  Attention should be directed now to the Anza expedition, which reached the East Bay in late March, 1776. The three accounts will be considered collectively for present purposes and will be designated A (Anza's Diary), F1 (Font's Short Diary), and F2 (Font's Complete Diary). Since this expedition was—with all deference to the efforts of Fray Crespi—much more carefully and exhaustively recorded than the Fages trip of 1772, it merits extended citation and analysis. If Bolton's reconstruction is correct (1930, III: 133, 263; IV: 352), the Anza expedition, having come down the peninsula from San Francisco, halted for the evening March 30, 1776, near Agnew, between Alviso and Santa Clara. The following day, March 31, they crossed the Coyote River about two miles south of Warm Springs and moved north and northwest as far as San Lorenzo Creek. They remained close to the hills, apparently, for Anza (A) says, "The road runs close to a small range completely bare of trees, for none are seen except some which grow in the canyons." After leaving Coyote Creek, Anza (A) encountered an arroyo, "which has plenty of trees and has water in abundance ... ," probably Mission Creek or Alameda Creek. Thereafter they crossed four arroyos "with little water," the last one of which was San Lorenzo Creek. Font (F2) states that after having passed a "salty lagoon" (north of Irvington) they crossed five arroyos. During the day the party saw six villages, says Anza (A), most of whose habitants had fled. On the other hand, about 40 "heathen" were met along the road. Font (F2) is much more informative than Anza. All along the plain they saw "occasional Indians." Those whom they met before reaching the "first arroyo" (probably Alameda Creek near Niles) ... appear to be very poor and miserable, for they have not even firewood by which to keep warm, and they go about naked ... and eat grass and herbs and some roots like medium-sized onions, which they call amole, and in which those plains greatly abound. One Indian who carried his provisions on the end of a pole invited us to eat some of them. On or near Alameda Creek they met "about thirty Indians" (Anza says 40), who greeted them peaceably. Font here notes that "their language is distinct from all those we had formerly heard and is very ugly; and with the gobbling which they made, all speaking together, it was very disagreeable to the ears." Font also comments in another place on the language: "The Indians whom we saw along here are totally distinct in language from the previous ones." Since the Spaniards had been in Costanoan territory for many days, they must have encountered a sharp dialectic boundary at the southeastern corner of San Francisco Bay. Both Anza and Font (F2) describe the incidents of this encounter in graphic terms. Two leagues beyond the creek (somewhere near Alvarado) a village without people was seen. Then: We traveled a league more and crossed another arroyo, where we saw an abandoned village, and in a hut many birds stuffed with grass, which some Indians had to hunt with. Here the soldiers got some wild tobacco of which there was a considerable amount. Although Font does not mention the exact number of villages seen, his account in other respects closely parallels that of Anza and does nothing to refute the statement that there were six villages between Irvington and San Lorenzo. On the appearance of these Indians Font and Anza are very positive. Crespi had said the natives were light-colored. Font says (F2, p. 356), "They are somewhat bearded, gentle, and very poor, but in color they are the same as all the rest." Elsewhere he reiterates his opinion that Crespi was mistaken. Anza adds, regarding appearance (A, p. 136): The Indians who have been seen from the first arroyo forward are not short haired like those from the Mission of San Antonio to the port of San Francisco. These of which we are now speaking wear their hair tied upon the very top of their heads where only a piece of thread is to be seen. The journey on April 1 brought Anza's party to camp on Rodeo Creek (Bolton, 1930, II: 138n). It is noteworthy that these explorers saw much more timber than had Crespi, or perhaps they were merely more circumstantial in their account. Font (F2) says: The road followed the foot hills of the range which I mentioned on the 8th of March. In all its exterior this range has very few trees, except a grove of redwoods in front of the mouth of the port, although in its interior it has thickly grown groves and is quite broken ... Anza notes also "a large grove of pines of redwoods." Alameda Island is described as having "a very thick grove of oaks and live oaks on the banks of the estuary." The same grove is shown on Font's sketch of the area (Bolton, 1930, IV: 362) with the legend: "Bosque que esta al estsudeste de la Boca del Puerto." On some of the streams there is said to be a prolific growth of trees, on others very little. Thus Font (F2) says that San Leandro Creek (Bolton's identification) had "a very deep bed grown with cottonwoods, live oaks, laurels and other trees." The creek near Mills College was "almost without trees." Somewhere in Oakland the party crossed two arroyos with "a heavy growth of trees." North of Oakland the vegetation apparently varied. The general impression one gets is that the larger streams were bordered by oak, willow, and cottonwood, whereas the smaller ones were essentially destitute of trees. The Spaniards had considerable contact this day with the natives. Font in the Complete Diary makes it clear that Oakland and Berkeley were crossed and Wildcat Creek reached before the first Indians were seen. At that point, however, an abandoned village was found. On the banks of the next arroyo was an inhabited village containing 23 men and 7 women, others being away foraging. Anza says this was a village of about 100 persons. Font then says that on the next arroyo was a "fair-sized village." Although Anza does not specifically mention this village, both he and Font agree that at the camp (on Rodeo Creek) was another town, which Anza says "is larger than the two mentioned." Font concurs, in effect, with the statement that when the expedition halted, they were greeted by 38 Indians—presumably adult males. Both authors comment on customs. Anza emphasizes the fact that these Indians are not white, in contradistinction to the reports brought back by Crespi. He also says the language is different "from that on the other side of the southern estuary." Font describes the people at the second inhabited village, who ... were very happy to see us and very obliging. They presented us with many cacomites, which is a little bulb or root almost round and rather flat, and the size and shape of a somewhat flattened ball, and likewise with a good string of roasted amole, which is another root like a rather long onion, all well cooked and roasted ... The amole, which is their most usual food, tastes a little like mescal. It is the food which most abounds, and the fields along here are full of it. Font (F2) adds the following description of the natives seen at the final halt on Rodeo Creek: As soon as we halted thirty-eight Indians came to us unarmed, peaceful, and very happy to see us. At first they stopped and sat down on a small hill near the camp. Then one came, and behind him another, and so they came in single file like a flock of goats, leaping and talking, until all had arrived. They were very obliging, bringing us firewood, and very talkative, their language having much gobbling, nothing of which we understood. They go naked like all the rest, and they are by no means white, but are like all those whom we saw on the other side near the mouth of the port. After they had been a while with us they bade us goodby and we made signs to them that they should go and get us some fish with two hooks which I gave them. They apparently understood us clearly, but they brought us nothing and showed very little appreciation for the hooks, because their method of fishing is with nets. On Tuesday, April 2, the Anza expedition continued along the southeast shore of San Pablo Bay, the south bank of Carquinez Strait, and halted on Walnut Creek, near Pacheco (the place called Santa Angela de Fulgino by Crespi). Water was scarce; no mention is made of crossing any creeks during the march until they arrived at Walnut Creek in the evening. The descriptions of the vegetation along Carquinez Strait are somewhat ambiguous. It will be remembered that the impression given by Crespi for this stretch is one of total absence of trees. Anza says (A): ... for half a league up the river [by which he means Carquinez Strait] we kept very close to the Sierra which we have had on our right and which we skirted until yesterday. And we now again came to have it on the same side, so improved in abundance of firewood, and timber of oak and live oak that all its canyons are well provided with one and the other, the very opposite of what is seen on the other side of the river [i.e., the north shore of the strait], where in four leagues we have not seen a single tree. In describing the strait Font (F2) says: In some places its banks are very precipitous, and in others it has a narrow beach on which, near its mouth [i.e. the western end], there are great piles of fresh-water mussels. The hills which form this channel are without trees, but those on this side have plentiful pasturage, while those on the other side appeared bald, with little grass, the earth being reddish in color. During the afternoon the party traveled from the vicinity of Crockett "two leagues east along the top of the hills close to the water, and one east-southeast up the canyon which had some oaks and other trees, by which we again came out at the top of the hills near the water." According to Bolton (1930, IV: 375n), this point was on the bluffs just west of Martinez. The implication of Anza's account and the rather specific statement by Font seem to support Crespi's description. There was little oak or other type of woody plant on the south shore west of what is now Port Costa. From there to Martinez the canyons held a fair growth of oak. In those areas not bearing oak, the primary plant cover was grass. Neither Crespi nor Anza nor Font gives any hint of the heavy infiltration of shrubby vegetation, such as Baccharis, poison oak, or other chapparal species, which now extend down the entire slope of the hills from Crockett to Martinez. The deduction is reasonable, although strict proof is lacking, that the modern vegetation has entered the region since 1775. On this day Anza and Font made the acquaintance of two new species of fish, the sturgeon and the salmon, good descriptions of which are recorded by both explorers. Furthermore, the day was notable for encounters with the natives. Shortly after breaking camp the Spaniards were met by ten Indians who invited them to the nearby village (which Bolton says was at Tormey, about 2 miles west of Crockett). This village was large; Font estimated the population as 400 persons and Anza as 500. Font's account (F2) of his visit is long and circumstantial, but its value for ethnographic detail is such that it merits reproduction in full: Their method of welcoming us was like this: at sunrise the ten Indians came, one behind another, singing and dancing. One carried the air, making music with a little stick, rather long and split in the middle, which he struck against his hand and which sounded something like a castanet. They reached the camp and continued their singing and dancing for a little while. Then they stopped dancing, all making a step in unison, shaking the body and saying dryly and in one voice, "Ha, ha, ha!" Next they sat down on the ground and signalled to us that we must sit down also. So we sat down in front of them, the commander, I, and the commissary. Now an Indian arose and presented the commander with a string of cacomites, and again sat down. Shortly afterward he rose again and made me a present of another string of cacomites, and again sat down. In this way they went making us their little presents, another Indian giving me a very large root of chuchupate which he began to eat, telling me by signs that it was good. This compliment being over, they invited us to go to their village, indicating that it was nearby. The commander consented to give them this pleasure, and at once we began to travel. They followed after us with their singing and dancing.... After going a short distance we came to the village, which was in a little valley on the bank of a small arroyo, the Indians welcoming us with an indescribable hullabaloo. Three of them came to the edge of the village with some long poles with feathers on the end, and some long and narrow strips of skin with the hair on, which looked to me like rabbit skin, hanging like a pennant, this being their sign of peace. They led us to the middle of the village where there was a level spot like a plaza, and then began to dance with other Indians of the place with much clatter and yelling. A little afterward a rather old Indian woman came out, and in front of us, for we were on horseback, nobody having dismounted. She began to dance along, making motions very indicative of pleasure, and at times stopping to talk to us, making signs with her hands as if bidding us welcome. After a short while I said to the commander that that was enough. So he gave presents of glass beads to all the women, they regaled us with their cacomites, and we said goodby to everybody in order to continue on our way. They were apparently sad because we were leaving, and I was moved to tenderness at seeing the joy with which we were welcomed by those poor Indians. Their color and other qualities of nakedness, slight beard, etc., are the same as those seen hitherto, and the same as those we saw farther on. Some wear the hair long, others short, and some have beards rather long and heavy. Font and Anza had an excellent opportunity to observe aboriginal methods of navigation and fishing. At the western end of Carquinez Strait, says Anza (A, p. 140), five tule rafts crossed the strait in less than a quarter of an hour, the tide being slack. Font says, regarding these craft (F2, p. 320): We saw there some launches very well made of tule, with their prows or points somewhat elevated. They had been anchored near the shore with some stones for anchors, and in the middle of the water some Indians were fishing in one.... I saw that they were fishing with nets and that they anchored the launch with some very long slim poles. These poles were measured and found to be about 13 varas long (roughly 35 ft.). Font goes on to describe the actual taking of fish: Among other fish which they caught the Indians who were fishing pulled out two very large ones, about two varas long, and their method of catching them was this: as soon as they felt from the pull made by the fish that it was in the net, which was tied to the two poles, they began gradually to raise one of the poles, and as soon as the fish and the net came in sight, without taking it from the water they gave the fish many blows on the head. Once I counted fifteen blows in succession and in another case twenty-odd. Now that it was dead and had lost its strength they took it from the net and put it inside the launch. A soldier traded a piece of cloth for a fish. But the Indians ... before delivering it took the spawn from the stomach and an intestine like a pocket, and right there on the spot they ate the spawn raw and put what was left over in the intestine. They then went to eat the other fish, which they dispatched quickly. Making a little fire they put it in, and in a short time, almost before it was hot, like brutes they ate it as it was, almost raw. Some war equipment was seen. Near the camp on Walnut Creek at Pacheco, the party was visited by local Indians with whom there was a little trouble. Some of them came to see us, carrying bows and arrows, for all had very good ones and well made, the Near the camp there were two villages: one, says Anza (A, p. 143), "which we left behind" and another, "which we have immediately ahead." Between the large rancheria of Tormey and the two just mentioned there appear to have been no Indian settlements whatever. The day of Wednesday, April 3, was spent in crossing the low hills east of Concord and in traveling along the southern shore of Suisun Bay as far as Antioch Bridge. Neither Anza nor Font has particular comment concerning the one and one-half leagues, which brought them to the summit of Willow Pass, overlooking the area of Pittsburg. Beyond this point the explorers entered the northwest corner of the San Joaquin Valley, or the western tip of the delta. They probably had just left Costanoan territory, although, to be sure, the exact tribal boundaries are unknown. At any rate it is preferable to limit the present discussion to the region west and south of the low hills which extend from Port Chicago southeast to the vicinity of Byron. The rancherias which were seen near Antioch would therefore be more profitably considered in a survey of the valley tribes than in one of the East Bay and adjacent coast ranges. Thursday, April 4, was spent in the famous attempt to cross the great tule swamps. In the course of this effort the party bore southeastward along the margin of the tules as far as the latitude of Bethany (Bolton, 1930, III: 148n). Thence they turned inland over Patterson Pass and, if Bolton's reconstruction is correct, followed up the ridge to the east of Arroyo Mocho. No trees or water were encountered until a point was reached not far southeast of Livermore. In the meantime, no Indians were seen and no traces of villages observed along the line of march. The journey of Friday, April 5, took the party into the rough country due east of Mt. Hamilton as far as the southeastern edge of San Antonio Valley at the head of the east fork of Coyote Creek. The terrain was extremely hilly and was covered with oak and coniferous trees, probably principally digger pine, although Font says he saw "spruce." Great stretches of chamise (Adenostema fasciculatum), which Anza calls "Mattal," were observed. The descriptions make it clear that the type of vegetation and the general appearance of the country were essentially as they are today. Only a few streams are mentioned: Arroyo Mocho is described merely as an "arroyo in a canyon." There were several small watercourses near the upper end of San Antonio Valley, and water in pools was found at the lower end near the night's camp. These streams may have been Sulphur Spring Creek and San Antonio Creek. The area was destitute of natives. The only mention of Indians is by Font (F2, p. 414). In the course of the valley [San Antonio Valley] we saw some ruinous and abandoned little huts, but the only Indian seen was at a distance and running, for as soon as he saw us he fled for the brush of the Sierra like a deer. Also, referring to the fruit of "a plant like a fig tree" which appears to be the buckeye, he says that "the heathen eat it, judging from the piles of its shells which we saw in the abandoned huts." A reasonable inference from Font's account is that in this area there were no permanent Indian settlements but in places there were temporary camp sites, used in the time of maturity of the local tree-crops (buckeye and perhaps acorns). On April 6 and the first part of April 7 the party descended Coyote Creek, through Gilroy Hot Springs to the valley of the Pajaro River. The country throughout this stretch is described as hilly and rough, but little further description is given. In all this journey we did not see a single Indian, although we found some tracks of them, and in places a few signs and traces of ruined huts and small villages; for it is known that at times they go to the sierra and camp, especially during the seasons of the piÑon and the acorn. From the Font-Anza diaries, together with that of Crespi, certain tentative conclusions may be reached. 1. The distribution of vegetation in 1775 was substantially the same as described by the American settlers of 1850 and thereafter and, allowing for the devastating influence of the white man, more or less as it is today. The exceptions are the removal of forests, such as the redwood stand on the Oakland hills, and the spread of introduced plants which has possibly occurred on the southern shore of Carquinez Strait. In the relatively untouched interior ranges there has been no significant alteration. 2. There is some question with regard to water supply. In his trip of 1772, between Milpitas and Pinole, Crespi mentions seeing or crossing 31 arroyos, all with running water. The date was from March 25 to 29. Anza and Font went at almost the same time of year (March 31-April 1, 1776) from Warm Springs to Rodeo, and report 20 or 21 arroyos. Of these only 2 or 3 contained abundant water; approximately 10 had only a small amount. The rest were either not described or were without water. Since there can have been no profound alteration in climate or geography in the few years between the two expeditions, the difference must be accounted for on the basis of relative precipitation during the preceding winters. Such a theory is supported by Font's statement (F2, p. 418) regarding the marshes and lagoons in Gilroy Valley: "Since it had not rained much this year it was quite dry...." Examination of the modern maps is instructive. The U. S. Geological Survey quadrangles for the Bay Area were mapped in the decade 1895 to 1905, with subsequent re-editing. Thus the picture presented antedates the disruption of natural conditions caused by the population expansion of this century. The USGS sheets now show 20 streams between Milpitas and Rodeo which were named on the maps, or whose names are otherwise well recognized. These are, from south to north: Arroyo Coches Creek, Calera Creek, Scott Creek, Toroges Creek, Agua Fria Creek, Agua Caliente Creek, Mission Creek, Alameda Creek, San Lorenzo Creek, San Leandro Creek, the creek flowing past Mills College, the creek flowing out of Diamond Canyon through Fruitvale, Indian Gulch, Claremont Creek, Strawberry Creek, Codornices Creek, Wildcat Creek, San Pablo Creek, Pinole Creek, and Rodeo Creek. In addition there are approximately 12 unnamed creeks or arroyos descending the front slope of the hills onto the plain. The total, 32, conforms very closely with the descriptions left by the Spaniards in 1772 and 1776. It is further to be noted that the government surveys of the period of 1900 showed all these streams as intermittent and therefore dependent for their flow upon the winter rainfall. Thus it is quite probable that in late March the amount of water might be copious (as in 1772) or relatively scanty (as in 1776). The conclusion seems warranted that, apart from dessication induced by such factors as soil damage, overgrazing, and diversion for minor irrigation projects, the local water supplies have not diminished since 1770. It then follows that under primitive conditions the natives had substantially the same quantity of water at their disposal as is available in the same area today. 3. The distribution of Indian population was quite clearly marked. Crespi (see above) encountered 5 villages from Milpitas to San Lorenzo. Anza mentions 6 villages in the same distance, most of which were north of Irvington. Both Crespi and Anza describe seeing no further villages until they reached Wildcat Creek. Thereafter they saw a village on each of San Pablo, Pinole, and Rodeo Creeks. Crespi puts 5 villages between Pinole and Crockett. Anza refers to only one, in addition to the one on Rodeo Creek, viz., the large village at Tormey. All accounts agree that there were no settlements between Crockett and Concord Valley, where 2 villages were found by both parties. On the return journey, Crespi traversed the valley from Walnut Creek to Dublin, Pleasanton, and near Niles, and noted a scattering of rancherias at least as far as Pleasanton. The Anza expedition, after leaving the delta, crossed the hills back of Mt. Hamilton and emerged near Gilroy, all without noting a permanent habitation site. From these accounts it is clear that the heavy concentration of population was along the Bay shore, locally centering on the large arroyos and avoiding the strip where Oakland and Berkeley now stand. Secondary centers were in the broader and lower interior valleys, west and north of Mt. Diablo. The narrow canyons and the brush-covered belts of the main axis of the Coast Range were destitute of inhabitants. 4. The numerical value of the population was estimated from the Crespi diary as 2,400. We may assay a comparable estimate from Font and Anza. The six villages seen on the way from Warm Springs to San Lorenzo were largely abandoned by the inhabitants, who had fled in terror. Hence no population estimate is given. However an average of 100 persons each would be a reasonable assumption. North of Berkeley an abandoned village was seen, probably on Wildcat Creek (possibly Strawberry Creek). Then a village of 100 persons was found on San Pablo Creek and another "fair sized" village probably on Pinole Creek. At Rodeo Creek was a village larger than the other two. Allowing 100 persons each for the abandoned village and the "fair sized" village and 150 for the one on Rodeo Creek, the four sites may be considered to represent at least 450 inhabitants. The village at Tormey had a population of 400, according to Font, and 500, according to Anza. No others are mentioned except the two in Concord Valley to which may be ascribed 100 persons each. If we use Font's estimate of 400 for the largest town, the total from Warm Springs to Concord Valley is 1,650. This is reasonably close to the value of 1,900 derived from Crespi. For the remainder of the Northern Costanoan territory, since Anza found no inhabitants south of the Livermore Valley, we have to use the figures derived from Crespi: approximately 500 for the interior valleys. The total, then is 2,150 as compared with the 2,400 based upon Crespi's account alone. In any case, the present estimate is purely tentative and must be considered in the light of the Mission baptism records which are subsequently described. |
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