DIVISION ONE — PRE-PASADENIAN. 4I 



Guillen de Lopez, who is still living at San Gabriel, and also by her son 

 Theodore Lopez, that Claudio Lopez served there as major domo thirty-six 

 years or thereabouts — that is, both before and after and all through the ad- 

 ministration of Padre Zalvidea and Padre Sanchez. This seems hard to be- 

 lieve, yet no records have been found to show anybody else there in that 

 office; and "old Francesca," the hundred-year-old Spanish woman, still 

 living here at Pasadena, told me substantially the same as to Claudio Lo- 

 pez's wonderfully long service at San Gabriel.* Hence I conclude that he 

 was probably the successor of major domo Flores, with perhaps some tem- 

 porary appointee in between for two or three years. The History of Califor- 

 nia, vol. 4., p. yi7, says he settled in Los Angeles in 1811, and that he was 

 alcalde [judge] there in 1826 ; but all this would not hinder his being major 

 domo at San Gabriel at the same time. Rancho San Pasqual was part of 

 the Mission lands; Major Claudio was the overseer or head "boss" of all 

 the agricultural, stock-raising, herding and other industries of the Mission — 

 and thus he was the first man who ever made any civilized use or occu- 

 pancy of these acres where Pasadena now stands. ^ 



In February, 1836, Lopez was succeeded by Juan Jose Rocha ; and in 

 1837 Rocha was succeeded by Juan Perezf who served until March i, 1843, 

 when he turned everything over to Padre Estenega. Yet in 1845 Crispin 

 Perez's name occurs as major domo ; and in October in this year he is suc- 

 ceeded by Manuel Olvera, who served until the property was taken in 

 possession by Hugo Reid for himself and Workman as purchasers, July 8, 

 1846. Then in August or September of this year Stockton and Fremont 

 annulled Reid's purchase and put Olvera in charge again. 



The United States Land Commission abrogated all sales that had been 

 made of the church building and its garden and cemetery grounds, and 

 restored them to the church authorities ; but sales of outlying lands were 

 confirmed. However, in 1875, the Commission also confirmed to Bishop 

 Alemany as church property 55^ acres south of the church, where the 

 Chapman mill, and tallow works and other industries formerly stood, and 

 now known as the " Bishop's orchard, or garden," it having a fine orange 

 grove on it, all fenced in. 



In 1885 considerable repairs were made on the old Mission church. Its 

 original heavy doors of iron and wood had decayed much, and were renewed, 

 besides other patching and mending, which gave the structure less of the 

 ancientness of appearance than it had before. It is still in regular use every 

 Sunday as a Catholic church. 



*Governor Pio Pico was born at San Gabriel May 5, 1801. Eulalia Perez de Guillen officiated as 

 midwife at his birth ; and her family say that Claudio I,opez was there as major domo then. 



fBancroft gives this name erroneously as "Jose" Perez. I find that there were four of these 

 Perez brothers, to-wit : Eranio Perez, whose wife was Vicente Lugo, one ol the four daughters of Don 

 Antonio Lugo. Juan Perez, father of our Pasadena 100-year old woman, old Francesca Lugo, whose hus- 

 band, Don Felipe Lugo, was brother to Eranio Perez's wife. Esteban Petez, whose son Jose was the 

 first white man who ever made a home on Rancho San Pasqual, this Jose's vpife being Merced Lugo, 

 sister to his uncle Eranio's wife, but afterwards wife of Stephen C. Foster, a Yankee from New England. 

 Crispin Perez, who was major domo at San Gabriel in 1845. And these four Perez brothers were cousins 

 to Eulalia Perez de Guillen, the first owner of Rancho San Pasqual. 



