located in the northern part of the U.S. state of California. In the 2020 census, its population was 211,632. The county seat is Oroville. Butte County comprises the Chico, CA metropolitan statistical area. It is ...

given in 1844 by Governor Manuel Micheltorena to Antonio Maria Osio and his son Salvador Osio. Aguas Frias means "cold water" in Spanish. The grant, located south of present-day Chico, extended along the west bank of Butte Creek, and was bounded on the west by Rancho Llano Seco. Rancho Esquon was directly across Butte Creek.

History

Antonio M. Osio (1800–1878) was also the grantee of the eleven square league Rancho Punta de los Reyes Sobrante given by Governor Micheltorena in 1843. Osio's son Salvador settled on the six square league Rancho Aguas Frias. Osio sold Rancho Aguas Frias to Andrew Randall. Andrew Randall (1819–1856), a native of Rhode Island, came to California in 1849 as the newly appointed customs inspector for Monterey. Randall was an entrepreneur with training as a geologist. He founded, and was elected chairman of the

California Academy of Sciences The California Academy of Sciences is a research institute and natural history museum in San Francisco, California, that is among the largest museums of natural history in the world, housing over 46 million specimens. The Academy began in 1853 ...

. In addition to Rancho Aguas Frias, he was the claimant for

Rancho Punta de los Reyes Rancho Punta de los Reyes was a Mexican land grant in present day Marin County, California, given in 1836 by Governor Nicolás Gutiérrez to James Richard Berry. The grant was east of Rancho Las Baulines and south of Rancho Tomales y Baulines. Hi ...

and Rancho Punta de los Reyes Sobrante in

Marin County Marin County is a county located in the northwestern part of the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 262,231. Its county seat and largest city is San Rafael. Marin County is acros ...

; and Rancho Cañada de la Segunda and

Rancho San Lorenzo Rancho San Lorenzo was a Mexican land grant given in 1841 by Governor Juan Alvarado to Guillermo Castro a career soldier posted to the Pueblo of San José. The land grant included present day Hayward, San Lorenzo, and Castro Valley, including ...

Monterey County Monterey County ( ), officially the County of Monterey, is a county located on the Pacific coast in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, its population was 439,035. The county's largest city and county seat is Salinas. Montere ...

- a little over . However Randall had stretched his credit to the limit, and he could not or would not pay immediately. Joseph Hetherington, a creditor, undertook to force payment by hounding him on every occasion with insults and threats. Hetherington fatally shot Randall in a San Francisco hotel on July 24, 1856, and the

Committee of Vigilance Committee of Vigilance may refer to: *Committee of Vigilance and Safety formed at Faneuil Hall * New York Committee of Vigilance, group that assisted the Underground Railroad * Vigilant Committee of Philadelphia, group that assisted the Undergroun ...

hanged Hetherington July 29, 1856. With the

cession The act of cession is the assignment of property to another entity. In international law it commonly refers to land transferred by treaty. Ballentine's Law Dictionary defines cession as "a surrender; a giving up; a relinquishment of jurisdictio ...

of California to the United States following the

Mexican-American War Mexican Americans ( es, mexicano-estadounidenses, , or ) are Americans of full or partial Mexicans, Mexican heritage. In 2019, Mexican Americans comprised 11.3% of the US population and 61.5% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% ...

, the 1848

Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ( es, Tratado de Guadalupe Hidalgo), officially the Treaty of Peace, Friendship, Limits, and Settlement between the United States of America and the United Mexican States, is the peace treaty that was signed on 2 ...

provided that the land grants would be honored. As required by the Land Act of 1851, a claim for Rancho Aguas Frias was filed by Andrew Randall with the

Public Land Commission The California Land Act of 1851 (), enacted following the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and the admission of California as a state in 1850, established a three-member Public Land Commission to determine the validity of prior Spanish and Mexican la ...

in 1852. After the death of Randall, Samuel Todd substituted for Andrew Randall, and the grant was

patented A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an enabling disclosure of the invention."A p ...

to Samuel Todd in 1860. In 1859,

Orville C. Pratt Orville C. Pratt (April 24, 1819 – October 1891) was an American jurist and attorney. He served as the 2nd Associate Justice of the Oregon Supreme Court serving from 1848 to 1852. He wrote the lone dissenting opinion in the controversy over the ...

(1819-1891) purchased of the Rancho Aguas Frias. In 1849, Pratt was the first judicial appointee to Oregon's new Territorial Supreme Court. When

Franklin Pierce Franklin Pierce (November 23, 1804October 8, 1869) was the 14th president of the United States, serving from 1853 to 1857. He was a northern Democrat who believed that the abolitionist movement was a fundamental threat to the nation's unity ...

was elected president, Pratt was removed as a federal judge. Pratt moved to San Francisco in 1856.W. F. Swasey, 1891, The Early Days and Men Of California, Pacific Press Publishing Company, Oakland, California

References

{{coord , 39.630, -121.750, region:US-CA_type:landmark, display=title Aguas Frias Ranchos of Butte County, California