Both Spanish settlers and Pueblos survived
generations of nomadic Indian raids through alliances that included
intermarriage--which lends New Mexico its unique mestizaje culture--and
through trade fairs, common by the 1790s from
Taos to El Paso. One of the fairs' major functions was to ransom Spanish
settlers abucted in Indian raids or to buy servants,
usually Indians captured by other Indians. These freed Indians, known as
genizaros, were Christianized and could, within
three generations, totally shed the stigma of slavery.
Noble (pp. 72-73) also states:In New Mexico, the term genizaro, used differently in the rest of the
Spanish colonial world, meant a full-blooded Indian who had been captured
at a young age by warring Plains Indian tribes and sold to Spanish colonists.Genizaros benefitted the colonists economically, for they
represented cheap labor in a labor-intensive society. These children, raised
as criados (servants) in Spanish households, took the names of their
Spanish families and went on to start their own families under those names.
Well-to-do and poor families alike had criados. The Franciscan
friars advocated the purchase of these young people to bring them to
Christianity.
In order to have been a town-crier, especially a good one, Sebastian de la
Cruz would have to had learned Spanish at an early age, even from birth.
But since I don't believe he was a Spaniard by birth, it is my belief that
he was raised in the household of
a Spaniard, either captured as a small child in an Indian raid
and purchased by the de la Cruz family as a household servant, or his mother
was and he was born into a Spanish household.
To further support the idea that Sebastian was of Native American origin,
his son Francisco married Teresa Romero at the San Juan, NM pueblo, where
Teresa was born. The San Juan pueblo were Indians Christianized
by the Spaniards. However, this is not proof in itself as there were
2,915 non-Indians living in San Juan in the 1837 census.
The only record that indicates any origin of this Cruz line is from the
marriage license of Luciano Cruz and Barbara Vigil, which states that
they were "espanoles", even with Indian heritage. Since the History of
New Mexico states
that genizaros could lose the slavery stigma within three generations and
Luciano was the fourth generation from Sebastian, it is quite feasible that
they were considered "espanoles." Especially since Luciano was probably a
land owner. As stated earlier, he was listed in the 1845 census as "D.
Luciano Cruz" which would show some status and status would mean land ownership.
The fact that Luciano was listed as living in Abiquiu in the 1845 census
adds to the possibility (but not proof) of the Cruz' originally being
genizaros, as theHistory of New Mexico continues:
They [genizaros] soon became so
numerous that the Spanish built them villages at
Abiquiu, Santa's Fe's Analco neighborhood, San Miguel del Vado, Ojo Caliente
and elsewhere. As the buffer between Spanish
and Pueblo settlements and the raiding nomads, genizaros and their descendants,
mostly stockmen and farmers, led the last
great Hispano territorial expansions. They founded such towns as Las Vegas
and Anton Chico, spreading as far north as
present-day Antonito and Trinidad, Colorado, into the Texas and Oklahoma
panhandles and west into east-central Arizona.
Sebastian de la Cruz would have originally lived in Santa Fe, a strictly
Spaniard settlement. His son Francisco was married in San Juan, which
mentioned previously, was (and still is) an Indian pueblo, but buried
by a priest from Santa Cruz. Santa Cruz was another Spanish village as it was
originally known as
Santa Cruz de la Canada, established by the Spaniards as a secondvilla of the New World in 1695 (Santa Fe as number one). (SeeWilliams, pg. 98). Antonio (son of Francisco) was
baptized at (or by a priest of) Santa Cruz. But he and his son
Sebastian were both married in Santa Clara, which was (and still is)
an Indian pueblo (no non-Indian population was given
in the 1837 census for Santa Clara). Santa Juan, Santa Cruz and
Santa Clara are all on the Rio Grande, in that order, all within
10 miles of each other. The Rio Chama branches off in a northwesterly
direction near San Juan and Santa Cruz. (See AAA atlas.)
Abiquiu (where Sebastian was listed in the 1845 census) is 20 miles
upriver on the Rio Chama, a western tributary
of the Rio Grande. There is a Catholic church in Abiquiu. However, a note in the
LDS Abiquiu records states that the Abiquiu church was built expressly for
the Indians who were living in the area, which explains why no Cruz records
were found there. Even if the origin was Indian, being
"espanoles" would have been important and likely they
only associated with churches (and padres) of their ancestors.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~PART 1: CHAPTER II - AVILA
JUANA AVILA CORDOVA (8)
- mother of Delfido Cruz (1)
Juana Avila was bornMay 26, 1874 at Crestones, Huerfano County, to Lorenzo Avila and Rita Valdez.
She was baptized at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Walsenburg, CO on September
26, 1874, the godparents being Francisco Valdez and Marulina
Gallegos.
The Avila family was not found in the 1880 census, when Juana would have been
5 or 6. But Juanita Cordova, age 5, was listed as the adopted daughter of
Victor and Juana Cordova in Las Animas County, CO where her oldest brother Juan
Nepomueceno lived at the time. Her sister Gertrudes, age 8, was living with a
Deus family in Huerfano County that year. Her brother, Juan Santos, is not
found until the 1885 census, living in Huerfano County. I presume that the
children were left orphans.
Juana moved back to Huerfano County from Las Animas between 1885 and 1888
(I did not find her
or the Cordova family in the 1885 census in Huerfano). Maybe she moved there
with the Cordovas. Or it is possible that she met her future husband in Las
Animas, then moved to Huerfano County by the time she married.
On October 10, 1888, Juana marriedJuan Bautista Cruz, when she was only 14.
When Juana obtained her marriage license from Huerfano County, she listed her
name as Juana Cordova, as well as at the baptism of her firstborn. I don't
believe she knew her Avila birth name (and parentage) until some time before
the birth of her second child when she (or someone) gave her name as Avila at
his baptism. She was also listed as an Avila at her third child's baptism.
At the age of 15, Juana gave birth to her first child, Delfido, 15 months
after her marriage. Her second child, Ricardo, was
born when she was 20. Her third child, Benigno, when she was 21.
From what I have learned, I believe that Juana
died around the age of 21, some time between the birth of her third child in
1895 and 1896, when her husband, Juan Bautista Cruz was killed. Maybe she was
not in the best of health when she married at
14 and three babies in five years (and possibly other miscarriages as there
were almost 4 1/2 years between the first and second
child) took its toll on her health. Maybe she died in childbirth or very
soon after. Death as a result of childbirth was quite
common in the late 19th century, especially in rural areas.
No information has been found on the exact date of her death, nor where she
was living when she died, nor where she was
buried. She left behind two sons who were soon to become completely orphaned
when their father died not too long after
their mother did.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~LORENZO AVILA (9)
- father of Juana Avila (8)
- grandfather of Delfido Cruz (1)
Lorenzo Avila was born on 24 August 1816 in the territory
of Taos, New Mexico to Jose Rafael Abila and Maria Felipa Duran. He was
first married at age 23 to Maria Paula Maestas in
Taos, NM on 7 October 1839. They had at least four children while living in Arroyo Hondo:
- Jose Encarnacion born 25 March 1841
-married Maria Juana Baca 26 Jul 1873
-children Agapito born 20 Sep 1877 - Juan Nepomuceno, born about 1845 (age 5 in 1850 census)
- Jose David, born 18 April 1848 (David, age 7 in 1860 census)
- Maria Trinidad, born 4 Jan 1851 (Felipa age 9 in 1860 census)
Then around 1865 Lorenzo Avila (about the age of 49)
married Maria Rita Valdez (about 19), and they had at least three
children, born at Crestones, Huerfano County, Colorado:
- Juan Santos, born March 15, 1868
-married 1st Antonia Sanchez 16 Jan 1890
-children- Juliana born 12 Dec 1891
- Tomas Quino born 18 Sep 1894
- Lugardo Francisco born 01 Jul 1896
- Porfirio born 26 Aug 1898 died 1956
- Eufemia born 31 Aug 1900
-married 2nd Maria Cruz Rodriguez 09 Jan 1906
-child: Eloy, born 3 Jun 1912 died 4 April 1945 married Julia Cardenas
-died 1956 - Gertrudes, born 9 December 1871married Juan Francisco Garcia 01 Jun 1893
- Juana, born 26 May 1874 (see above)
The first census in which I found Lorenzo was
in 1850 in Taos County (the Northern Division),
New Mexico, where, at the age of 30, he was listed with his
first wife, Paula (or Pabla) Martin, age 23. Either the census taker was careless
in recording her family name, or information came from neighbors who didn't
know as much as they thought they did (Her name was correctly given as Mestas
in 1860). Also in the household was their
son Juan Nepomuceno, age 5. Their son Jose Encarnacion was not listed,
but he was in the next census, and
married in 1873. Maybe someone forgot to mention him that year. Both
Lorenzo and Paula were listed as "unable to read or write."
In this census, Lorenzo's occupation was given as laborer and no value of
real estate given for him. However he lived next door to Santiago Martin
with a little farm worth $50 (almost $1,000 in the year 2000). This leads me to believe
that Lorenzo owned no land, and worked for his neighbor. And that neighbor
could have been his brother-in-law, as on the other side of Lorenzo was
Maria Josefa Martin, age 50, as head of household, possibly his mother-
in-law (Paula, his wife, was age 23).
By the time of the 1860 census, the Avilas
(along with hundreds of other families in Northern New Mexico) had
moved to San Luis Valley to the Costilla area in what is now Colorado,
also a part
of the Sangre de Cristo land grant -- free land to settle on.
But Lorenzo was still a farm laborer in 1860, but this time with
a personal estate worth $150 (or $2,775in the year 2000), so he was prospering. There were two farmers on each side
of him. One, by the name of Thomas Tobens, was an owner of land worth $2,000 and a
personal estate worth
$3,000 ($37,000 and $55,500 in 2000), and a live-in servant. I imagine he
lived in a nice hacienda on a big ranch, and the farmer for which Lorenzo worked.
In 1860, Lorenzo was 49, Maria Paula Mestas (his first wife) was 49,
Jose Encarnacion was 16, Juan N. was 13, Felipa was 9, and David was 7.
It's strange that Paula aged 26 years in one decade. But since she
probably died sometime between 1860 and 1868 (when Lorenzo was likely
remarried), it's possible that she was ill by then and looked far
beyond her true age. But back in 1850 she may have been very healthy
and looked far younger than her age. Her true age is somewhere in
between. None of the children had attended school and Lorenzo and
Paula could not read or write.
By 1870 Lorenzo
had moved on to Huerfano County, to the area of Badito (according to the
census). It was there he
had a new wife, Rita Valdez (age 24 and Lorenzo age 50 - not bad! he only
aged one year in ten and a young wife half his age), and a new family (Juan
Santos, age 1), the older
children having left home or were deceased. Lorenzo and Rita could not read
or write. Lorenzo and Rita probably married around one year prior to
their son's birth (assuming no prior pregnancies), approximately in
1868.
Again his occupation was listed as laborer in this census, but there were
no values listed under the "Real Estate" and "Personal Estate" columns.
This may indicate that Lorenzo didn't own the land on which he lived,
nor the home nor the contents of the home, nor any livestock. In other
words, he was very poor. He was living next door to two farmers, so it is
presumed he worked for them. One of the farms next door, which belonged to
Thomas Sharpe,
is shown on the Huerfano County Historical Map as "Tom
Sharp's Buzzard
Roost Ranch, and was just south of Malachi and east of Red Wing. Thus it is
presumed that is where Lorenzo lived in 1870.
Lorenzo and his second wife were not found in
the 1880 census. However, two of his children were found: Gertrudes and
Juana.
Gertrudes was living with the Charles Deus family in Huerfano County in1880.
There may have been some kind of neighborly closeness
between them as in 1870 Charles Deus lived three dwellings from Lorenzo (but a
few miles down the road). Mr. Deus was a "stock raiser" and had a farm worth
$3,000 ($36,000 in the year 2000), and a personal estate of $7,200 ($87,500),
which I presume to be cattle, and so had the means to support Gertrudes.
Lorenzo could have also
worked for Mr. Deus at one time or another.
As for Juana, in the 1880 census she was listed as
Juanita, age 5, the adopted daughter of an older
couple (Victor Cordova age 65 and Juana Cordova age 61) who perhaps had never
had children of their own or
loved children and were willing to raise another child after their own were
grown. Victor Cordova was only a laborer, so he
wasn't rich like Mr. Deus. Perhaps they were distantly related to the Avilas.
And possibly they were deceased by the time she married, nine years later.
And when she did marry, she presumed her family name was Cordova, not
Avila, because she was raised by the Cordovas. It is doubtful her adoption
was a formal one, but can't be ruled out since that area has not been
researched.
I did not locate Juan Santos in 1880.
Why Lorenzo's daughters ended up in other homes is unknown. Perhaps his
wife died in childbirth of Juana or soon after, but
no death record has been found. As a poor laborer, he couldn't have cared for
an infant and a 3 and 6 year old and earn a
living too. In addition, Lorenzo would have been at least 60 when Juana was
born, so his age would have added to the burden of
caring for three small children. In that era, a widow with children had to
either hire a woman to take care of his children
(which he had no money to do), remarry quickly, or give his children to
someone who could raise them.
The other possibility is that both Lorenzo and Maria Rita were deceased by
1880 and kind neighbors, friends, and/or family
took the children in, albeit splitting them up.
In 1885, a Leo Avila was living in northern Huerfano
County as a boarder (no occupation given) with the Mestas family (possibly
part of the family of Lorenzo's first wife), along with J.S. Avila, who at
age 16, was supporting the two as a teamster (a trucker of
sorts - but with horses and a wagon).
Was this Lorenzo, going by the name of Leo, and was J.S. his son Juan Santo?
I believe so. But if so, Lorenzo was close to 69, whereas the age of
the Leo listed was 54. But census records have been known to be way off before.
If so, then Lorenzo had managed to raise
Juan Santos (who would have been 11 in 1880) alone until Juan became old
enough to support them both. The age
for Juan is correct as he would have been 16
or 17 in 1885. The fact that no occupation was given for the senior Avila
but one for the junior, only age 16, supports this theory under the
assumption that Lorenzo was unable to work due to age.
Or was Leo a cousin or other family relative who raised Juan until he
himself became a widow? In that case, Juan Santos also
had been placed into another home like his sisters.
Lorenzo is presumed to have died between either
1880 or 1885 and 1900, as he does not appear in the 1900 census.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ JOSE RAFAEL AVILA (10)
-father of Lorenzo Avila (9)
-grandfather of Juana Avila (8)
-great-grandfather of Delfido Cruz (1)
Jose Rafael Abila was born about 1795 (parents
unknown). He married Maria Felipa (or Josefa) Duran
(born Sep 13, 1801). They were the parents
of at least two children:- Lorenzo, born 24 Aug 1816 (see above)
- Jose Dolores, born 27 Jan 1818
Both Jose Rafael and Maria Felipa were deceased by the time their son
Lorenzo was married on 7 October 1839.~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~PART 1: CHAPTER III - MAESANTONIA MAES (11)
- mother of Juan Bautista Cruz (2)
- grandmother of Delfido Cruz (1)
Maria Antonia Maese was baptized 22 January 1826
at the Church of Santo Tomas de Abiquiu, daughter of Juan Maese and Apolonia
Giron. Her paternal grandparents were Salvador Maese and Maria Juana Gertrudis
Lucero, and maternal grandparents were Nicolas Jiron and Juana Paula Lucero.
According to the records, they were living in Ojo Caliente, NM at
the time.
The next record I have of her is her marriageat age 28 in 1854 to
Luciano Cruz which indicates that her family were residents of DesMontes
and originally
from Abiquiu. She was rather old for marriage as girls usually were married
by the age of 18. It's possible that she was married previously, but the
records do not reflect that.
Antonia may have been rather sensitive about her age as in the
1860 census she gave her age as 25, three years younger than she was in
1854 when she got married. Perhaps she was young looking for her age. Then
10 years later in the 1870 census, she was STILL 25. By the 1880, she
must have aged quite a bit as her age was given as 50, closer to her
actual age of 54. Then five years later in 1885, she really got old
as her age was given as 65, when she was only 59. She probably didn't
know her actual birth date, but through the years the ages were way off.
Antonia had given birth to at least five children and died sometime
after 1885 in Huerfano County, location unknown.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~JUAN MANUEL MAES (12)
- father of Antonia Maes (11)
- grandfather of Juan Bautista Cruz (2)
- great grandfather of Delfido Cruz (1)
Juan Manuel Maes was born to Salvador Maes and Maria Juana Gertrudis Lucero,
year unknown, probably in Rio Arriba, NM. The only records I found for him
were the marriage record
of his daughter, Antonia, and birth records for eight children.
He married
Maria Apolonia Jiron, probably in 1822, the year prior to the birth of their
first child. The records of the births of most of their children report
that they lived in Ojo Caliente, NM, which is around 15 miles northeast of
Abiquiu. By 1854, they had moved to DesMontes.
They had the following children, according to Abiquiubaptisms:
- Maria Feliciana, born 9 Jun 1823
- Juana Paula, born 17 May 1824
- Maria Antonia, baptized 22 Jan 1826 (see above)
- Reymundo, born 16 February 1833
- Ana Teresa, born 16 May 1834
- Maria Martina, born 1 Jan 1836
- Jose Guadelupe, born 12 Dec 1837
- Jose Casimiro, baptized 8 Mar 1840
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~SALVADOR ANTONIO MAES (13)
- father of Juan Manuel Maes (12)
- grandfather of Antonia Maes (11)
- great-grandfather of Juan Bautista Cruz (2)
- great-great grandfather of Delfido Cruz (1)
Salvador Antonio Maes married Maria Manuela Garcia,
year unknown. The had the following children (all records from Abiquiu):
- Juan Manuel, married Maria Apolonia Jiron (see above)
- Jose Ysabel, born 5 Nov 1808, married Maria Juliana Villalpando
- Juan Francisco, born 6 Oct 1810
- Santiago, married Maria de los Reyes Martin
- Vicente Ferrar, married Maria Petrona Alarid
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~PART 1: CHAPTER IV - VIGILMARIA BARBARA VIGIL (14)
- mother of Sebastian Cruz (3)
- grandmother of Juan Bautista Cruz (2)
- great-grandmother of Delfido Cruz (1)
Maria Barbara Vigil was born 3 Jul 1799 at Rio Chama, NM. Her life is
given in the section on her husband, Sebastian Cruz. I have done no
research on my own on her line but have her ancestors from the book
by Donald Milligan, which I will give in this
section.
PARENTS of Barbara Vigil:
Mathias Aparicio Vigil born 2 Mar 1764, Rio Chama, NM
married 1 Feb 1784 Rio Chama, NM
Nicolasa Sanchez born 28 Dec 1758 Rio Chama, NM
PARENTS of Mathias Aparicio Vigil:
Francisco Montes Vigil de Santilana III
married 12 May 1748 Nambe Pueblo, NM
Maria de Jesus Mestas
PARENTS of Francisco Montes Vigil de Santilana:
Francisco Montes Vigil de Santilana II died 1731/1749 Santa Cruz, NM
married
Antonia Jiron del Castillo died bef 28 Jun 1744, Santa Cruz, NM
PARENTS of Francisco Montes Vigil de Santilana II:
Francisco Montes Vigil I
born 1665 El Real, Zacatecas, Mexico died 11 Sep 1731 Santa Cruz, NM
married
Maria Jimenez de Ancizo died 19 Nov 1745 Santa Cruz, NM
PARENTS of Nicolasa Sanchez:
Francisco Sanchez born abt 1731 died aft 9 Apr 1805
married 5 Nov 1754 Rio Chama, NM
Margarita Salazar died bef 9 Apr 1805
PARENTS of Francisco Sanchez:
Joaquin Sanchez born 1695
married 1725 Albuquerque, NM
Manuela Francisca G. Mora born Albuquerque
PARENTS of Margarita Salazar:
Juan Antonio de Salazar
born 23 Sep 1714 Santa Cruz, NM died 27 Oct 1780 Rio
Chama, NM
married 2 Jul 1735 Albuquerque, NM
Barbara Muniz de Luna born New Mexico
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~PART 2: CHAPTER I - GALVANANNA GALVAN (15)
Anna Galvan was born August 6, 1896 to Jose Galvan
and Fabiana Pacheco. She was baptized September 6, 1896 by Rev. G.
Ussel of St. Mary's Catholic Church in Walsenburg, CO. Godparents were Daniel
Pacheco and Maria A. Pacheco, who may have
been relatives of her mother. At the time, both of Anna's parents were
living in the area of La Veta, a small town southwest of
Walsenburg, on Highway 12.
The family moved around a lot and I will cover the reasons why I believe
they did later, when I discuss her father.
Although Anna was born in Huerfano County, by 1899 the family had moved
to Colfax County, New Mexico, where they were
listed in the 1900 U.S. Census. This was when Anna was almost 4, and they
were living in or near a now ghost town called
Catskill (west of Raton).
Catskill, NM at one time was a thriving town whose main sources of income
were charcoal - producing three thousand cords of
wood daily, and lumber - shipping out 30 to 50 flatcar loads of lumber daily
at its peak between 1890 an 1900. By 1902 the
town was dying because the logging had wiped out the timber around the area.
The boom may be why the family moved
there, but I'm not so sure its demise was why they left.
Although baptized with the name Anna, her family was calling her "Annie" by
1900. Annie was short in stature, which is
reinforced by the fact that she is listed as age 2 in the 1900 census, born in
Aug 1897. One would assume that since month of
a birth was given, that a family member gave the census taker her birth
information and it should have been correct. But
because Annie was so tiny, whoever gave the information thought she was only
almost three instead of almost four.
Going by the birth locations of her siblings (as found in Annie's journal),
by the following year (1901), the family had moved to
Union County, NM. In October 1907 they were back in in Colfax County,
near Raton, NM.
That November Annie's father obtained homestead landin what is now Harding County, NM which is south and east of Union County.
A postcard photo of Annie and her sister Suzie (of which I was given a copy)
is dated July 11, 1910 from Raton, NM, confirming their Raton location.
The family moved to Oakview, in Huerfano County, CO in 1912. This is known by the
fact that Annie left a journal of sorts which
gave the information:
===========================Mrs Fabiana L. Galvan
Mr. Jose F. Galvan
Raton, N Mex
Came to OakView
9 of Sept, 1912 Colorado
========================
They were close to the Preciliano Cruz family (Delfido's uncle who raised
him) because Preciliano's wife, Agustina, and Annie's mother were sisters.
The following May after moving to Oakview, Fabiana and Jose Galvan
were sponsors or godparents for a child of Preciliano and Agustina Cruz.
Delfido must have lived close by or else visited his uncle's place often.
According to Annie and Defido's daughter Elsie, Delfido was dating another
girl who was a close friend of Annie's, as the two
"chummed" around together, and I assume lived close by each other. The girl
went to a dance with Delfido and Annie went
along. Delfido and the girl kept dancing away and between dances, Annie would
whisper to the girl, "What do you see in that
guy?" Delfido then went off to work, presumably in one of the other coal mines
where he would have stayed in the coal company boarding house. He
would write his girlfriend, but she didn't read or
write Spanish, but Annie did. So Annie read his letters to her girlfriend and
wrote letters to Delfido for her. The next time
he came into town from work, he took his girlfriend out to dance again, and
once again, Annie tagged along. Except this time,
Delfido ignored his girlfriend and danced with Annie. Evidently after reading
Delfido's letters, Annie saw something in him
that impressed her. The girlfriend got upset with Annie and accused her of
stealing her man from her, claiming that Annie
hadn't written what she had asked her to write, but had written her own words
to Delfido. Only Annie knows.
Delfido then began courting Annie officially. On October 1913, at the age
of 17, Annie married Elfido Cruz (age 23) and had
her first child the following year at the age of 18. She went on to have a
total of 10 children, losing three sons at birth (all named John), who
were never baptized. According to her grand-daughter Charlotte Schendell,
Annie was RH negative which was probably the reason for losing the babies.
In the 1920 census, Annie lived two doors away from her grandmother
Manuela in Oakview, and six doors away on the other side were her parents
and brothers and sisters, who, no doubt were an emotional support for her.
After the birth of six of Annie's children in Oakview (Casi, Del, John 1,
"Amarita" or Mary, John 2 and Henry), the family moved
to Weldona, Colorado where she had one child (Joe), then
on to Montrose, Colorado, where she gave birth to four more children
(Max, John 3, and Elsie), the last one in 1932, when she was 36.
One intersting thing in Annie's journal is the notation
Montrose Colo
May 24 1933
enclosed in a heart-like shape with curly-ques at the bottom of the heart.
Her father had just been buried 6 days prior to that on 19 May. Is it
possible that she had been able to attend her father's funeral in
Oakview and she returned to Montrose on that date? Only Annie knows.In September of 1936, Annie Galvan Cruz, who had been married to her
husband for 23 years, became a widow at the age of 40 with five children
under the age of 18 to take care of. She was poor and had no life insurance
to bury her husband, so she had to put him in the
Potter's Field portion of the Cedar Cemetery, with the county paying for
the plot.
Someone (possibly one of the sons) made a headstone for him out of a slab
of rock.
Annie was sure Del had stashed away some money in some bank,
so she visited all the banks which were in Montrose at the time and asked about
his accounts - which he didn't have.
Times were tough for Annie and her children. In order to keep warm (as there
was no money for coal), Henry, the oldest at home, would go around
picking up coal which fell off the coal cars and bring it home to burn in the
stove. Then Annie got sick and Henry had to work, cook, and care for his
siblings and mother. Delfino, Casi and Mary had already left home (but
working and living locally), so Henry had to quit school at the age of 13 and go to work
to support his mother and two brothers and sister.
During that time a lot happened in Annie's life, both good and bad: her husband
died in 1936, leaving her with four children to raise. The three older
children married: Casi in 1937, Mary in May of 1938, and Delfino in June of
1938. Then in August of 1938, her mother, Fabiana, died. Annie attended the
funeral even though her mother was buried two days later, and Oakview was a
hard drive over the mountains. Even though times were hard (remember this
was during the Great Depression), Annie was close to her mother and made a way
to get to her funeral.
By 1941, World War II was starting to gear up and her son Delfino and his
family moved to Oakland, California because of the booming economy and the
opportunity for a good job. (Evenutally, all the sons
but Henry moved to California. And that was because his car
broke down and he couldn't make the trip.) Annie also went to California
and was treated for breast cancer in San Leandro. By then the only minor
child she had was Elsie.
On August 29, 1942, at the age of 46, Annie applied for her Social Security
card. She herself thought she was born in 1897 as it is the year she listed on
her application. At the time she was living at 10411 San Leandro Blvd. with
her son Delfino in Oakland and working at Elmhurst Cannery at 309 98th St.,
also in Oakland.
But Annie didn't stay in California. She couldn't drive a car
and had to rely on someone to take her every where she needed to go. After World War
II (1949 or 1950), she moved back to Montrose, Colorado to live,
possibly because she was homesick, possibly because of her ill health.
By that time Henry had gotten married (7 Aug 1945 - Annie's Journal) and
was in the Army (he was 18 when the United States entered the war).
Annie moved to South 1st Street across from Henry and his new wife Mable's
house. She received an allotment from his military pay as he was her sole
support. Annie remained in the house on 1st street in Montrose for the rest of
her life. At one point, she was taken to Denver for radiation treatment for
uterine cancer.
A widow for
over 50 years, she never remarried. On July 25,
1989 at the age of 92 - less than two weeks away from her 93rd
birthday - Anna Galvan Cruz died of a heart attack after
suffering for years from cancer. She had been visiting her daughter Mary in
Salt Lake City, UT when she fell and broke her arm
and died there while in the hospital (Holy Cross). She is buried in the Cedar Cemetery in
Montrose, in section J, Block 25, Lot E SW 1/4. Her headstone was purchased
by her children and includes Delfido's name beside hers, even though he
is not buried with her. They had wanted to move Delfido along side her,
but because of the expense of the move, they decided against it. However,
there are several grandchildren of Delfido's buried close by him, most of which
are listed on the monument in the Potter's Field. (For some reason, Delfido's
name was not included, but he does have the marker.)
According to her obituary, Annie had been a resident of Montrose, Colorado
for 63 years - less the time she lived in Oakland.
She enjoyed walking, working in her yard, homemaking, church activities,
crocheting, playing cards with her grandchildren and
children, going to the Mexican-American Development Association for senior
citizen lunch and activities.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~JOSE FRANCISCO GALVAN (16)
- father of Annie Galvan (15)
Jose Francisco Galvan was born March 6, 1869 to
Jose Presiliano Galvan and Maria Abelina Soaso [sic].
He was baptized 28 Mar, 1869 at St. Agustine's Catholic church in Antonito,
Colorado. Their residence at the time was Las
Conejas. Godparents were Jose Desiderio Sisneros and Maria Juana Ortega.
Desiderio may have been a relative of Avelina as her mother was a
Sisneros.
His given name is Jose Francisco. Sometimes records have his name as Jose.
Sometimes as Francisco. Since Jose was a
very common first name (like Maria for females), I will refer to him as
Francisco.
The first census in which Francisco appeared was 1870 in Conjeos County, Colorado, where he was one year old, living with
his family which included two older
brothers, Daniel and Adenago. By 1880the Galvan family had moved from the San Luis Valley to Huerfano County,
in the Bear Creek settlement. Bear Creek runs south and west out of
Walsenburg.
An interesting note here is that Francisco age 10, and his brothers,
Jose Adenago age 11, and Jose Daniel age 12, were working on their father's
farm: The two older brothers were herding sheep and Francisco was herding
the horses. No mention of school for any of them. But as we will learn later,
he did learn to at least write his name.
At some point in his life, probably as a young man, Francisco learned to
play the accordian as he was holding one in a photo given to me. That's
assuming he wasn't just posing.
In the 1885 Colorado census, his brother Daniel
was married, living next
door and Francisco, age 16 was working as a laborer.
This time his father was a stock raiser, so Francisco was probably still
working on his father's farm.
Next door lived a married woman (but without mention of a husband) named
Maria M. Gallegos with three daughters: Maria
Piedad age 14, Fabiana age 7, and Abelina, age 1. Evidently they were
friendly neighbors as two years later (2 Sep 1887)
Francisco married the oldest daughter, Piedad in
Walsenburg. He was 19 at the time and Piedad was 16. Piedad's father
was listed as Antonio Gallegos, and her mother, Manuela Pacheco.
At some point they moved to New Mexico where Francisco became the father
of a daughter:
Agustina born June 1894
The 1900 census gives her birth state as New
Mexico. This is assumed to be correct as her birth is not recorded in Huerfano
County.
Elsie Cruz (Eufamia) remembers hearing her grandfather had been married
before he married her grandmother and later
divorced the woman and that they had a child, the older half sister of Annie.
Divorce wasn't unheard of at the time, but
Catholics? If it's true, what happened to Piedad? She was out of the picture
by 1895 and Francisco was raising Agustina. And
if they were divorced, how did Francisco re-marry in the same church by
the same priest? (Gabriel Ussel-per St. Mary's Marriage Records). Unless
perhaps Piedad abandoned him and the baby and he divorced her in
New Mexico, but told the priest that he was widowed.
Within six months of the birth of his daughter Augustina, Francisco was
back in Huerfano County. If he had been divorced, it was sure fast as on
January 2, 1895, Jose Francisco Galvan (age 27) marriedFabiana Pacheco (age 18), the sister of Piedad Gallegos -
they had the same mother, but different fathers.
Was Fabiana a Pacheco or a Gallegos? I'll cover that mystery under Fabiana's
name - Laforet.
Francisco and Fabiana were married by Father Gabr Ussel, and both of
their residences were listed as North Veta. North Veta
was a little town between Walsenburg and LaVeta. Their witnesses were
Cornelio Duran and Placida Lopez.
Francisco and Fabiana had eight children together:
- Anna, born 06 Aug 1896, Oakview, Huerfano County,
CO
- Donaciana (Susanna), born 18 Feb 1899,
Catskill, New Mexico (1900 census)
or born 19 Feb 1900 Huerfano County, CO
-married 1st Daniel Gallegos 30 Dec 1922
(born 1900 died 21 Oct 1930-Annie's Journal)
-married 2nd Lino Padilla 13 Jul 1931 - Jose (Joe), born 09 Jun 1901, Clayton, Union County,
NM
or born 09 Jun 1900
or born 01 Jun 1901
or born 09 Jun 1902
-married Ramona Tenorio 30 Sep 1922
-died 01 Mar 1976 - Pablo (Paul), born 09 Aug 1903, Clayton, Union County,
NM
or born 19 Aug 1903
-died 12 Sep 1987 - Eloy, born 15 Oct 1907, Raton, Colfax County, NM
or born 12 Mar 1909, Cimmaron, Colfax County, NM
or born 12 Oct 1907
-married Ninfa Padilla 20 Apr 1929
-died Mar 1977 San Leandro, CA - George Orlando (Choches), born 13 Nov 1915,
Oakview, Huerfano County, CO
or born 16 Nov 1909
-served as PFC Co I 324 Inf WWII
-died 27 Mar 1972 - Maria Pilar, born 08 Jun 1914, Oakview, CO
-died 08 Jun 1914 - Emelia, born 10 February 1918, Oakview, CO
or born 18 Jul 1918
-married Jose Eliberto Padilla 28 Sep 1935
By 1900, five years after Francisco and Fabiana were married in Huerfano
County, they had moved to Catskill, near Raton, in
Colfax County New Mexico, where they were living at the time of the census.
And if the information I have is correct, then in 1903 they were living in
Union County (now Harding), New Mexico. But let's back up a bit.
Francisco moved around in an era where people generally stayed put. If
they moved, they tended to move permanently, or at
least for a long time. Why so much moving around? The story goes that he was
a cattle rustler and a train robber, and records back up the cattle rustling
part. So I assume he was running from the law a lot.
It is said Francisco made his living rustling (stealing) cows and horses.
He would also steal the mules (which were used to pull the coal carts up
from the mines) from one mining company and sell
them to another mining company.
I guess any livestock was fair game to him as the story is told that
Francisco and
Delfido were going down the road one day and Jose pointed to some cattle
asked his son-in-law Delfido which one of those cows he'd like. Delfido
pointed one out and Jose reached behind the seat and pulled out his rifle
and shot the cow. Jose failed to inform Delfido that the cows were the
neighbors, not his. The other family story was that he would shoot a cow and
bring it home for them to have something to eat because they were so poor.
Maybe. But it sounds like he also shot them for sport.
In 1903, Francisco's criminal activities finally caught up with him.
Page one of the October 1903 Huerfano Worldnewspaper has a "District Court Docket" with the following case:
====================================
People vs L.A. Hough, Lillard M.
Huggins, Josh Patterson, Jose Galban,
Casimiro Martines and Elfido Montoya.
This is the Rouse cattle stealing case
and there are six informations of like
import filed against these parties.
Henry Huggins is the attorney for Mr.
Hough in these cases. P.W. Sweeney
is the attorney for Patterson. And J.A.
J. Valdez for the balance of the parties.
District Attorney Ross is present to
prosecute for the people and will be as-
sisted by Deputy Prosecutor Hayden.
=====================================
They were found guilty. On October 13, Francisco
1903 was convicted of Grand Larceny and sentenced to serve three to six years in the Colorado State
Penitentiary.
On October 15, 1903, Francisco was "inducted" as Prisoner
Number 5857. His physical description was given as 5'6 1/2" tall, 161 pounds,
"build s heavy", dark complexted Mexican,
brown eyes, dark hair with two scars on the left side of his neck and "hair
on breast". His occupation is listed as farmer. Both
his father (P.A. Galvan) and wife (Fabiana Galvan) were listed as residing in
Union County, New Mexico at the time. He could
read and write "Mexican," so evidently, although he didn't go to school
accoding to census records, he became literate in Spanish
somewhere along the line. He gave his signature on the document as Jose
Galvan. He was temperate (drank) and smoked. In addition, his "mug" shot
was taken and was obtained from the Colorado State Archives. His head and
face were shaved and he was dressed in the traditional convict stripes.
The picture shows the
face of a man who was strong and determined, but ready to serve his time.
His physical features, I believe, strongly resemble Native American
(with a double chin).Francisco must have been a model prisoner as on November 7th 1905 his sentence
was commuted to 2 1/2 to 6 years and he
was released a month later on December 8, 1905. (Technically, he didn't even
serve 2 1/2 years, unless they had time off for good behavior back then.)
The day he was convicted and sent to prison, he had company: theRecord of Convicts When Received in the Colorado State Penitentiarylists at least three of the gang who were convicted and arrived at prison the
same day: Elfido Montoya, Lillard Huggins and Casimero Martinez. Either the
other two of the gang (Hough and Patterson) were listed on the following page
or they got off without prison time because they had their own
attorneys. The four who I know went to prison all had the same attorney:
Valdez.
The other three of the gang who went to the pen together were all from
Colorado: Las Animas
County, Rouse, and Trindad. Francisco, however, was living in New Mexico at the time.
I speculate he was traveling back and forth across the state line, (Las
Animas County is on the state border),
meeting with the rest of the gang, planning and carrying out their schemes.
There's also a Galvan family story I was told that Francisco robbed
the military train which would have
been going to Fort Garland, west over the mountains, in Costilla County.
Rumor has it that he got away with $75,000 in gold
which was destined for the army payroll. Francisco was supposed to have
buried the gold on his farm. His brother was thought
to have bought thousands of acres of land. With the stolen gold???
I haven't looked for any record of his brothers buying thousands of acres and
there is nothing in the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) records. Interestingly
enough, I did find that an Antonio Galvan, along with nine other men,
obtained almost five thousand acres in Sandoval, NM in 1907 (according to
the BLM records). But this was from an 1851 Spanish/Mexican land grant, and
perhaps they were buying back land that had been stolen from them by the U.S.
government. And Francisco never had a brother named Antonio.
Another note is that one of the men in that purchase was a Miguel Gallegos,
and in the small cemetery where Jose Francisco is buried, a
Miguel Gallegos is also buried. Just a coincidence...?
I was told that Galvans in Huerfano area to this day talk about ways
they can find the buried treasure. Problem is, Francisco wasn't living in
Huerfano County at the time - he was living in New Mexico. At least one
of the gang was living in Huerfano County at the time. Maybe it's buried on
his farm. Maybe it's just never been found....
In 1907, two years after getting out of prison, Jose Galvan obtained 160
acres of land in Union County, in what is now Harding
County, New Mexico, under the U.S. Homestead Entry Act.
It didn't take much money to get land under the Homestead Act (only $1.25 an
acre) - but one had to live on it for five years, then file an avadavit stating such
(plus some other questions), and pay a fee. At least Fabiana lived on it - Francisco was away on
"business" during the required time. His children Jose and Pablo were
said to have been born in Clayton, Union County, which is north and east
of Harding.
Although it is a possibility that the land they had been living
on in Union County was indeed the land he filed for a homestead claim,
it was near Buyereros, so one would assume if indeed they were living
on this land when his sons were born, that family records would indicate
that. But then records have been suspect for dates, so they are quite
likely suspect for locations. Only until further research is made
(i.e. baptismal records for Jose and Pablo) will the truth be uncovered.
It was also by 1907, by the time of the birth of Eloy, that Francisco
had moved his family back to Colfax County. In 1910 a photo of his
daughters Annie and Suzie was postmarked Raton, sent to Francisco's sister
Clarita in Cimarron, both in Colfax County. Eloy stated when he was married
that he was born in Cimarron. Annie had in her journal that Eloy was born
in Raton. Was Francisco moving around a lot and still running from the law,
this time in New Mexico? Don't know.
But it isn't beyond anyone's imagination. Then in 1912 he moved moved to Oakview
in Huerfano County, which is a definite from Annie's journal.
On 12 Dec 1912, Jose F. and Fabiana Galvan were witnesses to themarriageof Francisco's niece, Maria del Pilar, daughter of his sister, Carmela.
A photo was taken of the wedding party and unlike his earlier photo,
Francisco is nattily dressed in a suit, with a mustache and a slight
wave in his dark hair. He was rather expressionless, but that is typical
of early 20th century photos.
The 1920 census gives the family name as
"Gabran", but it is unmistakably the same family with
Jose, head, 50
Faviana, wife, 43
Susie, daughter, 21
Jose, son, 19
Pablo, son, 16
Eloy, son 13
Emilia, daughter, 3
Avelina, mother, 76
They lived in the Oakview Coal Camp, six families away from their daughter,
Annie; eight doors away from Fabiana's mother; nine doors from Fabiana's
cousin Samuel; and probably close to a lot more relatives than I have
figured out.
In light of the previous story about Francisco stealing mules from one
coal mine and selling them to another, a very interesting note in the
1920 census is Francisco's occupation: he was the stable boss for the
coal mine. He was stealing the mules right from underneath their very
noses! And he lived across the street from the coal mine to boot. How
convenient. Either he was very brazen or very sharp con man - or both.
In 1925 Francisco filed again for homestead land, this time a parcel of
167.47 acres in Huerfano County, in the mountains behind Oakview. The problem
with obtaining this land is that the Homestead Entry Act clearly
states that under Section 6:
"And be it further enacted, that no individual shall be permitted to acquire
title to more than one quarter section under the provisions of this act."
He was able to obtain homestead land in two different places because
the land offices were in two different states (Clayton, NM and Pueblo, CO)
and records were kept locally.
On 25 Mar 1931, Francisco Galvan executed a promisory note to the First
National Bank of Walsenburg for six months in the amount of $200 at
12% interest, for 167 47/100 acres - on this land which he obtained
(very cheaply)
through the Homestead Act. I did not find out if he paid off the loan.
He also purchased other land near the Oakdale mine in Oakview, according
to his grandson Henry. At one point
he built an adobe home across the road from the mine, about a quarter of a
mile back from the road. The house was on one side of the arroyo and the barn
was on the other. Henry has a photo of himself and Chris Galvan (son of Joe and
Ramona Galvan) standing outside the homestead, near a couple of sapling trees
(which are no longer there). The land was lost to the family after Jose's death
when the taxes weren't paid. The tax notices may have never been received.
It is said that Leno Padilla (second husband of Suzie Galvan) secretly
intercepted the tax notices, paid the taxes then later obtained the land
on the grounds that he was the one paying the taxes.
Francisco was known to have had a whiskey still, as did many of the residents of
Huerfano County, especially during Prohibition.
His granddaughter Mary Cruz remembers that he was a "whiskey maker."
Since he was not a temperate man (according to his prison record), it fits
in quite well with his rebel image.
On May 17, 1933 at the age of 68, Jose Francisco Galvan died in Oakview,
Colorado. His death certificate listed his cause of
death as dropsey (which is fluid retention) with cardiac complications - or
heart disease. He had been seeing Dr. Robert A.
Mathew for nine months for his condition.
He was buried in the Oakview cemetery on May 19 which is across from
his (former) home (no burial/funeral home records were found).
I visited the site in 2001 and even though there is
evidence of many graves, Jose's grave and Miguel Gallegos' are the only
ones I could find because vandals have destroyed everything they could.
Jose's still stands because someone (possibly one of his sons) made a
practically indestructible grave marker of iron with his name
welded into a plate. The grave site overlooks some of the most beautiful
land in Colorado, a valley and rolling hills to the foot of the majestic
Spanish Peaks, so tall they still have evidence of snow in the summer.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~JOSE PRECILIANO GALVAN (17)
- father of Jose Francisco Galvan (16)
- grandfather of Annie Galvan (15)
Jose Preciliano Galvan was born April 1844 in Chihuahua, Mexico and came
to the United States in 1854, according to the1880 census which listed his birth state as Chihuhaua,
Mexico and the 1900 census which indicated
he had been in the US for 46 years, arriving in 1854. However, the1870 census lists his age as 28, or born in 1842.
So take your pick.
Nothing is known of his parents. He may have became a US citizen at one
time as in the 1900 census under the "citizenship" column, it listed "na" for
"naturalized." In addition, he later obtained U.S. land which required
citizenship (or at least have declared an intent to become one).
I did not find any Galvans in New Mexico or Colorado in 1860. It would
seem that if Preciliano came with his family as a 10
year old boy, that some remnant would be left of them by then, when he would
have been 14. Maybe they all died. Maybe he
lost his family back in Mexico and decided to trudge north, tagging along
with another family. Maybe they were missed in the
census. There were a few Galvan families in the 1850 New Mexico census,
(mostly in the Zia Indian Pueblo), however, possibly distantly related, but doubtful his
direct family.
Preciliano married Avelina Suaso sometime around 1863, when he was 19 -
assuming that the birth of their first child
followed within the year. Marriage records were not found in Conejos County
(where they were living in 1870), so they may
have met and married in Rio Arriba County, New Mexico, where Avelina was
living in 1850.
Preciliano and Avelina had at least six children:
- Maria Juana baptized April 18, 1864, Antonito, Conejos County, CO
- Jose Daniel, born around 1865, Conejo County, CO
-married Silveria Martinez 10 Dec 1884
-children:- Lucia born 13 Dec 1885married Amarsante Galvez 29 Oct 1903
- Manuela Eva born 11 Jan 1888married Antonio Luis Padilla 01 May 1903
-child: Eloy born Jan 1904married Refugio Magdalena 24 Feb 1935
NOTE: The father of Eloy is Lino Padilla, the same name as the man who
married Suzie Galvan Gallegos. Whether this is the same man or another with
the same name is unknown. - Elfido born 17 Jan 1890
-died 21 Oct 1930 - Jose Adenago, baptized October 16, 1867, Antonito, Conejos County, CO
- Jose Francisco, born March 3, 1868, baptized March 28, Antonito, CO (see above)
- Maria Clara, born May 4, 1871, Antonito, Conejos County, COmarried Manuel Salazar 11 Sep 1887
- Maria Carmel, born around 1875, Colorado
-child: Maria del Pilar Galvan born 28 Jun 1894
No father was given in the baptismal records, but in 1912 a "Pelas Chavez"
was married to Candido Ortiz and her parents were Rafael Chavez and Carmela
Galvan. The clincher that this was Carmela is that Jose F. and Fabiana Galvan were
the witnesses.
NOTE: Annie's journal has Carmelita Salazar died 26 Mar 1939 and
Clarita Galvan died 26 Jan 1940.
Unless the marriage record is incorrect (and that has been known to
happen) Clara was the one who married a Salazar and there is no marriage
record for Carmela. The family has a photo of Annie and Suzie Galvan
which was mailed to Senora Clarita Galvan in Cimarron, NM, postmarked
Raton, NM. This backs up Annie's journal that it was Clarita who
never married. Then on the other hand, it was Carmela who had a child,
with an unnamed father (later to named as Rafael Chavez).In the 1870 census, Preciliano (age 28) and his
family (wife 23, son Daniel 4, son Jose (Adenago) 2 and son Francisco age 1)
were living the Las Conejas area (the Post
Office on the census records), in Conejos County, Colorado, which is in the
San Luis Valley. He was living in the same household as his in-laws, Juan I.
and Guadalupe Suaso and was working as a laborer,
probably for his father-in-law, who was a farmer.
There are a couple of mysteries here. The first is that Preciliano was
listed just as Jose P., with his father-in-law Juan Suaso as the head of the
household and all members' last name as Suaso. Was it because the neighbors
gave the names and assumed he was a Suaso
also? Did his in-laws give the information and forgot that he wasn't a Suaso?
The other mystery is that Avelina was not in the 1870 census, but a female
by the name of Louisa was listed after Preciliano,
no relationship given (not required in 1870). I can only assume Louisa
was really Avelina. Maybe the name was just listed wrong, or it was a
nickname. (Hopefully it wasn't another woman, but as well shall see,
things weren't always "kosher" with Preciliano.)
Between 1871 (the birth of his daughter, Clara) and the1880 census, Preciliano moved to Huerfano where he
lived in Bear Creek. He was a farmer, living next door to his in-laws. This
time, his father-in-law Juan Suaso was the laborer. Precilian's age was
given as 35 and his wife Abelina's, age 24. Their children were Daniel (12), Adenago (11), Francisco (10),
Clara (7), and Carmel (5). Now Abelina must have been a very young looking
woman (or vain to give her age as such - if indeed she was the one to give
her age to the census taker) as she would have been 12 years old when her
oldest son was born if the
age 24 is correct (which is presumed it is not). As indicated in the 1870
census, the female listed after Jose P. was a "Louisa", thought to be
Avelina as she is the mother given on the baptismal records of the sons
and is the wife of Preciliano in later censuses. However, her age was given
as 23 in 1870 so she aged only one year in ten. Or so it seems.
In the Colorado 1885 census, Preciliano's in-laws
were living on one side
of him, and his son, Daniel (who was married by then) between them, and his
future daughters-in-law, Piedad and Fabiana (both married his son
Francisco) and their family, lived on the other side.
Evidently, Preciliano had moved up in the world for they now had a
domestic: Jose Marques was living in the home and his
relationship to the family was given as servant. Additional income came from
a woman and her two children who were boarders.
Although land ownership was not listed, presumably, Preciliano (then aged 40)
owned land as he was listed in the census as a stockraiser.
His father-in-law, Juan I. Suaso, and
brother-in-law, Pablo Suaso, and Precililano's sons, Daniel (19),
Jose F. (16), and Adenago (17), were all listed as laborers, no doubt working on
Preciliano's ranch, more or less cowboys. The stock
was probably sheep, which I will explain why later.
The land they were living on was located at the base of
the Spanish Peaks, at the mouth of Bear Creek. This is a known fact as
in 1886 his brother-in-law, Pablo Suaso, signed an avidavit with the U.S. government that he had known Estevan Pacheco
(the land claimant) for three years and that he lived 300 yards from him
and the land Estevan obtained was in the location described.
Also listed in the Galvan household in 1885 was Preciliano's wife,
Maria A, age 38, Carmen age 11 and Clara age 14. Carmen wasn't attending
school but Clara was.
Preciliano moved around also, as did his son Francisco, as he
moved sometime between 1894 (when a grandchild Maria de Pilar was born to
his daughter Carmela in Huerfano County - assuming she was still living
with her father) and 1899. The 1900 census
has him living in Catskill, New Mexico -
next door to Francisco. At the age of 56, he was married to a Juanita, who
was born March 1865 (or 35), the age of his oldest son. Somewhere along the line
one would assume he had been widowed and remarried, but that's not what
happened as his wife Avelina was still alive in 1920, as we will see
later. In the 1900 census, there
were three new children, by Juanita:
- Martina, born Dec. 1889, Colorado
- Francisco Jr., born Sep 1894, New Mexico (1900 census)
or Aguilar, CO (St. Mary's Marriage Records)
-married Beatriz Delgado 17 Nov 1915
-child: Maria Manuela Odelia born 20 Jan 1917 - Maclovia, born Feb 1899, New Mexico
for a total of nine children. I believe Francisco Jr. was born in Colorado
(locations can get clouded for people who moved around a lot)
but the census is probably correct that Maclovia was born the previous year
in New Mexico.Why did Preciliano name a second, living son Francisco, and a Junior to
boot? I have no clue. In the 1870 census, the name of the first Francisco is "Francisco"
(no Jose). But in the 1880 census
his name was "Jose Francisco." Then in the 1885 census, he was "Jose F."
Maybe
by the time Francisco, Jr. was born, Preciliano wanted to honor his elder
son by naming his firstborn son by his second wife "Francisco."
On November 12, 1900 Preciliano Galvan paid a $16 fee and applied for 1/4 section or 160 acres of homestead land from the U.S.
Government in Section 35, Township 20, Range 32E in Harding County, which
was then Union County, New Mexico.
An interesting note about his "Homestead Affidavit" (which he signed with
his mark - or an X - indicating he was illiterate) is that he swore
that I am a native born citizen of the United States
when that previous June his location of birth was given as Chihuahua, Mexico
to the census taker.... Of course, there's always the possibility that
he didn't speak English and the person who interpreted for him didn't
speak much English and I'm sure the Register, Edward Fox, didn't speak any
Spanish and there was some confusion. Maybe he just lied to get the land. If so, he was probably a
little nervous that they would find out that he wasn't a U.S. Citizen.Preciliano promised to actually live on the land for five years and on
September 28, 1907, he again appeared before the Register in Clayton
(had to pay another six bucks), along with four witnesses (Cipriano Garcia,
Rube Vigil, Manual Naranjo, and Daniel Ortega) who declared that they
knew him and that he had lived on the land for five years.
The "Homestead Proof-Testimony of Claimant" signed by by Preciliano
does have some interesting information:
He said he 65 years old, living at P.O. Leon, NM (near Buyeros),
that he was anative-born citizen of the United States, born in New Mexico.
On October 15, 1900 he started to build his house and finished it
October 30, 1900, which was one rock house of two rooms, one reservoir,
one corral and one hen house with a value of $150.00. Sounds pretty
scrubby, a long way from having a household servant and two boarders
in 1885. It also states why I believe in 1885 the herds his sons were
tending were sheep:
I was about each year during the months of May, June, and July attending
to sheep in order to earn a living.
and no self-respecting cattle-man would have changed his herds to sheep
(and vice-versa).One other inconsistency besides his citizenship was his
marital status - along with the inconsistency of his first wife Avelina
still living back in Colorado. In June Preciliano had a wife and three
children. On this
declaration he stated his family consisted of himself only, that he
was a widower. One might think there was a tragedy and he lost his
three small children and wife between June and October of 1900, except
for the fact that Francisco Jr. grew up and later married in Colorado
(where he gave the name of his mother as Juanita Martinez).
Since they were living in Colfax County, NM in June, maybe his
wife Juanita
vehemently disagreed with his idea of getting some land in some place she
had never been and refused to drag herself and three small children
to what she (possibly) considered some God-forsaken place and said
"hasta la vista." Then he lied about him being a widow because he
would never admit his family abandoned him. Maybe free 160 acres
was a dream he and his son Francsico Sr. had as his land was next to his
son's land who had signed papers for his the
previous year.
In 1912, his son Francisco (Sr.) moved to Colorado and because they seem
to have
been close, always next to each other, I'm presuming it was after Preciliano
died. Preciliano does not appear in the 1920 census and his son, Francisco, Jr.
was married in Huerfano County in 1915, so he had also moved, probably when
his older brother did.
Thus Preciliano probably died between 1908 and 1912 in Harding County, New
Mexico, between the ages of around 64 and 68.
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