Vol.

XXVII, No 3

May/June 2014

CALENDAR
Sunday, May 4
Living History, Park
Tuesday, May 20
History Discussion, Escondido Library, 4:30 to 6:30
pm, Catalina, led by Shirley
Buskirk
Friday, May 23
Board Meeting, 11 am-1 pm
Monday, May 26
Memorial Day, Ft. Rosecrans 10:00 am
Sunday, June 1
Living History, Park
Saturday, June 14
Flag Day on the USS Midway
Tuesday, June 17
History Discussion, Escondido Library, 4:30 to 6:30
pm, To Be Announced
Friday, June 27
Board Meeting, 11 am-1 pm
Upcoming:
Friday, July 4
Independence Day at Old
Town San Diego SHP

Those Accursed Howitzers from W. H. Emorys Notes of a Military

Reconnaissance, 1848, Ex. Doc. No. 41, 30th Congress, First Session

Presidents Message:
We have been busy and will
continue being busy for the next
few months. On April 24, we had
a group of US Marines from Company B, 1st Reconnaissance Battalion, visiting the battlefield.
These soldiers are getting ready to
deploy. We send them our best
wishes for safety out there.
Some of our upcoming events
1

by Tom Vilicich
include two school tour groups in
May and a senior bus group from
San Luis Obispo. We will be helping at Fort Rosecrans on Monday,
May 26 for Memorial Day by firing the cannon and marking the
gravesite of our own San Pasqual
veterans. We will be at the San
Diego County Fair for their Kids
(Continued on page 2)

BATTLELINES

Park Hours:
Saturday &
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

May/June 2014

Presidents
(Continued from page 1)

Day on June 24 and July 1. The

Fourth of July brings us, once again,
to Old Town San Diego to participate
by firing the cannon. Well also be in
Old Town for the Soldier and Citizens event during Stagecoach Days
on July 26. On Saturday, June 14
we will be taking the cannon to the
USS Midway for Flag Day celebrations onboard and we will be firing
the cannon from the flight deck. This
is a first for us! This ought to be different and fun. And dont forget our
monthly History Discussions at the
Escondido Public Library.
If you have not heard by now, there
are plans to remove Lt. Clymans
dress uniform from our visitor center
museum, along with the priests vestments, for preservation. The State has
a new archival warehouse in Sacramento and the San Diego Coast District has a grant to take these items

and preserve them by what they call

resting them. Being on display is not
considered good for rare items. I believe we are losing a real feather in
our cap by losing these items. One
cannot help but think of the closing
scene of the Indiana Jones and the
Raiders of the Lost Ark movie where
the ark is boxed up and moved into a
huge warehouse, never be seen again.
We havent lost the items yet, but it is
coming. This means that we will have
two empty display cases. While the
State has grant money to take the uniform, there is no money to replace the
items on display. The plan is to raise
money for a reproduction of a dragoon uniform, one that would have
been worn in battle instead of a dress
one like what we have now. The other
display case would be used to display
a Californio outfit. A museum with
no original artifacts! This will be a
sad day for me when it comes.

In Memoriam
Belatedly, we note the passing of
longtime member Dee Staley of Lake
Elsinore. Our sincere condolences go

out to Dick Staley and his family.

The Staleys have been members of
SPBVA since 1997.

We Thank these Renewing Members

Alice Eckert, Westminster
Willis Hardy, San Juan Capistrano
Richard Meyer, Oceanside

BATTLELINES
Contributions
Deadline :
June 27, 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

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

Mailing Address:
PO Box 300816
Escondido, CA 92030

First Sergeants Corner

School of the Platoon,
Mounted
To charge by platoon.
569.The charge will be practice
by file, by twos, fours, and sections,
before the charge by platoon.
The troopers being instructed in individual charge, No. 418, to charge by
platoon the instructor orders the sabre
to be drawn. The platoon is commanded by the assistant-instructor,
that the instructor may be able to
move wherever he can best observe
the faults.
The opposite line is marked out 200
paces to the front, by two troopers, the
distance of the front of the platoon
apart, and facing each other.
To commence the move, the assistant-instructor commands:
1. Platoon forward.
2. Guide right (or left).
3. MARCH.
When the platoon has marched 20
paces, the assistant-instructor commands:
1. Trot.
2. MARCH.
At 60 paces farther, he commands:
1. Gallop.
3. MARCH.
At 80 paces farther, he commands:
CHARGE.
At this command, the troopers of
both ranks take the position of
raise
charge
LANCES, disengaged from the boot.)
They give hand and lengthen the gallop, without losing control of their
horses or disuniting.
When the platoon arrives at 20 paces
from the troopers who trace the new
line, the assistant-instructor commands:
1. Attention.
3

May/June 2014

Submitted by Tom Vilicich

2. Platoon.
3. HALT.
4. Right (or left
5. FRONT.
At the command attention, the
troopers carry the sabre to the shoulder. (Lancers, carry the lance.)
At the command platoon, they take
the trot.
At the command HALT, they stop.
At the command right
they align themselves to the right.
At the command FRONT, turn the
head to the front.
exercised at the charge with the
greatest care, without being required
to repeat it too often.
The instructor requires the gallop to
be kept up; he sees that the troopers
preserve ease in the ranks; that they
hold a light hand, so that the horses
not being constrained in their
movements may not become too
restive. He observes that the troopers
carry the upper part of the body a little
forward, in order to aid the impulsion,
remaining at the same time well
seated, which gives them a facility in
conducting their horses and using the
sabre; finally the rear rank keeps at its
proper distance. It is better, however,
that the rear rank should have too
much than too little room.
The instructor explains to the
troopers, that it is in keeping their
horses in had, in causing them to feel
from time to time the effect of the bit,
in moving parallel to the flank files,
and remianing always abreast of them,
that the shock of the charge becomes
the greatest. Finally, the instructor
directs the troopers not to change the
gait before the command, and to
lengthen the gallop only at the
command CHARGE.

BATTLELINES

San Diego in 1845

May/June 2014

March 29, 1885

[San Diego Union Editors Note: The following

notes on San Diego in 1845 were prepared for us
by Mr. Philip Crosthwaite, who was a resident of
the Pueblo in that year, and who is one of three
survivors of the American population of that time.]
[Battlelines Editors Note: Crosthwaite was a participant in the Battle of San Pasqual as a volunteer
under Archibald Gillespie. Crosthwaites wife was
a Lopez, so he was fighting against members of his
wifes family. Paragraphs have been added to the
article to make it more readable.]
San Diego, then called the Presidio, (garrison)
though there were no soldiers then, was no more
than the adobe buildings now known as Old San
Diego. There was not a house between there and
the Punta Rancho, owned by Don Santiago Arguello. The Mission of San Diego, although partly
dilapidated, the church and some of the buildings
were in good condition. A priest resided there
named Padre Vicente, who came to the Presidio on
Sundays to celebrate Mass. The Mission, besides
its olive orchard and vineyard, owned some horses,
cattle and sheep. Close to the Mission there was a
large Indian village.
The only business in this county was raising cattle for their hides and tallow; the hides were sold to
Captain Henry D. Fitch, who kept a general store
(the only one) in San Diego, or delivered at the
hide houses at the Playa. There were four of these
hide-curing warehouses belonging to different
ships that were on the coast trading for and collecting hides. Each ship had its hide house, salting
vats, and gang of men at the Playa, curing, drying
and storing hides. The ships then on the coast were
the Admittance, Vandalia, California and Sterling.
The hide houses were named after the ships to
which they belonged, viz: the Vandalias hide
house, the Californias hide house, etc. Hides were
worth $2 in trade or $1.50 in cash; they were never
weighed, large and small being of the same value.
The ship Admittance, Captain Peterson, sailed for
Boston in December, 1845, taking with him as passenger a Mrs. Stevens, wife of Captain Stevens,
who remained in San Diego, she was the only
American woman at that time in California. Don

Pio Pico was Governor of California. Monterey

was the capital. Los Angeles was known as El
Pueblo. San Diego was governed by Prefect, Alcalde and Ayuntamiento. Don Santiago Arguello,
Sr. being the Prefect, and Don Francisco Ma. Alvarado, Alcalde. The Alcalde had very little to do, as
lawsuits were unknown, and except now and then
an Indian being arrested as drunk and disorderly,
there was no criminal business.
Sea otter were plentiful in the kelp along the
coast of Lower California and around the islands.
There were two companies of otter hunters in San
Diego. They were usually fitted out for their hunts
by Capt. Fitch. Each company had three canoes
and during the spring and summer months hunted
along the coast, landing through the surf every
night at places known by them where there was
wood and water for their camp. Prime otter skins
were worth $40 each and were sold to Capt. Fitch,
who sent them to China where they were disposed
of at a good profit. Sea elephants were very plentiful along the coast and islands of Lower California,
until the whale ships heard of them, when they
were killed by thousands. Some ships filled up
with elephant oil in one season. They are now
nearly extinct on the coast: either they were all destroyed or they have emigrated to some yet unknown region.
There were a great many foreigners, estranjeros
as the native Californians called them, living in
what is now San Diego county and Lower California, several of whom were married to the native
women, viz: Capt. Joseph Snook, Capt. Stevens,
Capt. John S. Barker, J.J. Warner, J.C. Stewart,
Thos. Wrightington, Wm. Curley, Peter Wilder,
Thos. Russell, C. Walker, John Brown, Wm. Williams, Enos A. Wall, John Post, Albert B. Smith
and an English carpenter known as Chips. There
were two negroes living in Old San Diego, named
Allen B. Light and Richard Freeman. In Lower
California there lived Thos. Warner, Julian Ames,
Chas. Gage, Luther Gilbert, Geo. Hewitt, Thomas
Whately, Robt. Patterson, Alex. Rollins and _____
Hall. I believe they were all sea faring men with
(Continued on page 5)
4

BATTLELINES

May/June 2014

San Diego in 1845

(Continued from page 4)

the exception of J.J. Warner, who, I have been told,

came over the Rocky Mountains as a trapper.
When the war with Mexico began in 1846, and
the U.S. flag was hoisted in San Diego, every man
joined the American forces and enlisted as a volunteer during the war. There was not one who went
on the Mexican side. Many of them were married
and were opposed to and fought against the brothers and relatives of their wives. Of all the above
named, J.J. Warner, now living in Los Angeles,
and John C. Stewart, in Old San Diego, are the
only survivors..

Philip Crosthwaite,
whose remembrances
were recorded by the
San Diego Union.

San Diego in 1850

Our friends from Escondido Historical Center asked us to publish this Save the
Date notice. Since Sunday, October 5 will also be San Pasquals Living History Day,
we suggest you try to attend both events.
Fourth Annual Adobe Home Tour in Escondido
Save the Date!
Sunday October 5, 2014 11am to 4 pm.
Tour 5 beautiful adobe homes and gardens in Escondido.
Tickets are $25 in advance and $30 on the day of the event.
Proceeds benefit the Escondido Historical Center, a non-profit organization.
For additional information or to be kept up to date on this event, please contact

info@adobehometour.com
5

BATTLELINES

History Discussions

May/June 2014

by Jake Enriquez and Ron Hinrichs

tions of the San Pasqual Pueblo during these decades show gradual increases in population, number
of dwellings, and scope of agriculture.

Panto of San Pasqual, Marchs discussion

The Chief Panto history discussion relied heavily
on two articles written by California Department of
Parks and Recreation historical archaeologist
Glenn Farris. Ellen Sweet also provided documents
and materials that expanded the discussion, including her 2000 Battlelines article on Panto.
Mission records indicate that Panto was baptized
Pedro Jose Panto Escarcar on January 11, 1817.
His age was recorded as 14, approximating his
birth year as 1803. Using this year as a benchmark,
Panto would have been 32 when the Mexican government officially established the San Pasqual
Pueblo in 1835, age 43 at the time of the Battle of
San Pasqual, and age 71 when he passed away in
1874. Author Farris indicated that Panto was
capitn for 37 years. This would approximate
Pantos capitn status beginning around 1837. This
happens to be the same year that Indians from San
Pasqual tracked down renegade Indians that sacked
Rancho Jamul, an episode Panto was later credited
with playing a large role in resolving.
Although census records indicate Panto could not
read or write, other references describe Panto as an
Indian headman respected by his own people, as
well as Mexicans, American, and other Indians in
the area as illustrated by his status as capitn of the
Mesa Grande Indian village. Panto was also known
for having good relations with his neighbors and
for having desirable abilities. Notably in 1845, local ranchero Lorenzo Soto hired Panto to build a
dam (1,110 feet long and 13.5 feet wide). The discussion also entertained the notion that it was
Panto who joined Lt. Edward Beale and Kit Carson
in their post battle nighttime trek from Mule Hill to
San Diego. Optimistically, due to his lifelong
knowledge of the region and various possible
route, Panto had technical advantages over others
to quickly and safely reach San Diego. Pensively,
one might ask why a leader of Pantos status would
choose to leave his village and people at such an
unsure time; a question that will probably forever
remain unanswered.
After statehood and through the 1860s and 70s,
Pantos leadership status remained strong. Descrip-

In 1868, Pantos wife Dolores even recorded her

own cattle brand. During this time period, Panto
steadily advocated for his peoples right to their
land, with encroachment from settlers becoming
their main concern. Government staff even referred
to him as Panto Lion, perhaps epitomizing how
most people viewed him. As the 1870s unfolded,
Panto worked with Indian agents to protect his
peoples claim to their San Pasqual land. Unfortunately, on April 27, 1874, Panto died after being
thrown from a horse.

Brand of Dolores, wife of

Panto of San Pascual, September 4, 1868, San Diego County
Brand Book 1, page 174.

Pantos magnetism is poignantly illustrated by

what happened after his death. In 1878, the Superior Court of San Diego issued a writ to eject the
Indians from San Pasqual. Many of his people
went to Mesa Grande. Others, including his daughter Felicita, scattered into the hills north of the valley. With their respected leader gone, the Indians
of San Pasqual saw their homeland fall into the
hands of others. In the end, Pantos life was shaped
by the same culture shock and inequities endured
(Continued on page 7)

BATTLELINES

May/June 2014

SPBVAs
HISTORY DISCUSSIONS:
Catalina
led by Shirley Buskirk
Tues, June17 4:306:30 pm
To Be Announced
Please call Ron Hinrichs,
760-746-8380 for information.
Escondido Public Library,
239 S. Kalmia, 2nd floor conference room.
,
(Continued from page 6)

by Indians across the southwest, but through

Pantos guidance the San Pasqual Pueblo stayed
intact for an exceptional period of time and is observed as a positive example of California Indian
resilience.
Bishop Thaddeus Amat, Aprils discussion
Bishop Thaddeus Amat (1810-1878) was the subject of the April History Discussion led by Richard
Meyer.
Born in Spain and ordained as a priest in Paris,
Amat came to the United States in 1838 where he
worked in the missions of Louisiana. Amat was
named to succeed Bishop Alemany of Monterey
when Alemany was promoted to Archbishop of
San Francisco. Thaddeus Amat was consecrated
Bishop of Monterey in Rome in 1854.
By 1859, Amat was given permission to call himself Bishop of Los Angeles with his residence in
that city. In southern California, he established
many churches and schools. He opened St. Vincents College and began the construction of a new
cathedral, St. Vibiana. By the time of his death in
1878, there were two colleges, six academies, nine

parochial schools, and five orphanages in his diocese.

In San Diego, Bishop Amat took part in the centennial of the San Diego Mission on July 18, 1869
and preached in English and Spanish at a Mass. He
also laid the cornerstone of the new Saint Josephs
Church, which was later relocated after the Old
Town fire of 1872.
Bishop Thaddeus Amat was buried beneath the
floor of St. Vibiana. Years later in 1962, Cardinal
James McIntyre had the body disinterred in order
to move it to a mausoleum at Calvary Cemetery in
Los Angeles. Amazingly, the body appeared to
show little decay. (see Francis J. Webers A Final
Chapter on Bishop Amat in Vincentian Heritage
April 1992.) The body was moved again and
placed in the mausoleum at the new Cathedral of
Our Lady of the Angels in downtown Los Angeles.
[Ron Hinrichs notes that his sons Santa Inez
High School played basketball against Bishop
Amat Memorial High School.]
Another reference to Bishop Amat is Francis J.
Webers Californias Reluctant Prelate: the Life
and Times of Right Reverend Thaddeus Amat,
C.M., 1964, Dawson Book Shop, Los Angeles..

BATTLELINES

May/June 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

Do you have a favorite book? Perhaps one you

remember from your childhood that you shared
with your kids?
The park aide left me a message. A man came in
trying to find a childs book about a rabbits life in
San Pasqual Valley. He bought it at the park years
ago and wanted to know where he could get a
copy now.
It sounded familiar and after a few minutes the
name Finster popped into my head. A quick
Google search gave me Finsterhall of San
Pasqual, on sale through Amazon.
I called the man and while we were talking, he
found it. Thats it! he shouted, thanks. A
short time later he called to say he had bought a
signed first edition for himself and another copy
for his girls. He had lived in Highland Valley, attended San Pasqual School, and had been thinking
about getting that book for ten years. He was so
excited he had to tell me. Im glad he did.
So what does that have to do with the books we
sell at the Battlefield? Nothing directly. But

maybe, just maybe, you could find a book on our

shelves that will become your childs favorite
book.
Here are a few of our childrens books. Dos
Californios is the story of an 1818 pirate raid on
the California coast and how a young Californio
and his old sea otter thwart the evil doers. The pirate, Hippolyte de Bouchard, was a real pirate and
the story is in both English and Spanish. The
Painted Rocks is about Indians who lived in the
Lake Hodges area--their history and how they
lived. Great Indians of California is a collection of stories that describe famous
Indians and related historical events.