Time Travel
Re-living the past of early California history, from Spanish colony to Mexican era, to Gold Rush boom and then United States statehood.
The nice thing about being retired is that I get to work on projects that I define. At the beginning of this summer, I began a new venture (the topic of this post) in the area of living history, and it should allow me to integrate and enjoy my interests in history, culture, the Spanish language, and my fascinations with costuming and mapping (see MISSION statement).
By chance, at a California state park, I happened to meet a living historians [1] group, who's primary focus is California history from about 1840–1860. At public events, the historians are actors and engage with the audience in the 1st person, dressed in clothing of that era. On display are material culture/objects from that era - tools, food stuffs, activities, anything used in everyday life at that time. They welcomed me to join, and the first step is to invent a [fictional] person to portray.
Creating a Character Impression [2]
I selected to be a Californio woman for my impression. Californios are the Spanish-speaking settlers and those born in Alta California when it was a Spanish colony and then a Mexican territory, before becoming a US state in 1850.
The character's name, in traditional Spanish format, is ...
The significance of my character's name are from aspects of my real life.
During the Spanish and Mexican era, Californios developed Alta California into cattle ranchos, religious missions, pueblo towns such as Los Angeles, and Yerba Buena - later becoming San Francisco, and military presidios like at Monterey and San Francisco. The most valuable lands to settle were coastal plains and inland valleys, including Central Valley regions along the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers, Sonoma and Napa valleys, Salinas and Santa Ynez valleys, and San Fernando Valley, among many others. The ranchos were by far the most vast in land holdings.
Once the California Gold Rush started, Californios were eventually swept into the United States takeover of Alta California. As a Californio, I as Juana Inés would have been among the first [non-indigenous] people in the region, so I could interpret early California and the changes that the mass emigration brought to the locality. The variety of material culture to be collected is amazing, and the historical talking points and topics are vast.
Challenge - write your name down using the traditional Spanish format. If you are married person, put your spouse's surname after the "de." Again, the format is: first name + middle name + paternal surname + maternal surname + de + spousal surname.
If you already have such a name, try writing it in the handwriting style of the times, with generous amount of flourishes. A real example is shown below:
The Project Scope
I plan to use my Spanish language skills to make my character a bilingual Californio woman, who owns and operates a rancho, and who marries an Anglo, or yanqui. This character is relevant during every stage of early California history, as her life time spans colonial Spain era, colonial Mexico era, Gold Rush years and US statehood. I aim to engage my audience in English and Spanish in the 1st person to give them an stimulating and cultural experience.
I have been doing a lot of historical research, both on-line and at the county library. And, I plan to visit historical rancho sites in the greater bay area for more education on the topic of Californio work & life. Much of the source documentation is in academic and public library archives, available digitally on-line or physically at a museum or library (can only be viewed on site). Subsequent blog posts in this series will document what things I have done and my experience with this living history project.
Notes and Acknowledgements
[1]Living historians, also called public historians, have more in common with anthropologists and the discipline of experimental anthropology, than they do with academic historians, who also refer to themselves as social historians.
[2]The impression must be documentable and justifiable - essentially the Who, What, When, Where and Why of who I am portraying. Detail is key.
The Townsend channel, available on YouTube, covers living history topics, featuring re-enactments and cooking. They have an 8 part series on Getting Started with Living History. It is excellent tutorial.
One of the groups members, J.R., has been guiding and mentoring me through the process of doing living history. This includes developing the 1st person impression, the material culture, and talking points. J.R. stated to me that living history is the best make-believe anywhere, since it’s all based in reality and research. And, I get to call myself a living historian.
MORE POSTS
THREE CALIFORNIAS
The nice thing about being retired is that I get to work on projects that I define. At the beginning of this summer, I began a new venture (the topic of this post) in the area of living history, and it should allow me to integrate and enjoy my interests in history, culture, the Spanish language, and my fascinations with costuming and mapping (see MISSION statement).
Conceptual impression of a Californio woman
 |
| Composite photo of Jane's face (2018) overlaid on daguerreotype of Clarissa Lathrop (circa 1843, courtesy of Historic Northampton 59.277) |
By chance, at a California state park, I happened to meet a living historians [1] group, who's primary focus is California history from about 1840–1860. At public events, the historians are actors and engage with the audience in the 1st person, dressed in clothing of that era. On display are material culture/objects from that era - tools, food stuffs, activities, anything used in everyday life at that time. They welcomed me to join, and the first step is to invent a [fictional] person to portray.
Creating a Character Impression [2]
I selected to be a Californio woman for my impression. Californios are the Spanish-speaking settlers and those born in Alta California when it was a Spanish colony and then a Mexican territory, before becoming a US state in 1850.
The character's name, in traditional Spanish format, is ...
Juana Inés Nieto Sepúlveda de Arnold
first name (Juana) + middle name (Inés) + paternal surname (Nieto) + maternal surname (Sepúlveda) + de + spousal surname (Arnold)
The significance of my character's name are from aspects of my real life.
 |
| Note the hare in the faux-manuscript |
During the Spanish and Mexican era, Californios developed Alta California into cattle ranchos, religious missions, pueblo towns such as Los Angeles, and Yerba Buena - later becoming San Francisco, and military presidios like at Monterey and San Francisco. The most valuable lands to settle were coastal plains and inland valleys, including Central Valley regions along the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers, Sonoma and Napa valleys, Salinas and Santa Ynez valleys, and San Fernando Valley, among many others. The ranchos were by far the most vast in land holdings.
 | |
|
Once the California Gold Rush started, Californios were eventually swept into the United States takeover of Alta California. As a Californio, I as Juana Inés would have been among the first [non-indigenous] people in the region, so I could interpret early California and the changes that the mass emigration brought to the locality. The variety of material culture to be collected is amazing, and the historical talking points and topics are vast.
Challenge - write your name down using the traditional Spanish format. If you are married person, put your spouse's surname after the "de." Again, the format is: first name + middle name + paternal surname + maternal surname + de + spousal surname.
If you already have such a name, try writing it in the handwriting style of the times, with generous amount of flourishes. A real example is shown below:
 |
| Signatures of José Noriega and Robert Livermore, business partners. From Expediente, or application, for Rancho Las Positas, in present day Alameda county. Application was approved and confirmed in 1840 by Mexican government. - Photo from Bancroft Library Archives. |
The Project Scope
I plan to use my Spanish language skills to make my character a bilingual Californio woman, who owns and operates a rancho, and who marries an Anglo, or yanqui. This character is relevant during every stage of early California history, as her life time spans colonial Spain era, colonial Mexico era, Gold Rush years and US statehood. I aim to engage my audience in English and Spanish in the 1st person to give them an stimulating and cultural experience.
I have been doing a lot of historical research, both on-line and at the county library. And, I plan to visit historical rancho sites in the greater bay area for more education on the topic of Californio work & life. Much of the source documentation is in academic and public library archives, available digitally on-line or physically at a museum or library (can only be viewed on site). Subsequent blog posts in this series will document what things I have done and my experience with this living history project.
 |
| Bancroft and Doe Library, University of Caifornia, Berkeley |
Notes and Acknowledgements
[1]Living historians, also called public historians, have more in common with anthropologists and the discipline of experimental anthropology, than they do with academic historians, who also refer to themselves as social historians.
[2]The impression must be documentable and justifiable - essentially the Who, What, When, Where and Why of who I am portraying. Detail is key.
The Townsend channel, available on YouTube, covers living history topics, featuring re-enactments and cooking. They have an 8 part series on Getting Started with Living History. It is excellent tutorial.
One of the groups members, J.R., has been guiding and mentoring me through the process of doing living history. This includes developing the 1st person impression, the material culture, and talking points. J.R. stated to me that living history is the best make-believe anywhere, since it’s all based in reality and research. And, I get to call myself a living historian.
MORE POSTS
THREE CALIFORNIAS
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ReplyDeleteLol, I love that picture of you, Jane! Do you know who I am? Can you guess?
ReplyDelete