Chapter 3: Mexican San Diego

Key Questions

  1. What was California's first multi-ethnic love story?
  2. Why did California's first rebellion against a Mexican governor originate in San Diego?
  3. How did the secularization of the mission lands lead to the creation of the ranchos?
  4. What were the ranchos of San Diego?
  5. Who got the Mexican land grants?
  6. When and how was the city of San Diego created?
  7. Why were there conflicts between the Mexicans and Indians in San Diego?
  8. What was the importance of the Mexican era?

Introduction

During the decades following Mexican Independence in 1821 the settlers of Alta California became more independent in spirit as they developed a stronger regional identity. Along with thousands of other pioneers who lived in Mexico's far northern frontier, the colonists at San Diego cultivated an intense sense of loyalty to family and place, especially when confronted by outsiders who threatened their way of life. The strong identification with family and place was a cultural development that has continued to shape the twentieth-century history of the Mexican Americans and Chicanos in San Diego.

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