José María Verdugo (1751 – 1831) was a soldier from the

Presidio of San Diego El Presidio Real de San Diego (Royal Presidio of San Diego) is a historic fort in San Diego, California. It was established on May 14, 1769, by Gaspar de Portolá, leader of the first European land exploration of Alta California—at that time a ...

who was assigned to the

Mission San Gabriel Arcángel Mission San Gabriel Arcángel () is a Californian mission and historic landmark in San Gabriel, California. It was founded by the Spanish Empire on the Nativity of Mary September 8, 1771, as the fourth of what would become twenty-one Spanish mi ...

at the time his land was granted by the

Spanish Empire The Spanish Empire, sometimes referred to as the Hispanic Monarchy (political entity), Hispanic Monarchy or the Catholic Monarchy, was a colonial empire that existed between 1492 and 1976. In conjunction with the Portuguese Empire, it ushered ...

in 1784.

Spanish soldier

José María Verdugo (Carrillo) was born about 1751 in Presidio de Loreto, Baja California,

New Spain New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( ; Nahuatl: ''Yankwik Kaxtillan Birreiyotl''), originally the Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain. It was one of several ...

to Juan Diego Verdugo and María Ygnacia de la Concepción Carrillo. José María Verdugo came to California with his brother,

Mariano Verdugo Mariano de la Luz Verdugo (1746 – 1822) was a Spanish soldier and later Mayor of the Pueblo of Los Angeles. Biography Mariano de la Luz Verdugo was born at San Javier, Baja California, to Juan Diego Verdugo and María Ignacia de la Concep ...

, in the 1769 Rivera expedition. Verdugo married María de la Encarnación López in 1779, and they had 11 children. In 1784, Verdugo requested and received a grant from his army commander Governor

Pedro Fages Pedro Fages (1734–1794) was a Spanish soldier, explorer, and first lieutenant governor of the province of the Californias under Gaspar de Portolá. Fages claimed the governorship after Portolá's departure, acting as governor in opposition ...

to settle and graze his cattle on what became

Rancho San Rafael Rancho San Rafael was a Spanish land grant in the San Rafael Hills, bordering the Los Angeles River and the Arroyo Seco in present-day Los Angeles County, southern California, given in 1784 to Jose Maria Verdugo. Geography The rancho include ...

, also known as La Zanja.Hubert Howe Bancroft, ''History of California'', Vol. I, 1542-1800, pp.661-662 Corporal Verdugo's grant consisted of eight square leagues () of land stretching roughly from the Arroyo Seco in present-day

Pasadena Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial d ...

to the Mission San Fernando. In 1798 he retired from the army to become a full-time rancher, and title to his property was established by Spanish Governor

Diego de Borica Diego de Borica (1742–1800) was a Basque colonial Governor of the Californias, from 1794 to 1800. Family Diego de Borica y Retegui was born in Vitoria-Gasteiz to a family connected to Father Fermín de Lasuén's. In 1780 Diego de Borica mar ...

. After a long illness, Verdugo died on 13 April 1831, at Mission San Gabriel, leaving his property to his son Julio Antonio Verdugo and daughter María Catalina Verdugo. He was buried at the cemetery at

Julio Verdugo

Julio Antonio Verdugo (1789 - 1876), son of José María Verdugo, married María de Jesus Romero, and had the following children: Teodoro, Chrisóstimo, Fernando, Pedro, José María, Querino/Quirino, Rafael, Guillermo, Vittorio, Rafaela (first married to Fernando Sepúlveda then to Tomás Ávila Sánchez), and Maria Antonia (married Chabolla).

Catalina Verdugo

Catalina Verdugo (1792–1871), the blind unmarried daughter of José María Verdugo, lived at the Catalina Adobe with Julio Verdugo's son, Teodoro's family.Verdugo Adobe was preserved by developer
by Katherine Yamada, published in the Glendale News-Press

Legacy

Verdugo Mountains The Verdugo Mountains, also known as the Verdugo Hills or simply The Verdugos, are a small, rugged mountain range of the Transverse Ranges system in Los Angeles County, California. Located just south of the western San Gabriel Mountains, the Verdu ...

* Verdugo City *Verdugo Canyon *

Verdugo Park Verdugo Park is a large regional park in the southeastern Verdugo Mountains, within Glendale in Los Angeles County, California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United S ...

*Verdugo Road *Verdugo Hills High School *Verdugo Hills

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Verdugo, Jose Maria Spanish explorers of North America Explorers of California Landowners from California 18th-century American landowners People of the Californias People of Alta California Spanish soldiers 1751 births 1831 deaths 18th-century Mexican people People from Loreto Municipality, Baja California Sur People from San Gabriel, California 18th century in Los Angeles