Ochoa was born to Jesus Ochoa in
Chihuahua, Mexico on March 17, 1831. His family had a variety of business interests and appear on the registry of navigation from when
Cortés sailed from Spain. While he was growing up, his family operated a freight-hauling business along the
Santa Fe Trail. Ochoa accompanied his family's wagon trains from Chihuahua to points as distant as
Independence, Missouri. His experiences on the trail taught him the skills of a merchant while time spent in
Kansas provided him with fluency in the English language. Following the
Mexican–American War, Ochoa decided to settle in the United States. In 1856, Ochoa was a delegate to a convention seeking creation of Arizona from a section of New Mexico Territory. One of Tully & Ochoa's early business ventures sent a large supply train to
Tucson, New Mexico Territory. After all the supply train's goods sold out in just a few hours the firm decided to open stores in both Tucson and
Tubac. Ochoa soon followed, moving to Tucson in 1860. When a
Confederate column reached Tucson, the commanding leader sent for Ochoa and demanded he swear a
loyalty oath to the Confederacy. The merchant immediately refused, informing the officer that he "owed all he had in the world to the Government of the United States, and it would be impossible for him to take an oath of fidelity to any hostile power or party." He told the officer he was willing to leave town instead of signing the oath. The officer then allowed Ochoa to select a horse and quickly pack a pair of saddlebags before providing him a rifle with 20 rounds of ammunition and having him escorted out of town. Tucson's Ochoa Elementary School is likewise named in his honor. ==References==