Nicolás Antonio Berrelleza In 1777, Ana Isabel Berrelleza married Juan José Peralta, another member of the Anza colonist party, but they did not have children. At the age of 18, Nicolás Antonio Berrelleza married Peralta's sister, María Gertrudis Peralta, October 10, 1779, at
Mission Santa Clara de Asís.
María Gabriela Berreyesa Castro María Gabriela Berrelleza (also spelled Berreyesa) was born November 26, 1780, and christened the same day at Mission Santa Clara. She was the first child of the family. and a corporal in the artillery company of San Francisco. The two made their home in San José and produced thirteen offspring during 1796–1824. Castro was made an elector in 1822 after which he served as alcalde and on a civil board that heard disputes. The
New Almaden mercury mine began producing a small amount of rich ore in 1846. In 1846, during the
Bear Flag Revolt, three of the sons of José de los Reyes Berreyesa were imprisoned by
John C. Frémont in
Sonoma, California, where one of the sons,
José de los Santos Berreyesa, had been serving as
Alcalde. Accompanied by two cousins, twin sons of
Francisco de Haro, the 61-year-old father went to see how his sons were being treated in prison. After they landed their boat in
San Rafael, the three men were shot and killed by three of Frémont's men, including
Kit Carson, and they were stripped of their belongings. Later, Carson told
Jasper O'Farrell that he regretted killing the Californios, but that the act was only one such that Frémont ordered him to commit. An 1863 court decision in the Berreyesas' favor allowed them to sell the rights to work the mine for $1,700,000 in 1864. The Berreyesa family was finally rewarded on June 24, 1868, with a patent issued by the
United States Supreme Court stating that the arable land of the rancho was theirs, but not the rocky hills containing the mines. Doña María died in 1869 in San Rafael. 1876 was the year that the greatest amount of mercury was removed from the New Almaden mine: of the liquid metal. By 1880, $16 million worth of mercury had been mined, about $ million in current value.
Descendants •
José de los Santos Berreyesa (1817–1864), son of
José de los Reyes Berreyesa (1785-1846). Served as
alcalde of
Sonoma, California, jailed by John C. Frémont in 1846 during the
Bear Flag Revolt. Held Rancho Mallacomes. • José Ygnacio Marianio Berreyesa (1807–1841). Born the first son of
José de los Reyes Berreyesa (1785–1846). • José Catarino Berreyesa (1815–?). Third son of José de los Reyes Berreyesa (1785–1846). Held grant
Rancho Canada de Capay in 1846. • José de Jesus Berreyesa (1815–1874). Son of Nasario Antonio Berreyesa (1787–?). Held
Rancho Las Putas with his brother. • José Martin Berreyesa (1821–1864). Son of Nasario Antonio Berreyesa (1787–?); served as soldier at the
Presidio of Sonoma. • José Antonio Melquiades Berreyesa (1826–?). Son of Nicolas Tolantino Antonio Berreyesa (1789–1863); struggled with his father to keep
Rancho Milpitas. • José Guadalupe Fernando Berreyesa (1826–1873). Eighth son of
José de los Reyes Berreyesa (1785–1846). Shot in a duel. • José de la Encarnacion Ramon Antonio Berreyesa (1828–1857). Ninth son of
José de los Reyes Berreyesa (1785–1846). Hanged by vigilantes in
Los Angeles, California. • José Domingo Bonifacio Berreyesa (1830–1844). Tenth son of
José de los Reyes Berreyesa (1785–1846). • José Santos Berreyesa I (1848–?), son of
José de los Santos Berreyesa (1817–1864). • José Santos Berreyesa II (1851–?), son of
José de los Santos Berreyesa (1817–1864). • José Santos Berreyesa III (1854–1922), son of
José de los Santos Berreyesa (1817–1864). • José Jesus Berreyesa (1844–?), son of José de Jesus Berreyesa (1815–1874); tried to hold
Rancho Las Putas.
Nazario Antonio Berrelleza Nazario Antonio Berrelleza (also spelled Nasario Berreyesa, nicknamed José) was born at Mission Santa Clara on July 28, 1787, the fourth child and second son in the family. He served as an army corporal at Presidio San Francisco, 1819–1824. As payment for his government service, he accepted a grant of land contained in a river valley east of
Napa, California, called
Rancho Las Putas, named for
Putah Creek which ran through it. Nazario raised 5,000 cattle, 20,000 horses and grew grain crops throughout the fertile valley that became known as Berryessa Valley. The livestock holdings extended northward over some rocky hills to a neighboring valley,
Rancho Cañada de Capay, ranched by Berreyesa cousins. Another Anglo settler laid out Alviso's claim using measurements that included a sizable piece of the Berreyesa claim, including crops and buildings. Berreyesa sued, but his lawyers dropped out of sight while supposedly covering his case in
Washington, D.C., losing irreplaceable documents. Berreyesa burned the rest of his real estate documents in a mad rage. The Alviso claim won out in 1871. Nicolás Antonio Berreyesa died in 1873. ==Legacy==