With Anza to California, 1775-1776

Book excerpt: Juan Bautista de Anza led the Spanish colonizing expedition in 1775-76 that opened a trail from Arizona to California and established a presidio at San Francisco Bay. Franciscan missionary Fray Pedro Font accompanied Anza. As chaplain and geographer, Font kept a detailed daily record of the expedition's progress that today is considered one of the fundamental documents of exploration in the American Southwest. This new edition includes Font's recently discovered field journal--the actual notes he wrote on the trail. Previously published only in Spanish, this journal contains many details and perspectives not found in the two "official" versions that Font prepared after the expedition. It supplants the 1930 edition prepared by Herbert Eugene Bolton, which was based solely on Font's "official" texts. With Anza to California, 1775-1776 interweaves and correlates for the first time all existing texts of Font's journal and incorporates the latest research on this pathbreaking expedition. Editor Alan K. Brown has rendered a more accurate translation, allowing us to relive the journey through Font's eyes as the friar presents a panorama of history, geography, and ecology. Font also describes the interaction between Hispanic settlers and Native peoples--revealing Spanish relations with the Quechans on the Colorado River and the Kumeyaay uprising in San Diego. Featuring maps and relief profiles drawn by Font, along with new maps prepared by Brown, this edition includes an extensive introduction and copious explanatory notes. It is the most complete account of the Anza expedition and a foundational primary source in California and Southwest history.