José Velásquez (1717–1785) was a Spanish soldier who served in

Baja California Baja California, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Baja California, is a state in Mexico. It is the northwesternmost of the 32 federal entities of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1952, the area was known as the North Territory of B ...

Alta California Alta California (, ), also known as Nueva 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 was made a separat ...

and other areas of

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 ...

, leading notable exploring expeditions and describing the region in his diaries and reports.

Biography

Velásquez was born in San Ildefonso de Ostimuri,

Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora (), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is divided into Municipalities of Sonora, 72 ...

. In 1751, he enlisted as a private in the military forces based at

Loreto, Baja California Sur Loreto is a city and municipal seat of Loreto Municipality, Baja California Sur, on the West Coast of Mexico. Located on the Gulf of California, the city had a population of 16,311 inhabitants in 2020. Loreto is a regional economic and cultura ...

, under the administration of the

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

missionaries. When the Jesuits were expelled from Baja California and the

Franciscans The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor being the largest conte ...

and the government of

assumed responsibility for the peninsula in 1768, Velásquez was promoted to the rank of corporal. He apparently travelled with the Portolà expedition, first overland party to

San Diego 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 ...

and

Monterey Monterey ( ; ) is a city situated on the southern edge of Monterey Bay, on the Central Coast of California. Located in Monterey County, the city occupies a land area of and recorded a population of 30,218 in the 2020 census. The city was fou ...

in Alta California in 1769-1770. Velásquez served under

Fernando Rivera y Moncada Fernando Javier Rivera y Moncada (c. 1725 – July 18, 1781) was a soldier of the Spanish Empire who served in The Californias (''Las Californias''), the far northwest frontier of New Spain. He participated in several early overland exploration ...

, second in command of the expedition. At Monterey in 1770 he was dispatched south with documents, travelling overland as far as southern Baja California Sur and from there to San Blas and

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

. Velásquez returned to Baja California in 1771 and was promoted to sergeant. In 1773 he was again promoted, to the rank of ''alférez'' (ensign), and put in command of the military detachment at Velicatá. In 1773, the

Dominicans Dominicans () also known as Quisqueyans () are an ethnic group, ethno-nationality, national people, a people of shared ancestry and culture, who have ancestral roots in the Dominican Republic. The Dominican ethnic group was born out of a fusio ...

replaced the Franciscans in Baja California, and the remainder of Junipero Serra's Franciscans went north into Alta California. An important part of Velásquez' duties was to locate potential sites for Dominican missions in the frontier zone between Velicatá and San Diego. He led expeditions that located the sites of El Rosario,

Santo Domingo Santo Domingo, formerly known as Santo Domingo de Guzmán, is the capital and largest city of the Dominican Republic and the List of metropolitan areas in the Caribbean, largest metropolitan area in the Caribbean by population. the Distrito Na ...

, and San Vicente. He also explored the desert lying to the east of the Sierra San Pedro Mártir. Velásquez was transferred in 1780 to 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 ...

, where he served as second in command. In July 1781, the

Quechan The Quechan ( Quechan: ''Kwatsáan'' 'those who descended'), or Yuma, are a Native American tribe who live on the Fort Yuma Indian Reservation on the lower Colorado River in Arizona and California just north of the Mexican border. Despite ...

Indians on the lower

Colorado River The Colorado River () is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The river, the List of longest rivers of the United States (by main stem), 5th longest in the United St ...

rose in revolt and killed Hispanic missionaries, settlers, and travelers. Velásquez was in charge of the San Diego detachment that was sent to punish the rebels (with little success). In 1783 Velásquez led an exploratory party that reconnoitered the backcountry east of San Diego for a possible more direct route to the lower Colorado River. In 1785, he led a more ambitious exploration that went from San Vicente northeast to the lower Colorado River and

Imperial Valley The Imperial Valley ( or ''Valle Imperial'') of Southern California lies in Imperial and Riverside counties, with an urban area centered on the city of El Centro. The Valley is bordered by the Colorado River to the east and, in part, the S ...

, and then back to San Diego. Velásquez described his explorations in several diaries or reports that have subsequently been published. These are important sources on the early history and ethnography of the region.

References

* Ives, Ronald L. 1984. ''José Velásquez: Saga of a Borderland Soldier (Northwestern New Spain in the 18th Century)''. Southwestern Mission Research Center, Tucson. {{DEFAULTSORT:Velasquez, Jose 1717 births 1785 deaths History of Baja California People from Sonora People from New Spain Explorers of Mexico Explorers of the United States