Testimonios: Early California Through the Eyes of Women, 1815-1848

by Rose Marie Beebe (Translator)

When famed historian Hubert Howe Bancroft sent Thomas Savage, Henry Cerruti, and Vicente Perfecto Gómez out to gather the oral histories of the pre-American gentry of the new state of California, he didn’t count on one the women. When the men weren’t available, Savage, Cerruti, and Gómez collected the stories of the women of the household, almost as an these were archived at the University of California; some were never even translated into English…until now. From the editors of the highly influential Lands of Promise and Despair, here are thirteen women’s first-hand accounts from when California was part of Spain and Mexico. They lived through the gold rush and saw their country change so drastically, they understood the need to tell the full story of their people and the place that was California. As a diverse group, these women represent a side of California history never before fully considered. In their testimonios, their strong voices tell an intimate, engaging, and important story.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

470 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2006

Reviews

[Carl R. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a book of interest to a pretty limited audience, of which yours truly is one of the rarified members. Not only is it Mission California history, but it is history of that period through the eyes of a number of women who were not so much selected as grudgingly chosen for interviews by men who were really waiting to interview other men. The noted historian H.H. Bancroft started everything in the mind 1870’s by sending out his minions to gather papers and narratives for his work on the history of California. They dispersed far and wide looking for material and found plenty. Only thing was, they sometimes had to wait for the gentleman they’d come to interview. Sometimes the guy didn’t show at all, this being an era when it was pretty hard to phone ahead. Once in a while, then, they had to take the next best thing, which was the wife, mother, or female friend. These accounts have been pretty neglected because, of course, women weren’t the generals or governors, so what did they know or what could they have to do with what was really happening? As it turns out, quite a lot. They confronted politicians, hid fugitive revolutionaries in their homes, clandestinely brought food and supplies to the front lines, and manipulated relationships through marriage and courting.
We get multiple pov’s on the various revolutions among the Californios and their Spaniard and (after 1822) Mexican masters. And, of course, we hear a lot about the good and bad of the coming of the Americans.
We find out that the women’s judgments depended a great deal on how invading men comported themselves. The Bear Flag guys, for example, were universally despised, along with their leader, Mr. Fremont, as an ill-mannered, foul-mouthed group who cared nothing for life, limb, or property. Later Americans were generally taken to be a much more savory group who cared quite a lot about the niceties even if they were there to take away everything.
We get fine picture of the deterioration of an entire civilization. The horrible conditions for Indians in the Missions, the horrible conditions for Indians and priests alike that followed the secularization of the Missions. Women tended to do better in some ways under the Americans, particularly in terms of education, but that didn’t make up for the loss of civilization and morality for these older women.
We learn quite a lot about the trouble it took to gather all this information. A flamboyant Mr. Henri Cerruti is particularly entertaining in his accounts of trying to pry documents, artifacts, and stories from his charges with liquor and charm (it often worked.) Mr. Thomas Savage talks mostly about what a horrible time he had with broken promises, bad weather, reluctant priests, and God knows what all. A dour and unhappy man, Mr. Savage, though if I’d had his job under his conditions, I’d have been ready for a clinical psychiatrist, which I would have had a hard time finding. However, Cerruti had all the same problems Savage did. Just goes to show that some folks are happy and others aren’t.
Rose Marie Beebe and Robert M. Senkewicz are to be commended for taking this project on, and Heday books of Berkeley for publishing it. I wonder why two scholarly types show up on this book jacket smiling and cuddling a lap dog. Maybe it’s to prove you can be an historian without being stuffy. Anyway, I’m glad they did it. I doubt many of us readers would make it all the way through and no one would think the worse of them, but I made it. And enjoyed it. Go figure.

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Testimonios, a book just out from Heyday Books, contains a narrative of my great, great, great, great grandmother Juana Machado. She was born in Alta California in 1814 and lived until 1901. She witnessed many important events in California history, including the secularization of the missions, transfer of control from Spain to Mexico to the United States and a many beautiful as well as violent events.

Throughout her life, Machado was forced to adjust to political realities on the ground. She began life as part of the Spanish cultural classes. When Mexico was liberated from Spain, she witnessed the shock of seeing her people torn by the new cultural realities that changed life around her (e.g., elimination of the traditional clothing and long braided hair for men). Her father, Jose Manuel Machado, was a soldier who was part of the San Diego Company garrison that defended the City and he helped found Temecula. She remembered the sorrow of her parents after he was forced to cut his beloved braided hair.

Despite this trauma, she shifted to the new reality. Her first husband, Damaso Alipas, was involved in the 1831 insurrection against Governor Manuel Victoria and was killed in the action. Victoria had attempted to undercut the secularization of the missions under the new Mexican government and was viewed as a sort of counter-revolutionary. Alipas obviously supported the new order.

Her son-in-law, Robert Israel, an American, commanded the firing squad that executed Antonio Garra. Interestingly, it appears that the American soldiers allied themselves with the Garra's Cupanos tribe against the Californios. Israel seems to have sided with the Californios.

After the Americans took control, Machado spent the remainder of her active years working with the Fathers before retiring to live with her daughter, Maria Arcadia Alipas Israel on Coronado Island.

[Chautona Havig · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an engaging and enlightening book for people interested in an understated facet of California history. I loved the story told from the viewpoint of women. Just reading about the dances and the parties--the pastorales. Seeing it through the eyes of those who lived those years gives this book a richness that is already lending a different layer of authenticity to my fiction. I highly recommend it. My one objection to this book--not big enough to remove a star but almost--is the lack of mention of Juana Briones. You would think that there had to be some women during that era who had known her and could give more insight into her. Still, this isn't a treatise on all things from the period, and they can only include what they could find.

Well done. I will be looking into some of the other books put out by Heyday to see if they can add to my research.

[Corky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent collections of interviews with Spanish/Mexican women of California (1815-1848) talking about life before it became part of the US. as well as details of their experiences during the transition. Very well researched and written.

[Tascha Folsoi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really interesting book about Califorio women. They have a variety of stories to to tell about all aspects of Mexico under Spain. Anyone interested in early California should read it. While it is not about Native Americans, there is much to learn about their experiences her too.

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Must read for anyone interested in pre-Gold Rush California history! Important perspectives on the treatment of the native peoples, and insights into the behavior and character of men whose names are immortalized in the state.

[Grey · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s a must read if you want to explore gender in the Spanish Borderlands. It’s a great primary source for that topic, and the authors do a great job of providing background information on the women!

[Stuart · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another fine collection of primary sources from the team who put out "Lands of Promise and Despair." This time it's all the womens' stories that were collected in Bancroft's big oral history project in the 1870s, gathered more or less accidentally in the course of interviewing the old men, and more or less forgotten until now.

[Corri jimenez · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book! I am learning so much about California history that it encouraged me to trace my boyfriend's Californios ancestry lineage just to see if his ancestors were interviewed. I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to know more about the other side of California.