James Alexander Forbes | |
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| Born | (1804-01-06)January 6, 1804 Inverness, Scotland |
| Died | May 6, 1881(1881-05-06) (aged 77) |
James Alexander Forbes (January 6, 1804 – May 6, 1881[1][2]) was theBritishvice-consul toMexican California as well as the first British consul to the U.S. state of California. He built aflour mill outside ofSan Jose, California (now known asForbes Mill), and that land eventually became the basis of the town ofLos Gatos.
Born inInverness, Scotland to John Alonzo Forbes and Marta Rodriguez, he emigrated toArgentina around the age of 12 with an uncle who owned a shipping line. He was later educated byJesuits inMontevideo, Uruguay, and fought for Argentina during theCisplatine War, having converted one of his uncle's ships into aman of war.[3] He then came to California on a whaleship in 1831,[4] and worked for a while as anaccountant on theCastroRancho San Pablo nearRichmond. In 1834, he married Ana María Galindo, daughter of Jose Crisostino Galindo,majordomo ofMission Santa Clara de Asís.[3][5]
He worked forHudson's Bay Company beginning in 1836,[6] becoming administrator of the company's affairs in California in 1845, although that office closed the following year.[7]
He was appointed British vice-consul in 1842.[8] While serving as vice-consul, he advocated the takeover of California by the British government; the proposal was flatly rejected. Forbes was informed that Great Britain had no desire to interfere in California politics, but that she would look with great disfavor upon such interference by any other power. This sentiment was communicated toThomas O. Larkin, United States consul, but did little to dissuade the U.S. from annexing California in 1846.[9]
The Forbes family lived onRancho Potrero de Santa Clara, a 1,939-acre (7.8 km2)Mexican land grant nearSan Jose received from GovernorManuel Micheltorena in 1844.[10] The rancho and cattle were sold in 1847 to CommodoreRobert F. Stockton for US$10,500, a high price for the time.[11] The couple had a total of twelve children, three daughters and nine sons. In 1851, he persuaded the Jesuits to establish a school at Mission Santa Clara to educate his sons; this school formed the basis of what would becomeSanta Clara University.[3] Five of the Forbes sons were part of the first class at Santa Clara College.[12]
He was also an early investor in theNew Almadenquicksilver mine withAlexander Forbes, British consul to Mexico and author of one of the first histories of California in the English language.[relationship] Their company had purchased the title to the mine from Andrés Castillero in 1846, and it proved to be extremely profitable. However,José de los Reyes Berreyesa also laid claim to the mine on the basis that it lay onRancho San Vicente. Furthermore, Berreyesa's neighbor Justo Larios ofRancho Los Capitancillos also claimed ownership. Even the United States government stepped in to claim that the mine lay on public land between the two grants. A complex legal case involving Mexican laws and theTreaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo described byThe New York Times as "one of the most remarkable civil trials in this or any other country",[13]United States v. Andres Castillero eventually reached theUnited States Supreme Court whereupon it was finally decided in 1862 that, the mine was on the Larias grant, and that the furnaces and improvements of the company below the hill were on the Berreyessa grant.[14] The company bought into these two titles and then sold the entire operation in 1864 to theQuicksilver Mining Company.[15]
Forbes' lasting legacy, however, is the town of Los Gatos. In 1850, noticing that there was no local production of flour (it was being imported fromChile), he purchased about 2,000 acres (8.1 km2) ofRancho Rinconada de Los Gatos fromJosé María Hernandez with the intent of building a mill onLos Gatos Creek. In 1853 he raised the money for the construction, and in 1854 the mill was built. After many delays, the mill started grinding flour on December 1, 1855. However, the location Forbes chose was unfortunate, as there was only enough water in the creek to power the mill during the winter months. This, coupled with the delays in its opening which allowed competitors into the market thus dropping flour prices from a lucrative $50/barrel to a mere $5,[16] meant that it was not generating enough income and eventually Forbes was forced intobankruptcy, much of his money also being tied up in litigation with regards to the mine. In 1858, he was evicted due to non-payment of the loan. However, a town sprang up around the mill and was initially known as Forbestown before changing its name to Los Gatos.[17]
Based on a collection of Forbes's letters, Los Gatos historian William A. Wulf describes Forbes as "a suede-shoe man [i.e., a devious individual]. He was bright, and better educated than most men in California when he first arrived. But he was basically a bad guy who ended up losing control of circumstances."[3] When the Jesuits arrived from Oregon to Mission Santa Clara, they asked him to move out of the mission, which he did, but not before getting $11,000 from them. He then used this money to build a mansion right behind the mission. Later, he sold this to a group ofnuns, neglecting to tell them there was a $20,000lien on the house. Also, according to the Hernandez family, Forbes never paid $8,000 he owed for the Los Gatos rancho. With regards to his marriage, he is described as having treated his wife as a servant, often not allowing her to converse with dinner guests; instead she was made to help the other servants.[5]
Forbes died in 1881, inAlameda.
^ relationship: The two Forbes are often confused for each other, as J. A. Forbes is sometimes described as the author of the California history book.[18] It is also unclear if the two were related. Some sources describe them as unrelated,[19] but others describe Alexander as James Alexander's uncle.[3]
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)forbes castillero.
james alexander forbes british consul.
british consul James Alexander Forbes.
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