Rancho Bosquejo
From WesternStarWiki
Peter Lassen's land grant of five square leagues or 22,206.27 acres awarded to him in 1843 by Manuel Micheltorena. Translates from Spanish as "Wooded Ranch."
Prior to his 1847 departure to Missouri, Lassen deeded over one-fifth of his ranch to Daniel Sill for reasons unknown[1].
Lassen aimed to found a settlement, Benton City, near present-day VIna. In May 1850, Lassen deeded over one-half of his ranch to Joel Palmer to finance the purchase of a small steamboat, the Lady Washington. The steamer was to be the easiest method to transport supplies from Sacramento to Benton City. The boat encountered numerous problems with sand bars and snag trees on the Sacramento River and was sunk. Although it said the Lady Washington was the first steamer to navigate the northern Sacramento River, a notice published in the May 1 4, 1850 Sacramento Transcript announced the May 22 departure of the steamer Lawrence for Lawson's (Lassen's) Ranch [2]. The journal of J. Goldsborough Bruff indicates the steamer Jack Hays passed Lassen's ranch on May 13, 1850.
The sinking of the Lady Washington, the rapid departure of potential settlers for the nearby gold mines, and other financial problems forced Lassen to sell the remainder of his ranch to Henry Gerke, a prominent San Francisco businessman. Lassen then relocated to Indian Valley, Plumas County[1].
The property was acquired by Leland Stanford in 1881, who aimed to turn it into a luxurious country estate. Stanford died in 1893 and the property was deeded to the administrators of Stanford College, who sold it off piecemeal, with the final 200 acres selling in 1919 [3]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 http://www.cagenweb.com/lassen/his.htm#Pete
- ↑ Boggs, Mae Helene Bacon (1942). My Playground Was A Concord Coach: An Anthology Of Newspaper Clippings And Documents Relating To Those Who Made California History During The Years 1822-1888. Oakland: Howell-North Press.
- ↑ http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m3488/is_n3_v74/ai_13662674
