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Anza's Wild Gosling

Several events in North American history have been significant, but overlooked by the general public. The recognition of the Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail by the U. S. Congress is a late example of one attempt to rectify this oversight.

History, too often, can be dull and boring to a young student. By placing a peer youth on the Anza expedition to establish an 1,800 mile overland route to and establish a Presidio and mission at San Francisco the reader accompanies and experiences the adventure along with the actual participants.

While the character is fictional, the major events portrayed are not, having been selected from the diaries of Colonel Juan Bautista de Anza, Father Pedro Font, and Lt. Don Josef Joachin Moraga. From these sources, and other reliable historical papers and research, the progress of the expedition, its struggles and obstacles overcome become clear.

The adventures of our fourteen year old military cadet, orphaned by an ambush by renegade natives, given protection by Colonel Hugo O'Conor and Lt. Colonel Anza at their Terrenate meetings in July 1775, did occur and might have well been accomplished by a youth of his education and experience.

The imagination of youthful readers is tested as their own 'compatriot-in-history' is tested, challenged, threatened, and proven durable and valuable to the success of the expedition's mission. Meanwhile, the arduous daily trek becomes an active part of a strenuous story of real men, women and children who met the wilderness, weather extremes, and native tribes with only their own resources to sustain them.

Sean Monahan, fourteen year old son of an Irish Army Sergeant serving in the Spanish cavalry, is orphaned by a renegade Indian ambush on a squad bringing two artillery cannons to the Presidio at Tubac. He is a Cadet in his father's unit, since his Mother died two years earlier. The sole survivor of the dawn ambush, Sean sets out for Terrenate, the nearest fort.

Enroute he encounters Colonel Hugo O'Conor, Commander of New Spain's northern territories, including what is now Arizona and New Mexico. O'Conor is meeting at Terrenate with Lt. Colonel Juan Bautista de Anza, who is organizing an expedition to lead almost 300 settlers across the deserts and mountains to the area of San Francisco Bay, and there establish a village, Presidio and mission.

The purpose of the expedition is to reinforce the Spanish control of Alta California by establishing a land route to keep its presidios, missions and settlements supplied. Because of the prevailing strong northwest winds, it can take supply vessels up to three months to sail north from the nearest port in Mexico to reach Monte Rey. It takes 42 days for the Anza exploration supply packet to sail the 90 miles from the port of Monte Rey to San Francisco!

Cadet Monahan joins Anza's expedition, helping recapture some of the horse herd driven off by Apaches at Tubac Presidio on September 9th. He wounds one of the Apache horse thieves. Sean also helps train garrison soldiers at the new Tucson Presidio in the use of his father's cannon, and shames the wounded Apache who had come to Tucson's village for care of his musket-ball wound.

Cadet Monahan's ability to read, write, and do calculations came from his teacher-mother's training, while his father had taught him to make maps, handle horses, and operate the cannon. These skills, plus his language skills developed at military posts with his father in several countries makes Sean a natural as an unofficial aide-de-camp for Colonel Anza, and a further benefit to the ailing Father Pedro Font, official navigator and map producer for the expedition.

As the expedition marches north to the Gila River, and then west to the Colorado River, a number of tasks and chores fall to Sean. He becomes a scout and messenger for Colonel Anza, and through his friendship with the Pima he is able to recover the Colonel's favorite horse. He visits Casa Grande with Father Font and Anza, and notes several features of this ancient native ruin.

The extreme cold takes a harsh penalty on the cattle and horses as they travel into the western mountains, and the Army expedition's second in command, Lt. Moraga becomes temporarily deaf due to his attempts to care for the people in his care during a blizzard. Water and forage are severe problems for he herd of nearly 1,000 cattle, mules and horses. The group even loses its way in the region near the Colorado River crossings.

A revolt breaks out at the Presidio and mission of San Diego as the expedition nears the Coast, and Colonel Anza must respond, taking some of his experienced soldiers to aid the area's Commandant, Don Fernando Rivera y Moncado in putting down the rebellion. Sean accompanied the relief column because all the garrison soldiers had been wounded in defending the presidio's cannon from the rebels. His artillery expertise might be needed to train others, or defend the Presidio from new attacks.

Later, during the explorations around the bay area in a hunt for a proper site for the new Presidio and mission, Sean wards off an attack by a large black bear along a narrow trail in thick forests.

The site for San Francisco' settlement chosen, Colonel Anza must return to Horcasitas to report to the Viceroy and begin new duties. Before leaving in mid-April, the Colonel surprises Cadet Monahan by discharging him from his military Cadet commission. He returns him to special civilian status ,scouting and mapping for Lt. Moraga, who will move the settlers from Monterey to the new village and build the Presidio and mission. Sean assists Lt. Moraga who must build the fort and mission without any material help from the governor of Alta California, Don Rivera, who sees the Viceroy's orders to Colonel Anza as a direct affront to Don Rivera's command. Sean becomes one of the first San Franciscans.

Phil English,

October, 1999

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