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Gilroy Facts
The first inhabitants of the Gilroy area were the Ohlone Indians. They lived by hunting and gathering until the arrival of the Spanish missionaries and military forces. Spanish colonization began in the area in 1800. Two Spanish grants, the Las Animas and the San Ysidro, and many Mexican grants divided the area into large ranchos which raised cattle for hides, tallow, and jerked meat.
John Cameron was born in Scotland in 1794. At the age of 19 he left England, using his mother's maiden name of Gilroy, and arrived in Monterey in 1814. He was baptized at the mission at Carmel in 1817 and took the name of Juan Bautista Gilroy. He then made his way to Rancho San Ysidro where he was employed by Ygnacio Ortega as a barrel maker. He married Clara Ortega in 1821 at Mission San Juan Bautista. The Gilroys had 17 children. eight died, but nine survived.
The First Wagon Train From America
The first wagon train to successfully cross the continental divide and arrive in California left Council Bluffs Iowa in 1843. In the winter of 1843-1844 the settlers forged their way over Donner Summit, five years before the Donner party met disaster in the same area. Among the 1843 group was the Martin family who were the first Americans to settle in the Gilroy area.
Hay and Grain Capitol
Following the gold rush years, pioneers flooded the fertile Gilroy area with farms of every size and description. Americans, English, Irish, and Germans joined the Spanish and Mexican pioneers. These early settlers engaged in stock raising and grain farming and soon what was then called Pleasant Valley became known as the hay and grain capitol of California.
Gilroy got its start in 1850 as a stage stop along the San Jose to Monterey Road. By the time the village was incorporated as the Town of Gilroy in 1867, it was the third largest community in the county with a brewery, a flouring mill, and a distillery. The railroad arrived in Gilroy in 1869 and made the community the hub of the south Santa Clara Valley. In the 1860s and '70s, Gilroy also became known for horse raising.
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