Jasper O'Farrell (1817–1875) was an Irish-American politician who served as the first surveyor for

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

. He designed the "grand promenade" that became today's Market Street. O'Farrell Street in San Francisco is named after him.

Early life

O'Farrell was born in

County Wexford County Wexford () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster and is part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. Named after the town of Wexford, it was ba ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

in 1817 and was educated in

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

. He went to

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, where he boarded a ship bound for

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

. After leaving

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

, he came to

in 1843.

Land grant surveys

O'Farrell found work with the Mexican government and surveyed much of Marin and Sonoma counties. He was one of the first settlers of Sebastopol, where he purchased

Rancho Estero Americano Rancho Estero Americano was a Mexican land grant in present-day Sonoma County, California given in 1839 by Governor Pro-tem Manuel Jimeno to Edward Manuel McIntosh. The rancho takes its name from Estero Americano. History At the direction of ...

in 1843. He named the valley after

Annaly Annaly is an Irish lordship and former principality, named for its conqueror Angaile, ancestor of the Ó Fearghail. The territory of Annaly coincides with modern County Longford and was conquered in the 10th century by Angaile, a King of For ...

, Ireland, the home of the O'Farrell family.

Survey of San Francisco

Following the American conquest of San Francisco, the Military Mayor of San Francisco, Lt. Washington Allon Bartlett commissioned a land survey of Yerba Buena (later to be called San Francisco) in 1847. O'Farrell improved the 1839 street maps produced by the former Mexican alcalde (mayor) of Yerba Buena, Francisco Guerrero, and his Swiss surveyor,

Jean Jacques Vioget Jean Jacques Vioget (1794–1855), originally from Switzerland, was a surveyor and sea captain, who came to California in 1837. He made the first survey and map of Yerba Buena (which later was re-named San Francisco) in 1839. He worked for John Su ...

. O'Farrell's map covered the area bounded by Post, Mason, and Green Streets and the Bay, and also corrected the Vioget street designs, which were degrees off true right angles. Shortly after that survey he established the location (parallel to Mission Street) and width of Market Street. He was also influential in naming streets, including Market, Lombard, Chestnut, Filbert, and Pine. O'Farrell named Valparaiso Street after the port in Chile, where he lived for a time before coming to San Francisco.

Later life

O'Farrell was an eye-witness to the murders of José de los Reyes Berreyesa and the twin sons, Francisco and Ramon, of

Francisco De Haro Francisco de Haro (1792 – November 28, 1849) was a Californio politician, soldier, and ranchero, who served as the 1st and 5th Alcalde of San Francisco (initially known as Yerba Buena). He notably commissioned the first land survey of Sa ...

, in 1846. His account of the murders, by soldiers under the command of

John C. Frémont Major general (United States), Major-General John Charles Frémont (January 21, 1813July 13, 1890) was a United States Army officer, explorer, and politician. He was a United States senator from California and was the first History of the Repub ...

, is believed to have hindered Frémont's political career. O'Farrell acquired significant land holdings. He was the grantee of Rancho Estero Americano and claimant for

Rancho Cañada de Jonive Rancho Cañada de Jonive was a Mexican land grant in present day Sonoma County, California given in 1845 by Governor Pío Pico to James Black. The grant encompassed the town of Freestone. History At the direction of Governor José Figueroa in ...

and Rancho Cañada de Capay. At one time, he owned a part of Rancho Nicasio. Jasper O'Farrell married Mary McChristian in 1849. He was elected as State Senator from

Sonoma County Sonoma County ( ) is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States census, its population was 488,863. Its seat of government and largest city is Santa Rosa. Sonoma County comprises the Santa Rosa-Petaluma ...

in 1858. He died November 16, 1875, in San Francisco.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ofarrell, Jasper 19th-century Irish people 1817 births 1875 deaths People from County Wexford British emigrants Immigrants to the United States San Francisco Bay Area politicians