Expanded Diary of Father Pedro Font

Colonizing Expedition September 28, 1775 - June 2, 1776

DIARY KEPT BY THE FATHER PREACHER FRAY PEDRO FONT, APOSTOLIC MISSIONARY OF THE COLLEGE OF SANTA CRUZ DE QUERETARO, DURING THE JOURNEY WHICH HE MADE TO MONTEREY BY ORDER OF THE MOST EXCELLENT SENOR LIEUTENANT-GENERAL BAYLIO FREY DON ANTONIO MARIA BUCARELI Y URSUA, VICEROY, GOVERNOR, AND CAPTAIN-GENERAL OF THIS NEW SPAIN.

This order was communicated to the reverend father guardian of the College of Santa Cruz, Fray Romnaldo Cartagena, in a letter written to him under date of January 2,1775, and was transmitted to me by the same reverend father guardian in a letter which he wrote to me on January 20 of the same year of 1775. He charged me to make the whole journey, going and coming, to accompany Señor Don Juan Bautista de Anza, Lieutenant colonel of Cavalry and Captain of the royal presidio of Tubac Commander of this expedition and of the second journey made by him to the port of Monterey by way of the Colorado River, to escort some families with whom to occupy and settle the port of San Francisco, I to serve as chaplain of the expedition and of the people, with the added duty of observing the latitudes and directions on the way, it having been decided thus in Mexico in the royal council of war and exchequer.

Remarks

As a consequence of the first journey which the Lieutenant colonel Don Juan Bautista de Anza made by way of the Colorado River to Monterey in the year 1774, in company with the reverend father preacher Fray Juan Díaz and the reverend father preacher Fray Francisco Garcés, it was decided in Mexico to make this second expedition and journey, the better to explore the country, and especially to conduct thirty families of married soldiers to the port of Monterey, in order by means of them to settle and hold the famous port of San Francisco. Of these soldiers eight besides the lieutenant and sergeant were to be veterans of the presidios of Sonora, the remaining twenty to be recruits. Señor Anza recruited them between Culiacán and Sinaloa, and they were assembled at the royal presidio of San Miguel de Orcasitas, having passed through the mission of San Joseph de Pimas, where I was serving as minister, on the 26th of May of the year 1775. Captain Anza likewise passed through there on the 23d of the same month, and I agreed to join him whenever it should be time to begin the journey.

On June 30 I delivered my mission of San Joseph de Pimas to the father preacher Fray Joachín Belarde, who came to care for it during my absence. And, having stopped for some time at the mining camp of San Marcial, and elsewhere on the road, I arrived at the presidio of San Miguel de Orcasitas on the 2d of August. I lodged at the house of the governor and visited Captain Anza, but, seeing that there were still some things to arrange for the journey, I decided, until the time should come, to stay at the mission of Ures, where I arrived on the 6th of the same month.

On the 16th of September Captain Anza sent two soldiers to Ures to get me and escort me, and on the night of the same day I arrived at the presidio of San Miguel de Orcasitas. During the days that I remained here I five times observed the latitude of this presidio, and each time I obtained the same result which I shall put down at the end of the diary, with the difference of a few minutes. The instrument with which I made the observations was an astronomical quadrant sent by the viceroy to be delivered to me, but Captain Anza kept it in his possession, not wishing to deliver it to me, and only when it was necessary to make an observation did he open the box in which it came encased. During these days I became ill in my stomach, and this illness and others beset me throughout the whole journey, during which I enjoyed very few days of good health.

At last it was decided to begin the march on the 29th of September, day of the Holy Prince San Miguel, with the people who were already assembled and the train belonging to the expedition, whose members and contingents were the following:

I may note that to this number of one hundred and seventy seven persons there are to be added the three little children who were born afterward on the way, and to be subtracted the woman who died on leaving Tubac. To this number are to be added the people who joined us in Tubac, as I shall state hereinafter, and I may say the same of the following items:

Baggage

To these items are to be added those which were assembled in Tubac, and also the cattle.

Well then, all the foregoing contingents being assembled, with all the rest, at the royal presidio of San Miguel de Orcasitas, orders were given to begin the march on the day of Señor San Miguel, everything necessary for the journey being arranged and a review of the soldiers being held.