Monkey Block San Francisco's Golden History

By January 30, 1847, the Pueblo de Yerba Buena was officially renamed the Town of San Francisco. 

Mexican laws weren't very well written, if written at all, which left the US military in charge of creating order in a land (Alta California), that wasn't used to having rules. 

This episode is a discussion between Girlina and architectural historian, Jonathon Lammers, regarding the Laws of the Town of San Francisco 1847, as captured in what is believed to be California's first pamphlet written entirely in English.

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In the last episode I discussed the lead up to the Battle of Santa Clara. I chased this rabbit hole of a topic to figure out why Washington Allon Bartlett, Yerba Buena's first American alcalde, was missing for a period of time during his very short term in office. 

How are these two items connected? Listen and find out. 

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Today’s episode is about the changing landscape of Yerba Buena from July 1846 - 1847, just after the US takeover and the early broken promises to Californios. 

In the middle of all the changes, Yerba Buena's first American appointed Alcalde, Washington Allon Bartlett, goes missing, and it has everything to do with ... cows. 

Were the Spaniards really hiding in the brush? Listen and find out. 

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Listen to me fan girl Richard Miller, the host of Sparkletack. The original podcast on San Francisco history, 2006 - 2009. 

I modeled my podcast after Sparkletack so getting to interview him was a huge honor. 

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Today, we do not cover Edwin Bryant's best 1848-selling book but I do have a friendly conversation, with Mr. Bryant. Please sit back and enjoy the rest of my talk with Edwin Bryant. 

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Today, I virtually interview Edwin Bryant, the author of the 1848 best seller, “What I Saw in California, Journal of a Tour, 1846- 1847”. Through the magic of AI generated voices, I simulate a virtual conversation with Edwin Bryant; a journalist, turned overland traveler, turned the second American Alcalde of Yerba Buena, and then finally, a bestselling author. 

About 95% of the words our guest speaks, are taken directly from his book. I only made minimal changes to past tense descriptions and similar small changes. 

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Today’s episode is an interview with a new listener and accidental friend of Monkey Block’s Facebook Page that led to IMs on Facebook, a rabbit hole on Juana Briones, and then to an online interview. 

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The story of the Hudson Bay Company, in Yerba Buena, has been reduced to a few sentences that are very Hudson Bay Company-centric. “That place was miserable, and we didn’t make any money, so we left.” It always felt like the guy who says, “Yeah, well, I didn’t want that job, anyway.” 

Today’s episode is peripherally about the English Hudson Bay Company’s short-lived post in Yerba Buena. But, it’s mostly about the people involved at the store, whose credit to that history has been lost over the last two centuries. And, they deserve to have their story retold to a current audience. Maybe, retelling this story today, it can become a part of early San Francisco's history, again. Once you hear the story, you’ll know what I mean.

I will respectfully tell this story, and, need to provide advisement to my listeners that this episode contains a delicate topic that can be challenging for some people. We discuss self-harm and I’ll dance lightly around any details. 

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I have found myself drawn to a specific piece of land that figuratively and literally became central to the Pueblo de Yerba Buena. Why was it left empty? And, considering it shows up on every Yerba Buena and early San Francisco map, why is it hard to find early information on it? 

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If the Battle of Yerba Buena doesn’t sound familiar, there’s a good reason for that. The events, just before and after ‘The Battle of Yerba Buena’, tell the story. There are two events, in my opinion, that make up the ‘Battle of Yerba Buena’.

If you enjoyed this episode, and my original research, you can make a one-time donation at www.buymeacoffee.com/monkeyblocksf.      

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