Rancho Otay 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

San Diego County, California San Diego County (), officially the County of San Diego, is a county in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,298,634, making it California's second-most populous county and the fi ...

given in 1829 by Governor

José María de Echeandía José María de Echeandía (?–1871) was twice Mexican governor of Alta California from 1825 to 1831 and again from 1832 to 1833. He was the only governor of California that lived in San Diego.José Bandini, in a note to Governor Echeandía or t ...

to Magdelena Estudillo. The grant in the present-day

Otay Mesa Otay Mesa ( ) is a community in the southern section of the city of San Diego, just north of the U.S.–Mexico border. It is bordered by the Otay River Valley and the city of Chula Vista on the north; Interstate 805 and the neighborhoods of Oc ...

area, extended along the

Otay River The Otay River () is a river in southern San Diego County, California. The river begins at San Miguel Mountain, flows through the Upper and Lower Otay Reservoirs, and continues on between the southern part of the Chula Vista and the Otay Mesa ...

, just west of

Lower Otay Reservoir Lower Otay Reservoir is a reservoir in San Diego County, Southern California. It is flanked by Otay Mountain to the southeast, the Jamul Mountains to the east, Otay Lakes Road and Upper Otay Reservoir to the north, and the city of Chula Vista to ...

History

The two square league grant was made to Magdalena Estudillo, whose brother,

José Antonio Estudillo José Antonio Estudillo (November 5, 1803 – July 20, 1852) was a Californio ranchero, politician, and soldier, who served as Alcalde of San Diego and as San Diego County Assessor. He was a member of the Estudillo family of California, a pro ...

, was grantee of the adjoining one square league

Rancho Janal Rancho Janal was a Mexican land grant in present day San Diego County, California given in 1829 by Governor José María de Echeandía to José Antonio Estudillo. The grant was located near present day Otay Mesa. A large portion of the grant is ...

. The two grants, both to members of the Estudillo family, are often considered as one rancho. The Estudillos were absentee ranchers, living in the pueblo of San Diego. 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 Otay was filed 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, 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 Magdelena Estudillo in 1872. Report of the Surveyor General 1844 - 1886

References

{{San Diego County, California Otay Otay Chula Vista, California San Ysidro Mountains Otay

History

See also

References