Title: Ranchos of California - Wikipedia
Headings: Ranchos of California
Ranchos of California
Contents
Spanish era
Mexican era
Secularization
Ownership
American era
Gold Rush
Land claims
Disintegration
Legacy
Notes and references
Further reading
External links

Content: The 1824 Mexican Colony Law established rules for petitioning for land grants in California; and by 1828, the rules for establishing land grants were codified in the Mexican Reglamento (Regulation). The Acts sought to break the land monopoly of the missions and also paved the way for luring additional settlers to California by making land grants easier to obtain. The Mexican Governors of Alta California gained the power to grant state lands, and many of the Spanish concessions were subsequently patented under Mexican law—frequently to local "friends" of the governor. The John Marsh stone house on his Rancho Los Meganos near Brentwood, California was built in 1856. The house, which replaced the original adobe on the rancho, still stands and is now part of Marsh Creek State Park (California). Secularization
Soldiers, rancheros, farmers, and those in power coveted the rich coastal lands that the missions controlled. The Mexican government was also fearful about the missions which remained loyal to the Pope and the Catholic Church in Spain. In August 1833, the government secularized all of the missions and their valuable lands, about 1,000,000 acres (400,000 ha) per mission. The Mexican government allowed the padres to keep only the church, priest's quarters, and priest's garden.