Map of Rancho Rincon de los Bueyes (1903)Drawing of Rancho Rincon de los Bueyes, c. late 18th or early 19th century1871 Plat of Rancho Rincon de los Bueyes
Rancho Rincón de los Bueyes was a 3,127-acre (12.65 km2) land grant in present-day Los Angeles County, California, given in 1821 to Bernardo Higuera and Cornelio Lopez by Pablo Vicente de Sola, the Spanish Governor of Alta California. In 1843, this Spanish grant was confirmed by Mexican Governor Manuel Micheltorena.[1]Rincón, translated from Spanish, means corner or nook, and Bueyes are oxen or steer.
Governor Vicente de Sola granted a concession to Bernardo Higuera (1790–1837) and Cornelio Lopez (born 1792) in 1821. Lopez soon quarreled with Higuera, leaving the latter in possession. Bernardo Higuera was the son of Joaquin Higuera, the alcalde of the Pueblo de Los Angeles in 1800. In 1834 Bernardo Higuera, and his wife, Maria del Rosario Palomares (born 1792), moved to Los Angeles, leaving his brothers Mariano (baptized 23 July 1804 Mission, San Gabriel) and Policarpio (baptized 27 January 1799, same mission) to run the ranch. Bernardo Higuera bequeathed his Rancho Rincón de los Bueyes to his two sons, Francisco and Secundino.[6][7]
With the cession of California to the United States following the Mexican–American War, the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo provided that the land grants would be honored. As required by the Land Act of 1851, Francisco and Secundino Higuera filed their claim for Rancho Rincón de los Bueyes with the Public Land Commission in 1852. Their claim was rejected by the Commission in 1854, but upheld by the District Court in 1861.[8][9] The grant was patented to Francisco and Secundino Higuera in 1872.[10]
In 1849, José De Arnaz (1820–1895), the grantee of Rancho Ex-Mission San Buenaventura, bought Secundino Higuera's half share, and in 1867 bought Francisco Higuera's.[11] In 1853, José de Arnaz, filed a claim for five square leagues of Santa Clara Mission rejected.[12] In 1869 after the death of his wife, Maria Mercedes de Avila (1832–1867), Arnaz married Maria Camarillo (1848–1916) and moved to San Jose. He later returned to live on Rancho Rincón de los Bueyes.[13]
^Ogden Hoffman, 1862, Reports of Land Cases Determined in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, Numa Hubert, San Francisco
^Auguisola vs Jose de Arnaz, 1876, Reports of Cases Determined in the Supreme Court of the State of California, Volume 51, pp.435-439, Bancroft-Whitney Company
