There was difficulty in Marin county in August, 1854, which threatened to assume a serious aspect. Certain Mission lands near San Rafael which hail been set apart by the Mexican authorities for religious purposes were seized and staked off by an organized band of squatters who determined to hold the property. One section of the old Mission building at San Rafael was, in 1849, used as a church and the other as court and jury rooms. Other parts were occupied by Mexican families with their dogs, hogs and cattle.

By order of the alcalde, William Reynolds, the town was surveyed in 1850, and was laid off in town lots with Mexican titles. The price of the lots was fixed at $30 each, and a day was set for the sale, the first applicant receiving first choice.

There was a great rush made for the lots by those who failed to make their fortunes in the San Francisco sand hills, but the development of the town was slower than was anticipated. Many of those who purchased allowed their taxes to become delinquent. The old Mission orchard and vineyard which had been neglected by the church and by its rightful owners for many years, at length fell prey to preemptors. On the 7th of August a party representing the church, numbering about 25, appeared against the squatters with sticks and drove them off the land.

Inasmuch as there was no orderly government, disputes were settled by the people themselves. They had learned to look upon themselves as being the law, and they acted in the most direct manner.

Over in Oakland, on August 27, 1853, similar trouble arose and citizens started to divide property equally among themselves.

There was similar trouble in the Sacramento valley at John A. Sutter's place in which squatters were finally driven off. Several were killed at the Sutter place, including the sheriff and one of the leaders of the squatters.

Although Freemont had declared California independent, a couple of years before this time, there was nothing to show that it was a state and the titles to public lands and Mexican grants were not understood.

Schooled in the doctrine that unoccupied American soil was free, the people knew little and cared less about land laws, other than the law of preemption and to be driven from their land by speculators was tyranny to them.

Much feeling prevailed during the winter of 1849-50 and the squatter element then lacked only a leader openly to resist. A Dr. Robison [Robinson], seconded by a man name Mahoney, undertook to direct squatters who had collected arms and ammunition with which to oppose the execution of the law. Robinson was arrested, tried and released. Later he was elected to the legislature at Sacramento. Bands of organized squatters operated in different sections. When anyone tried to serve a summons on a squatter, they would frequently kill him.

A man by the name of Marshal delivered a writ and began to read a summons to a squatter when he said: "Waal, I suppose I may as well kill you now as any other time," and he forthwith shot at the marshal.

Two hundred squatters on several of the grants near Healdsburg, on the Russian river, banded for mutual protection. Sonoma and Santa Rosa valleys had a number of Mexican grants. These titles were disputed by the squatters in these districts.

In April, 1858, 50 armed men attacked a government surveyor by the name of Tracy, who was acting under the surveyor general. They seized his papers and told him if he valued his life he had better go home.

They then forced a man named Lugo, the title holder of one of these Mexican grants, to sign an article of release to certain lands and required him to retire from those parts. Later they went to Healdsburg, six miles away, in search for a Dr. Frisbie, whom they determined to remove from his lands. The citizens then rallied to the support of law and government, although the squatters threatened to burn the town of Healdsburg. The squatters finally retired.

Daniel Showalter of Mariposa, age 32, speaker of the assembly, and Charles W. Piercy, age 24, member from San Bernardino, fought a duel near Fairfax, at four o'clock May 25, 1861, with rifles at forty paces. They had a dispute at Sacramento in the assembly, and they decided to settle the matter in this manner. Percy challenged Showalter, who killed him at the second shot. This fight evidently took place between Lord Fairfax's home on the Emporium property and where the Fairfax station now is. The spot was evidently in the Pacheco Tract not far from the southerly portion of that tract.

The up-country Indians annually came down to the bay territory in the summer and lived mainly on clams. Large mounds of clam shells were gradually built up from the remains of the shells. The remains of many of these mounds can still be seen at different points in Ross Valley and elsewhere. From one of these mounds, near the sewage treatment plant of the Sanitary district, a number of skeletons have been taken, as well as some pestles and mortars and sundry other Indian relics. Several of these skeletons were those of very old males and females. They were found in these clam shell deposits and were evidently placed there because the digging was easier than in the hard surrounding soil.

This mound was at one time 100 feet long and about 40 feet wide and 8 feet deep. The teeth in all the skeletons were in perfect condition—not a tooth missing, even in the older skulls, except in the case of one Indian who evidently had a split tooth, the back portion of which was turned upwards and grew through the roof of his jaw, evidently infecting the surrounding jaw as indicated by a dark area and portion of the involved area being missing. He undoubtedly died from starvation, being unable to chew his food.

Two of these Indians were over six feet tall. There were four of these mounds in the Kentfield area, two in Ross and a couple in San Anselmo. One of the latter was as far up-creek as the old Carrigan place. Numerous implements were taken out of the mound near the lower Winship Tract entrance in Ross. It must have taken the Indians several hundred years to build up such accumulations of shells.

Frank M. Pixley, former editor of the Argonaut, came to California in 1851. He had studied law in the east. He was elected city attorney in San Francisco in 1858 and was later elected to the assembly. In 1861 he became attorney general of the state. He ran for congressman in 1868 and was defeated. He was widely known for his political opinions and he expressed himself with much vigor, both in his paper and on the platform. He was a forceful writer and his paper had a large circulation, both in this state and in the east. Pixley was one of the early comers in Marin county. He lived at Corte Madera and some of his relatives still live there. He was one of the delegates to the convention at which General Grant received his nomination. This was in 1868.

The Central Pacific system was under construction about these years. In 1863-64-65 only 20 miles of road were built each year. In 1866 they built 30 miles and in 1867, 46 miles.



Return to Early Marin by Donald E. Perry

Use of text and photos prohibited without permission from the San Anselmo Historical Society.