Leonardo Cota
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Leonardo Cota (1816–1887) was a Captain with the Californios in the
Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the 1 ...
; and later a
Los Angeles County Supervisor The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors (LACBOS) is the five-member governing body of Los Angeles County, California, United States. History On April 1, 1850 the citizens of Los Angeles elected a three-man Court of Sessions as their first ...
. Leonardo Cota (1816–1887) was born during the
Mexican War of Independence The Mexican War of Independence ( es, Guerra de Independencia de México, links=no, 16 September 1810 – 27 September 1821) was an armed conflict and political process resulting in Mexico's independence from Spain. It was not a single, co ...
in Mexico, the son of Guillermo Cota. Leonardo Cota married Maria Rosa Yorba, daughter of ''
Californio Californio (plural Californios) is a term used to designate a Hispanic Californian, especially those descended from Spanish and Mexican settlers of the 17th through 19th centuries. California's Spanish-speaking community has resided there sinc ...
''
Rancho Cañón de Santa Ana Rancho Cañón de Santa Ana was a land grant in present-day Orange County, California given by Mexican governor José Figueroa in 1834 to Bernardo Yorba. The name means "Canyon of Santa Ana". The grant included present-day Yorba Linda. Histor ...
owner
Bernardo Yorba Bernardo Yorba (August 20, 1800 – November 28, 1858), was a prominent Californio landowner, public figure, and one of the wealthiest men in early 19th-century California. Yorba also served as alcalde (mayor) of Santa Ana. The city of Yorba ...
. At the time of the Placerita Canyon gold discovery of 1842, Cota was a clerk-registrar at
Pueblo de Los Angeles In the Southwestern United States, Pueblo (capitalized) refers to the Native tribes of Puebloans having fixed-location communities with permanent buildings which also are called pueblos (lowercased). The Spanish explorers of northern New Spain ...
, under the services of his cousin, Governor
Pio Pico Pio may refer to: Places * Pio Lake, Italy * Pio Island, Solomon Islands * Pio Point, Bird Island, south Atlantic Ocean People * Pio (given name) * Pio (surname) * Pio (footballer, born 1986), Brazilian footballer * Pio (footballer, born 1988), B ...
, who would be known as the last governor of
Alta California Alta California ('Upper California'), also known as ('New California') among other names, was a province of New Spain, formally established in 1804. Along with the Baja California peninsula, it had previously comprised the province of , but ...
under Mexican rule. During this time, Pio Pico speculated on the success of the gold strike, and made Pueblo de Los Angeles, the regional capital of Alta-California. At the start of the Mexican–American War, Leonardo Cota enlisted with the Californios, along with his cousin,
Andrés Pico Andrés Pico (November 18, 1810 – February 14, 1876) was a Californio who became a successful rancher, fought in the contested Battle of San Pascual during the Mexican–American War, and negotiated promises of post-war protections for Calif ...
, the brother of Governor Pico. Together, both would reach the rank of captain, but due to the influence of Pico's brother, Andres would be raised to the rank of General in charge of the Californios. Being good with weapons on horseback, Cota would command the Californio Lancers. In the many battles he participated in Alta-California, Cota would be remembered for his role at The Battle of San Pasqual, where he and his men were discovered in the
San Pasqual Valley San Pasqual Valley, historically spelt as San Pascual (Spanish for " Saint Paschal"), is the northernmost community of the city of San Diego. It is named for the Kumeyaay village of San Pasqual that was once located there. It is bordered on the ...
by a small group of U.S. Army soldiers. When the soldiers of General
Stephen Watts Kearny Stephen Watts Kearny (sometimes spelled Kearney) ( ) (August 30, 1794October 31, 1848) was one of the foremost antebellum frontier officers of the United States Army. He is remembered for his significant contributions in the Mexican–American Wa ...
came into the valley to engage Cota and his men, they were routed by "Capitan Cota's Lancers". With the additional quick response of General Pico's army, they forced Kearny and his men toward what is today called Mule Hill, where a standoff ensued. Several days later, Pico's army withdrew in response to U.S. Army re-enforcements from
San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...
. After the Mexican–American War, and the
California Republic The California Republic ( es, La República de California), or Bear Flag Republic, was an unrecognized breakaway state from Mexico, that for 25 days in 1846 militarily controlled an area north of San Francisco, in and around what is now Son ...
becoming part of the United States, Leonardo Cota acquired additional land in California, and continued to play a prominent position in Pueblo de Los Angeles. Cota became one of the early Los Angeles County Supervisors in 1853. Leonardo Cota would later retire to his adobe homestead in what is today the city of
Covina, California Covina is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, about east of downtown Los Angeles, in the San Gabriel Valley. The population was 51,268 according to the 2020 census, up from 47,796 at the 2010 census. The city's slogan, " ...
. In 1850, he would be one of the founders of the city of
Santa Ana, California Santa Ana () is the second most populous city and the county seat of Orange County, California. Located in the Greater Los Angeles region of Southern California, the city's population was 310,227 at the 2020 census, making Santa Ana the List of ...
in
Orange County Orange County most commonly refers to: *Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area Orange County may also refer to: U.S. counties *Orange County, Florida, containing Orlando *Orange County, Indiana *Orange County, New ...
. He died in Southern California in 1887.


Guillermo Cota

Juan Ignacio Guillermo Cota (1768–1844) was born in Loreto, Baja California. He was the son and nephew of Pueblo Los Angeles escorto soldier-founders, Roque and Antonio Cota.Alférez Pablo Antonio Cota (1744-1800)
/ref> Guillermo Cota was a comisionado of
Pueblo de Los Angeles In the Southwestern United States, Pueblo (capitalized) refers to the Native tribes of Puebloans having fixed-location communities with permanent buildings which also are called pueblos (lowercased). The Spanish explorers of northern New Spain ...
, and
mayor of Los Angeles The mayor of the City of Los Angeles is the official head and chief executive officer of Los Angeles. The officeholder is elected for a four-year term and is term limit, limited to serving no more than two terms. (Under the Constitution of Califo ...
. He had four children by his first marriage in 1794 to Maria Manuela Elizalde (1777–1803). After her death, Guillermo Cota married Maria Manuela Nieto (1788–1832) who inherited
Rancho Los Cerritos :''This article refers to the land grant. For the Rancho Los Cerritos adobe, see Los Cerritos Ranch House'' Rancho Los Cerritos was a 1834 land grant in present-day southern Los Angeles County and Orange County, California The grant was the res ...
at the death of her father, Manuel Nieto, in 1804. They had twelve children including Francisco Cota, Leonardo Cota, and Maria Engracia Cota-Dominguez (see:
Manuel Dominguez Don Manuel Domínguez (1803–1882) was a Californio ranchero, politician, and a signer of the Californian Constitution in 1849. He served as two terms as Alcalde of Los Angeles (mayor). He was one of the largest landowners in Southern Californi ...
).


Francisco Cota

Francisco Cota (1825–1906) was born in Spanish Colonial Mexico, the son of Guillermo Cota, and brother of Leonardo Cota, Maria Engracia Cota-Dominguez. Cota married Martina Madelena Machado, daughter of californio (Mexican)
Rancho La Ballona Rancho La Ballona was a Mexican land grant in the present-day Westside region of Los Angeles County, Southern California. The rancho was confirmed by Alta California Governor Juan Alvarado in 1839, to Ygnacio and Augustin Machado and Felipe ...
owner Jose Agustin Antonio Machado.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cota, Leonardo 1816 births 1887 deaths Californios Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors People of Mexican California 19th-century American politicians