Vol.

XXVII, No 2

March/April 2014

CALENDAR
Sunday, March 2
Living History, Park
Tuesday, March 18
History Discussion, Escondido Library, 4:30 to 6:30
pm, Panto of San Pasqual,
led by Jake Enriquez & Stan
Smith
Friday, March 28
Board Meeting, 11 am-1 pm
Sunday, April 6
Living History, Park
Tuesday, April 15
History Discussion, Escondido Library, 4:30 to 6:30
pm Bishop Thaddeus Amat,
led by Richard Meyer
Friday, April 25
Board Meeting, 11 am-1 pm

SPBVA Board Report

This issue of Battlelines marks a
change in mailing procedures. We
will no longer send all members a
hard copy of the newsletter. Only
members without email will receive a copy through the regular
mail. Everyone else will receive
the email color version of the paper. This allows us to save paper,
time, and money as well as give a
better product.
In January, SPBVA was represented in Old Town for Mormon
Battalion Day. The month of February brought a large group of students to San Pasqual from the Escondido Charter School. Weve
also continued our First Sunday
living history programs.
President Tom Vilicich is working on plans for special outreach
programs in May and June. Look
for more details in the next issue
of Battlelines.
We expect a large group of
USMC officers and enlisted men
from Camp Pendleton for a spe1

cial tour and presentation at the

park on April 24. These soldiers
are on active duty and are getting
ready to deploy.
Recently Park Superintendent
Richard Dennison announced
funds received for curation of the
San Pasqual dragoon uniform.
While the uniform is long overdue
for study, cataloging, and preservation efforts, what concerns
SPBVA board members is the
idea that the uniform will most
likely end up in Sacramento and
stay there. State Parks considers
the uniform so rare that they plan
to permanently take it and other
items off display. We will need to
replace the items with something,
but the Clyman uniform has been
a significant part of our display.
We recommend that anyone wanting to revisit the uniform should
do so very soon. We do not know
how much longer it will be on
view. Please see more about this
uniform on page 5.

BATTLELINES

Mar/Apr 2014

SPBVA 2014
BOARD
MEMBERS
Shirley Buskirk
Cliff Clifford
Royce Clifford
Donald Coates
Tom Cook
Jake Enriquez
Randall Hamud
Darlene Hansen
Ron Hinrichs
Gisela Koestner
Richard Meyer
Leroy Ross, Jr.
Stan Smith
Ellen Sweet
Tom Vilicich
Bob Wohl

President:
Tom Vilicich
Vice-President:
Don Coates
Treasurer:
Gisela Koestner
Recording Secy:
Ellen Sweet
Corporate Secy:
Ron Hinrichs

Park Updates:

Supervising Ranger Chris Lozano

.Recently, park staff have been

working in conjunction with an Eagle
Scout on the nature trail that is above
and adjacent to the visitor center. Just
last weekend, posts were placed on
the trail. For those that have been on
the trail in the past, you will notice a
few different locations. The next
phase will be the replacement of post
plaques. There will also be a revised
nature trail guide that will explain
each stop along the trail. An updated
kiosk may be in the future plans. I
want to encourage any interested Eagle Scouts to contact the park if you
have a project in mind.
Volunteers, volunteers, where are

you? San Pasqual Battlefield State

Historic Park is always looking for
volunteers. If you have an interest in
working in the visitor center or giving
school tours or participating in the
living history program at the park,
please contact the park visitor center.
As you sit back and read this edition
of Battlelines newsletter, I want to
highlight and acknowledge the San
Pasqual Battlefield Volunteer Association which tirelessly provides interesting articles and information updates to keep history alive and relevant for San Pasqual Battlefield State
Historic Park.

Service Project Coordinator

Mailing Address:
PO Box 300816
Escondido, CA 92030

Currently, we are looking for service based projects at San Pasqual Battlefield
State Historic Park. For information about possible projects, including Eagle
Scout projects, please contact Gilbert Garcia at the San Pasqual Visitor Center.
Gilbert Garcia, State Park Senior Seasonal Park Aid
760.737.2201 Visitor Center 760.737.7929 Fax
15808 San Pasqual Valley Rd, Escondido, CA 92027
2

BATTLELINES

More Battle Day Photos

Photographs courtesy of Michelle Wolf

Mar/Apr 2014

BATTLELINES

Park Hours:

In Memoriam

Saturday &

SPBVA would like to remember

three long-time members who passed
away in 2012 and 2013. These include Anstes V. Agnew (1917-2013),
Warren W. Hassler (1926-2012), and
Beulah R. Runge (1913-2013). Our
condolences go out to their families
and friends, and especially to Peggy
Hassler.
Anstes Agnew was the great granddaughter of Capt. Henry Smith
Turner. As adjutant of the Army of
the West, Turner was briefly in command when Gen. S.W. Kearny was
disabled. Turner also suffered a lance
wound during the battle. He was one
of the few diarists of the expedition.
Anstes was very proud of her ties to
San Pasqual and supplied the Pioneer
Room of the Escondido Public Library with information on her ancestor.
Anstes joined SPBVA in 1987. She
was born in Pennsylvania, graduated
Smith College in Massachusetts. Her
husband George, an aircraft engineer,
predeceased her. Anstes was active as

Sunday, 10 am
to 4 pm
(winter hours)
Park Phone
Number:
(760) 737-2201
weekends only or
(619) 220-5422
www.parks.ca.gov
www.spbva.org

SPBVA Info:
Tom Vilicich
(951) 674-0185 or
Trooper284@aol.com

School

& Adult

Tours Contact:
Darlene Hansen
(760) 480-6320

Mar/Apr 2014

a volunteer at Felicita Elementary

School, starting their Everyone a
Reader program. She also translated
childrens books into Braille.
Penn State professor emeritus of
American history, Warren Hassler,
died in La Jolla in 2012. He had a
doctoral degree in American military
history from Johns Hopkins, specializing in the Civil War. He was the author of many books and articles in his
field. Warren and Peggy Hassler
joined SPBVA in 1988. Ron Hinrichs
remembers Warren as a member of
his book committee when we first
started selling books in the visitor
center.
Beulah Runge was a member of
SPBVA since 1987. She lived in Escondido for many years. She was a
linotype operator at the local newspaper like her father. Later, she was a
successful real estate agent with her
own business. She is buried in Oak
Hill Cemetery, Escondido, alongside
her sister.

We Thank these Renewing Members

Ray Boettger, Escondido
Bob & Judy Bowman, Franklin, OH
Paul & Ed Cooney, Redford, MI
Darlene & Jody Hansen, Escondido
MaryLou Jimenez Family, Cypress
Thomas Vilicich, Corona

BATTLELINES
Contributions
Deadline :
April 25, 2014
Contact editor,
Ellen Sweet,

Dragoon Level Members ($100 or more this year)

Bob & Judy Bowman

Ronilee Clark & Brian Arnold
Cliff & Royce Clifford
Donald Coates
Jake Enriquez Family

ELSweet@gmail.com

Greg Hill
Michael Pique
Melvin & Ellen Sweet
Thomas M. Vilicich

BATTLELINES

The James Clyman Uniform

Mar/Apr 2014

by Ellen Sweet

James Clyman (1792-1881) was a Virginian

known as a mountain man, hunter, trapper, explorer, frontiersman, surveyor, guide, AND US
dragoon. He also kept a diary of some of his exploits. Clymans life was full of adventure and included well-known figures like Jedediah Smith,
Abraham Lincoln, William Ashley, Thomas Fitzpatrick, and the Donner Party. The plaque pictured
below was placed in his honor by E Clampus Vitus
in a Napa cemetery.

more. The following picture, courtesy of the Library of Congress, shows him in old age. He died
in Napa at the end of 1881.
In 1932, James Clymans papers were
gifted to The Huntington Library by Wilbur
Lamar Tallman, his
grandson. Clymans
nine volumes of diaries
from 1844-1846 were
edited and published by
Charles L. Camp as
James Clyman, American Frontiersman,
1792-1881. The Adventures of a Trapper and
Covered Wagon Emigrant as Told in His Own
Reminiscences and Diaries. This rare volume has
been digitized and is available on the internet.
And what about his uniform? Undoubtedly Clyman made use of his regular uniform in civilian
life. But the colorful formal dress uniform with
dark blue double breasted coat with two rows of
gilt buttons, epaulettes, yellow collar and cuffs,
dark blue trousers with stripes of gold, shako with
plume, silk sash, and saber belt was kept in pristine
condition. In 1957, Clymans granddaughter Mabel
Tallman Melvin and his grandsons widow, Annie
(Mrs. Wilbur Lamar) Tallman gave the dress uniform to Sonoma State Historic Park. The uniform
was transferred to San Pasqual in the 1980s to fulfill the interpretive display plan for the new San
Pasqual visitor center.
Detailed photographs of the Clyman uniform,
taken before it was donated to State Parks, plus
information on Clyman is carefully presented in
the Military Collector & Historian, Summer 2012,
article by Gordon Chappell in The Full Dress
Uniform of James Clyman, Second Lieutenant
U.S. Regiment of Dragoons, 1833-1834. If you
are interested in reading this article, contact me at
elsweet@gmail.com. And please come to the visitor center to view the uniform before it is transferred to Sacramento.

Clyman was a second lieutenant of dragoons

from 1833-1834. Thus he was NOT at the Battle of
San Pasqual. However, his colorful dress uniform
is currently on display in the San Pasqual Battlefield State Historic Park. This dress uniform,
bought in 1833, remained as regulation for dragoon
officers until 1851. As a rare example of an almost
complete dress uniform, Clymans uniform is representative of the dress uniform for officers of the
Army of the West.
Congress created a new regiment of dragoons in
1833. Regular terms of service, uniforms, weapons, and horses were established. Clyman was one
of the first of these dragoons. At age 41, after having fought in the Black Hawk War and other battles, he only remained in service until 1834. His
dress uniform was left carefully packed away in a
cedar chest.
After crossing Oregon and California trails a
number of times, Clyman married, started a family,
and settled in the Napa Valley. Four of his five
children died of scarlet fever, and he adopted three
5

BATTLELINES

Mar/Apr 2014

Our Man in Ohio: Bob Bowman

SPBVA members Bob and Judy Bowman left the
San Diego area for Franklin, Ohio, several years
ago. But Bob still keeps in touch and manages to
participate in our annual Battle Day as part of the
cannon crew. Bob has formed strong ties with
Marla Fair of the Johnston Farm Park in Piqua,
OH, family home of Capt. A.R. Johnston who was
killed at San Pasqual. And now Bob is president of
the Franklin Area (OH) Historical Society.
Recently Bob gave a PowerPoint presentation on
the US-Mexican War at the Veterans Memorial
Museum in Germantown, OH, complete with displays and Bob dressed in dragoon uniform. He
reviewed the information on General S.W. Kearny,
Capt. Johnston, and the Battle at San Pasqual to an
audience of about 25 interested Ohioans. Sounds
like a good turnout for winter where theyve had
over 45 inches of snow so far!

Bob Bowman before presentation in Ohio

History Discussions

by Ron Hinrichs
The land was divided into two parts, Alta and
Baja, in 1793 and this was continued under Mexican rule in 1821.
During the US-Mexican War in 1847, a battle
took place in La Paz. In the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, the United States took control of
Alta California. A few years later, the Gadsden
Purchase territory was acquired by the US.
In 1853, an American freebooter or filibuster,
William Walker, captured La Paz and named himself president. This lasted only a short while. He
later took over Honduras, but was captured and
executed by the British in 1860.
In 1930, the Baja Peninsula was divided into
North and South Baja. It became North Baja State
and South Baja Territory in 1952.
The Trans-Peninsular Highway was completed in
1973. In 1974, South Territory of Baja California
became the state of Baja California Sur.
Tijuana became a playground for Hollywood
people during the Prohibition era in the US.

Boden Canyon, Januarys discussion

Boden Canyon Ecological Preserve is just east of
the San Pasqual Valley. It has been acquired by
public agencies to keep it natural. The City and
County of San Diego and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife own all but ten acres. It
is open to hiking and will be part of the Coast to
Coast Trail. Permanent preservation of this canyon
will ensure continued use of the well-traveled
north/south wildlife corridor. The discussion was
led by Stan Smith.
Baja California, Februarys discussion
Baja California, a peninsula on the west coast of
Mexico, is divided into two states, Baja California
and Baja California Sur. It is bordered on the west
by the Pacific Ocean and on the east by Arizona
and the Sea of Cortez.
Spanish explorer Hernn Corts saw it in the
early 1500s and Francisco de Ulloa sailed around
both coasts in 1539. Jesuit, Franciscan, and Dominican priests established missions from 1683 to
1834.
6

BATTLELINES

Mar/Apr 2014

SPBVAs
HISTORY DISCUSSIONS:
Tues, March 18 4:306:30 pm
Panto of San Pasqual
led by Jake Enriquez & Stan Smith

Tues, April 15 4:306:30 pm

Bishop Thaddeus Amat
led by Richard Meyer

Los Angeles Herald, May 10, 1874, copied from

the San Diego Union, May 3, 1874
California Digital Newspaper Collection, UCR
Portrait of Bishop Amat from the
book Californias Reluctant
Prelate by Rev. Francis J. Weber

Please call Ron Hinrichs,

760-746-8380 for information.
Escondido Public Library,
239 S. Kalmia, 2nd floor conference room.
,

BATTLELINES

Mar/Apr 2014

JOIN NOW! Our non-profit organization supports the activities of the San Pasqual Battlefield State
Historic Park. All members receive BATTLELINES (email or regular mail), a 10% discount on all
bookstore items, special programs, field trips, history discussions, and opportunities to participate in our
Living History Sundays and in our annual December re-enactment of the Battle.
SAN PASQUAL BATTLEFIELD VOLUNTEER ASSOCIATION MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION
P.O. Box 300816, Escondido, CA 92030-0816
(760) 737-2201
This is my/our membership application & dues for the following category:
____Student ($5)

____ Sustaining ($50)

____Dragoon ($100 or more)

____Individual ($15)

____Organization ($25)

____Benefactor ($1,000 or more)

____Family ($20)

____Corporate ($100)

Please make checks payable to: SPBVA

NAME(S)_______________________________________________________________________________________________
ADDRESS ______________________________________________________________________________________________
CITY _______________________________________________________ STATE _______________ZIP _________________
PHONE_____________________________________________ EMAIL________________________________________
OCCUPATION_________________________INTEREST/SKILLS_____________________________________________

Off the

Shelf...

by Shirley Buskirk

The visitor was a teacher from the East, thinking

about moving to California. How do you like it? I
asked. Well, he replied, I dont like the way you
are catering to the illegal by giving all your towns
Spanish names like San Diego, Santa Barbara, . . . I
hope he was a science teacher. If your knowledge
about California is marginal, we sell books that can
fill you in.
Some will give you a detailed history of the state.
First there were the Indians. Did you know that the
ancestors of the San Pasqual Indians lived for thousands of years in the valley? Then the Spanish built
a chain of missions from San Francisco to San
Diego to Christianize those Indianshave you visited San Diego or San Luis Rey Missions yet? When
Mexico got its independence from Spain, the missions were gradually closed, their lands disbursed,
and Mexican towns began to grow along the coast.
The pueblo of San Pasqual was established in 1835
by Gov. Jos Figueroa to resettle displaced
Kumeyaay--one of three such pueblos and the only
one to be successful. The US-Mexican War, partly
fought on our battlefield and the pueblo of San
8

Pasqual, brought California into the United States.

Mexico lost over half of its land.
We sell books which cover all those things, but we
also have books that give you California history in a
nutshell. The Story of California has 192 storiesnone lasting more than a page or twoin four
volumes. I dont care how long youve been here,
youre sure to learn something you never knew
beforedid you know that a Japanese submarine
shelled the oil fields near Santa Barbara two months,
two weeks, and two days after Pearl Harbor?
If you want your history in
even shorter spurts, California
Historical Landmarks gives the
location and exact wording of
all those historical markers that
you see as you travel
throughout the state. You dont
even have to go there. Just
reading the signs may be all you
are interested in. It also fits
perfect ly in your glove
compartment.