Existing comment:
Era of Rapid Change:
The people of this area saw many changes in the 1700s and 1800s. California became part of Spain, then Mexico, and finally the United States. Each change brought new waves of settlers. This devastated Native American populations through exotic diseases, disruption of traditional lifeways, and intentional persecution.
Spanish Settlers:
Just west of here in the Salinas Valley, the Spanish established Soledad Mission in 1791. Their quest was to convert local indigenous people to Christianity and to expand Spanish colonization. They abandoned the mission fifty years later.
Frontier Seekers:
Like many who followed the California Gold Rush, Henry Melville settled near here in 1874. His copper mining brought him no wealth, but it offers insight into ways people tried to make a living from this landscape.
Homesteaders:
Near where you stand, homesteaders once worked a small farm in this challenging arid climate. Harrison Lyons and his wife Margaret Onsott Lyons came from Ohio around 1885 and stayed for the next 25 years. |