The Battle of Río San Gabriel was fought on 8 January 1847 during the

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

campaign of the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...

. It took place at a ford of the San Gabriel River, at what are today parts of the cities of Whittier, Pico Rivera and Montebello, about ten miles south-east of downtown Los Angeles.

Background

After the

Battle of San Pasqual The Battle of San Pasqual, also spelled San Pascual, was a military encounter that occurred during the Mexican–American War in what is now the San Pasqual Valley, San Diego, California, San Pasqual Valley community in the county of San Diego, ...

, the battered Army of the West, commanded by General Stephen W. Kearny, went to the headquarters of Commodore

Robert F. Stockton Robert Field Stockton (August 20, 1795 – October 7, 1866) was a United States Navy commodore, notable in the capture of California during the Mexican–American War. He was a naval innovator and an early advocate for a propeller-driven, steam- ...

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

. Stockton's next objective was to recapture

Pueblo de Los Angeles Pueblo refers to the settlements of the Pueblo peoples, Native American tribes in the Southwestern United States, currently in New Mexico, Arizona, and Texas. The permanent communities, including some of the oldest continually occupied settlemen ...

. That settlement had been previously captured by Stockton's forces but was left in the command of Captain Archibald Gillespie and had been lost to the

Californio Californios (singular Californio) are Californians of Spaniards, Spanish descent, especially those descended from settlers of the 17th through 19th centuries before California was annexed by the United States. California's Spanish language in C ...

militia A militia ( ) is a military or paramilitary force that comprises civilian members, as opposed to a professional standing army of regular, full-time military personnel. Militias may be raised in times of need to support regular troops or se ...

, commanded by General José María Flores in the Siege of Los Angeles that Fall. Stockton's force, which included six cannons this time, left San Diego on 28–29 December.Bauer, K.J., 1974, The Mexican War, 1846-1848, New York:Macmillan, Kearny and Stockton initially disputed the right of command. Although Kearny had superior orders from the

United States War Department The United States Department of War, also called the War Department (and occasionally War Office in the early years), was the United States Cabinet department originally responsible for the operation and maintenance of the United States Army, als ...

, he had previously sent most of his troops back to

Santa Fe, New Mexico Santa Fe ( ; , literal translation, lit. "Holy Faith") is the capital city, capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico, and the county seat of Santa Fe County. With over 89,000 residents, Santa Fe is the List of municipalities in New Mexico, fourt ...

, believing that the war in California had ended, and his remaining force sustained heavy losses at the

. Stockton had a larger force and was familiar with the area, so Kearny did not initially dispute Stockton's command of the campaign to recapture Los Angeles.

Battle

U.S. scouts discovered the Mexican position at a key ford along the San Gabriel River on January 7, 1847. Approaching from the south, Stockton and Kearny planned a crossing for the next day. The U.S. forces had formed into a hollow square with the artillery and baggage in the center. Kearny ordered the artillery unlimbered to cover the crossing, but Stockton countered the order and began to move across the river. The crossing proved to be especially difficult because Flores was in a good position to contest the crossing from the high banks across the river, and the ford had patches of

quicksand Quicksand (also known as sinking sand) is a colloid consisting of fine granular material (such as sand, silt or clay) and water. It forms in saturated loose sand when the sand is suddenly agitated. When water in the sand cannot escape, it crea ...

at the bottom of the knee deep water. At approximately 2 pm, the Americans formed into a square when two miles from the river with the baggage and cattle in the middle, and sent skirmishers ahead. Flores attacked the square with horses, which failed, plus his makeshift ammunition and inadequate gunpowder proved to be ineffective. The U.S. officers and men manhandled their cannon across while the forward quarter of the square took cover on the river edge. Stockton personally helped unlimber and direct the artillery, which silenced both Californio cannons. Kearny led and commanded the assault force while Stockton stayed with the guns. The left

flank Flank may refer to: * Flank (anatomy), part of the abdomen ** Flank steak, a cut of beef ** Part of the external anatomy of a horse * Flank speed, a nautical term * Flank opening, a chess opening * A term in Australian rules football * The ...

of the square took a Californio riverbank position and held it against a counterattack from

lancers A lancer was a type of cavalryman who fought with a lance. Lances were used for mounted warfare in Assyria as early as and subsequently by India, Egypt, China, Persia, Greece, and Rome. The weapon was widely used throughout Eurasia during the M ...

shouting "viva Los Californios". Then the whole square charged forward shouting "New Orleans, New Orleans", in honor of

Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before Presidency of Andrew Jackson, his presidency, he rose to fame as a general in the U.S. Army and served in both houses ...

's victory against Great Britain there that day thirty-one years before. The charge took the heights, and Flores withdrew his smaller force. The battle had lasted an hour and a half. General Kearny's official report of the battle:

Aftermath

Stockton and Kearny stayed on the field overnight and resumed the pursuit the next day, moving west from the San Gabriel River to the

Los Angeles River The Los Angeles River (), historically known as by the Tongva and the by the Spanish, is a major river in Los Angeles County, California. Its headwaters are in the Simi Hills and Santa Susana Mountains, and it flows nearly from Canoga Park ...

s near present-day Vernon, about 4 miles south of Los Angeles. There they defeated Flores' troops at the Battle of La Mesa. On January 10 the U.S. forces reoccupied Los Angeles, and Archibald Gillespie was able to raise the same

U.S. flag The national flag of the United States, often referred to as the American flag or the U.S. flag, consists of thirteen horizontal stripes, alternating red and white, with a blue rectangle in the canton bearing fifty small, white, five-point ...

over the house which he was forced to bring down a year before during the Siege of Los Angeles. After Los Angeles and the whole of southern California was secured, the command issue between Stockton and Kearny heated up once again. Stockton, who had been the initial military governor of California, later granted that post to his aide, Lieutenant-Colonel (later General)

John C. Fremont John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

. Kearny, based on his more recent orders from the War Department, asserted that post for himself but was initially ignored. On January 10, 1847, Stockton established his headquarters on Wine Street, now known as

Olvera Street Olvera Street, commonly known by its Spanish language, Spanish name Calle Olvera, is a historic pedestrian street in El Pueblo de Los Ángeles Historical Monument, El Pueblo de Los Ángeles, the historic center of Los Angeles. The street is loc ...

, in the pueblo settlement of Ciudad de Los Angeles and assisted in setting up a civil government; that home is still standing as part of the historic area. Kearny left California on 31 May 1847 for St. Louis, with Fremont, whom he would prefer charges. Stockton left on 20 June. The site of the battle is now registered as

California Historical Landmark A California Historical Landmark (CHL) is a building, structure, site, or place in the U.S. state of California that has been determined to have statewide historical landmark significance. Criteria Historical significance is determined by meetin ...

#385. The memorial, marked by a plaque flanked by two cannons, is located at the corner of Washington Blvd. and Bluff Rd. in Montebello. Volunteers in costume re-enact the battle annually.

California Historical Landmark Marker

Marker No. 385 at the site reads:

References

External links

Center for Greater Southwestern Studies: "A Continent Divided: The U.S. - Mexico War"
— ''from the University of Texas at Arlington''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Rio San Gabriel, Battle of Battles of the Conquest of California 1847 in Alta California San Gabriel River (California) California Historical Landmarks History of Los Angeles County, California San Gabriel, California Montebello, California Pico Rivera, California Whittier, California United States Marine Corps in the 18th and 19th centuries January 1847 1847 in the Mexican-American War