Another compilation by:

Álvaro VanEgas  - This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Virreinato de Nueva España, a state of Spain

(Incluyendo todo el Pacífico español en su momento - Including all the Spanish Pacific territories at the moment)

Capitanía General de Las Indias Orientales ("Filipinas", the capital), a province of Virreinato de Nueva España.

THE MISTERY OF / EL MISTERIO DE

ANTONIO MIRANDA RODRÍGUEZ, el filipino que fundó Los Ángeles (the filipino who founded Los Angeles)

(Castellano abajo) One of the original settlers of El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora La Reina de Los Ángeles del Río de Porciúncula -today's Los Angeles, California, USA-, was of filipino ancestry but smallpox temporary quarantene in Baja made him and others arrive after the others... 

Today, some opposing parties minimize his filipino origins because he was born in today's Mexico and was resident of Sinaloa. Stripped from his "filipinoness"?  The true context was that: Living in today's Philippines, or in today's Mexico, was basically the same as living in the same state...

Back in times, there were several big states in today's 'New World'; the largest administrative unit was a Virreinato (Vice-Kingdom).  One big state to the north was called Virreinato de Nueva España, which comprised masses of land on both sides of the Pacific, and its inhabitants moved freely from place to place, including across the Pacific. This state included all of today's West USA.

Antonio and his daughter were enlisted on the founding mission with the rest of the settlers, but was briefly delayed by a smallpox outbreak and his forced temporary quarantene, which prevented his name to be on today's official documents and history books. 

Some also contend that settlers were 'sent' by Spain. Álvaro VanEgas contends the obvious fact that this was a democratic opening for anyone in a certain profession, to register and come found a new town. This happened in our Hispanic World for 300 years almost, and even after independent from Spain there were still towns to found... No forced conscription took place with Antonio Miranda Rodríguez, thus the hispanophobic Black Legend against Spain can take a nap on this.

With endless migrations of people on both sides of the Pacific, it results complicated today to draw a line between who has pure ancestry or who behaved genuinely as Filipino, such as Pilita Corrales, Enrique Iglesias, Gary Valenciano, Shaila Durcal, Lou Diamond Phillips and the very Rizal whose best developed mother language was Castilian, among others. Was Antonio 'pure filipino' and belongs to today's Philippine pride... or was he just Mexican? Are FilAms filipinos or are they stripped from their "filipinoness" because they were born and raised outside?

Álvaro VanEgas and Proyectos Saluda have extracted below's search off the web based on a debate ('tertulia') that needs to come to closure in Los Angeles and perhaps the whole USA, Philippines and the very Mexico, so that the filipino community and officers organize in a join, binational (USA+Mexico) effort to place Antonio Miranda Rodríguez in official History, and also at Placita Olvera's commemorative signs, and probably a Statue or Monument of Antonio at Historic Filipinotown representing the hispanicity of Filipinos and not only their ancestral migration to the USA, but also their role as part of the colonization of today's USA (as Virreinato citizens, or "Spaniards", in the federal missions to found a New World). The campaign has to kick off with a DNA on his remains (Santa Bárbara), as well as deeper Archival research in Sinaloa, Mexico, and consequent archival research to prove dates and nature of his detour from arriving to today's Los Angeles with the rest.

Articles are presented for your open-mind reading, as long as you remain 'in the context' of the 1780s. Therefore the final notes:

"Indio": Columbus in the 1490s thought he had arrived to India, therefore he called all native inhabitants 'indios' on both sides of the Pacific. Indio cubano, indio mexicano, indio argentino, etc. Read 'manilenses' or 'indios luzones' the same as saying 'native filipinos'.

"Chino / Malayo":  Transport above's notions in the Spain (or anywhere else in Europe) of the 1490s. Ayone with slanted eyes, no matter how slanted, "must have been Chinese". Therefore, chino was the term for anyone on both sides of the Pacific Ocean with slanted eyes, even if very slightly slanted or not slanted at all but with very fine and shiny, straight black hair. "Indio" for example could be used along with "chino"; example: La China Poblana, pride of Mexican heritage today.

(1) Chino therefore could include inhabitants from The Marianas, Guam, Carolinas, Palaus and the rest of Spanish Pacific for 333 years, who would have had slightly slanted eyes.

La china poblana and malayo are among innumerable things which came to today's The Americas through the Portal, or Door, that today's The Philippines represented for 333 years. "Malayo" was an equivalent to "indio", but also 'very wild uncivilized native' in many parts of the Hispanic hemisphere, including the very Philippines to tell them appart from the locals.

"Filipino": See above paragraph (1). In most instances, to say filipino could mean to say anybody from today's Pacific Islander territories which were part of the Capitanía General de Las Indias Orientales (read here: http://www.proyectos-saluda.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=section&id=43&Itemid=177)

Indio and Chino, along with many other racial generics as negro, mulato, zambo, etc etc continue to be used, massively, throughout the Hispanic World and do not constitute any offense to anybody. However, the use of filipino today does not acknowledge that the rest of Pacific Islanders were also considered filipinos for 333 years (as well as chamorros, among others).

Tumba de /Resting Place for Antonio Miranda Rodríguez:

Capilla del Real Presidio de Santa Bárbara, California, EEUU

CASTELLANO:  

Tema: La posibilidad que entre los fundadores originales del Pueblo de Nuestra Señora La Reina de Los Ángeles del Río de Porciúncula -Los Ángeles, California, EEUU hoy en día-, haya habido un filipino de origen.

En tiempos remotos, hubo unos cuantos estados inmensos en toda América. Al Norte, hubo un gran estado llamado 'Virreinato de Nueva España', que comprendía grandes masas de tierra a ambos lados del Pacífico, y sus habitantes eran ciudadanos de un mismo estado transitando de lado a lado libremente. Con los trayectos del Galeón de Manila, no eran solamente españoles, mexicanos y filipinos quienes se desplazaban de lado a lado: Igualmente el resto de América Latina y Caribe, al igual que el resto del Pacífico Español (Guam, Marianas, Carolinas, etc).

Este estado comprendía lo que hoy se conoce como el 'Oeste estadounidense'. Por ello resulta muy complicado definir quién, en el presente, tiene antecedentes puros, ya que por casi 500 años el patrón ha sido mezclarnos en un bello mestizaje. Hay casos de debate sobre 'cuán filipinos son' personalidades como Pilita Corrales, Enrique Iglesias, Shaila Durcal, Gary Valenciano, Lou Diamond Philipps y el mismo Rizal, quien escribía mejor en Castellano que en Tagalog. ¿Si Antonio Miranda Rodríguez no tenía sangre 100% filipina, no tiene derecho a ser orgullo filipino? 

Los artículos que siguen, que van en Inglés, fueron tomados de la red y tratan sobre el tema de que el filipino Antonio Miranda Rodríguez haya sido parte del contingente de fundadores de Los Ángeles, quien por un ligero atraso quedó fuera de los libros de historia y monumentos conmemorativos.

Considerando que Colón nos llamó a todos indios por pensar que había llegado a La India, hay otros artículos sobre presencia aún previa, de los 'indios luzones' o 'manilenses', como se llamaba a los habitantes del archipiélago mucho antes de surgir el nombre Filipinas. Disfrute.

LINK: http://www.laalmanac.com/history/hi03c.htm

Original Settlers (Pobladores) of El Pueblo de la Reina de Los Angeles, 1781

*Married just prior to leaving for the new pueblo because new settlers were required to heads of families.
**Vanegas was appointed to be the first alcalde (mayor).
***Children at the time of the settlement of the Pueblo. Some of these settlers went on to have other children.

A twelfth settler, Antonio Miranda Rodriguez, a 50-year-old Filipino, and his 11 year-old daughter were also slated to settle in the new pueblo.
They set out with the rest of the pobladores in early 1781 enroute to their new home. While in Baja California, however, they were among those
who fell ill to smallpox and remained there for an extended time to recuperate. When they finally arrived in Alta California (the present-day State
of California), it was discovered that Miranda Rodriguez was a skilled gunsmith. He was subsequently reassigned to the Santa Barbara Presidio in
1782 to be an armorer.

Maria Guadalupe Gertrudis Perez, wife of Jose Moreno, was the last surviving original settler. She died in 1860, having lived almost 100 years.
Her granddaughter, Catalina Moreno, married Don Andres Pico, brother of Pio Pico and Mexican military commander at the Battle of San Pascual.

Whatever Happened to the Original Settlers?

Antonio Clemente Felix Villavicencio - Moved to Santa Barbara in 1797. Died there in 1802.
Jose de Velasco y Lara - Received permission to move to Ventura in 1782 to establish the Mission San Buenaventura and later to Santa Barbara to
establish the presidio. Died in Nayarit on an unfortunate return trip to Mexico in 1783*.
Luis Quintero - Received permission along with Jose de Velasco y Lara to move to Ventura in 1782 to establish the Mission San Buenaventura and later
to Santa Barbara to establish the presidio. He may have wished to be near his three daughters who had married soldiers stationed at the presidio in Santa
Barbara. Died in Santa Barbara in 1810.
Antonio Mesa - Apparently became disillusioned with the hardships in Alta California and received permission to return to Sonora, Mexico in 1782.
Jose Antonio Navarro - Sent to San Jose in 1790 and later to the Presidio in San Francisco. Buried at the Mission Dolores in San Francisco in 1793.
Pablo Rodriguez - Moved to San Diego in 1796 then to San Juan Capistrano. Buried at the Mission San Juan Capistrano in 1816.
Jose Vanegas - Remained in Los Angeles for 20 years during which he served as its first alcalde (mayor). Upon the death of his wife in 1801, moved to San
Diego and the Mission San Luis Rey.
Manuel Camero - Remained in Los Angeles. Served as a Los Angeles regidor (councilman). Died here in 1819.
Jose Moreno - Remained in Los Angeles. Served as a Los Angeles regidor. Buried at Mission San Gabriel in 1806.
Alejandro Rosas - Remained in Los Angeles. He and his wife died here only a month apart in December 1788 and January 1789.
Jose Antonio Rosas - Remained in Los Angeles. Buried at the Mission San Gabriel in 1809.

* Jose de Velasco y Lara was ordered back to Mexico by the authorities when he confessed to Father Junipero Serra that his first wife, whom he had maintained had died,
might actually still be alive. He was already remarried with children. He unfortunately never returned to see his second wife and children in Santa Barbara, having died not
long after returning to Nayarit.

LINK: http://personal.anderson.ucla.edu/eloisa.borah/filfaqs.htm#history 

HISTORY OF FILIPINOS IN TODAY'S USA BEFORE 1898:  http://www.fanhs17.com/timeline.htm

Filipino American History Timeline

I. EARLY FILIPINO HISTORY IN AMERICA

Note: During the early years of world exploration and trade, Filipino seamen were identified as "Manila Men," "Manilla Men," or "Luzones Indios."

1587

The Spanish galleon, Nuestra Senora de Buena Esperanza, captained by Pedro de Unamuno, anchored off the coast of present day Morro Bay, California, on Sunday, October 18, 1587. Filipinos (Luzones Indios) were among the crewmembers. Several Filipinos were sent to scout the shore. On October 20, during a skirmish with local Indians, one Filipino was killed. The galleon departed on October 22. ------From Capt. Unanumo's handwritten journal, chronicled by Henry R. Wagner in "Spanish Voyages to the Northwest Coast of America in the Sixteenth Century," published in 1929 by the California Historical Society in San Francisco. 

1595

Filipino seamen were on board the Spanish ship, San Agustin, under the command of Sebastian Rodriguez Cermeno, when it was shipwrecked near Point Reyes by the mouth of San Francisco Bay, California, on November 6, 1595. -----Published in the San Francisco Chronicle, November 14, 1995, page A13, based on Carl Nolte's work, 400th Anniversary of Spanish Shipwreck, Rough First Landing in Bay Area.

1763

"Manila Men" established St. Malo, a village on the bayous outside of New Orleans, Louisiana, described by American writer, Lafcadio Hearn, in Harper's Weekly magazine, March 31, 1883.

1779

Father Junipero Serra at Mission Monterey, California, conferred the Sacrament of Confirmation upon Vicente Tallado, a Filipino from Pampanga, Philippines, on August 10, 1779. -----From the Thomas Workman Temple II Collection.

1781

Antonio Miranda Rodriguez, 50-year old, born in Sonora, Mexico, a descendant of a "Manila Man," and his daughter, Juana Maria, age 11, were among the founding settlers of the city of Los Angeles, California. He later became the ironsmith of the Santa Barbara Mission in California where he lived until his death. He is buried in the Santa Barbara Mission church. -----Researched by William Mason, curator, History Division, Los Angeles County Museum.

1848

"Manila Men" were the majority of miners at Tulitos, one of the earliest gold mining camps in Mariposa county during the California Gold Rush. -----From Stockton Daily Evening Record, December 15, 1934, page 20; based on Vanished Camp of Tulitos Is Forgotten by Historians, Mother Lodelets by Matthew Hamilton.

II. FILIPINOS IN ALASKA TIMELINE

based on Filipinos in Alaska: 1788 - 1958 by Thelma Buchholdt

An Asian Alaskan Cultural Center History in Alaska Documentation Project, 1996

1788

February 22, the Iphigenia Nubiana left Zamboanga, (a city in southwest Mindanao, an island in the southern part of the Philippines). This ship arrived at Cook Inlet on June 17, 1788 with a "Manilla man" on the crew, mentioned in Captain William Douglas' journal. 

1789

June 5, the Eleanora (captained by Simon Metcalfe) with 24 "Manilla men" and the Fair American (captained by Thomas Metcalfe) with 5 "Manilla men" sailed from China for the Pacific Northwest coast of America.

1789

From October to November, the ship Gustavus III was in Alaska with a Filipino cabin steward, John Mando. 

1791

June, the Gustavus III sailed to Sitka Harbor, again, with John Mando as cabin steward. 

1791

June 27, Spanish expedition ships, the Descubierta (captained by Alejandro Malaspina) and the Atrevida (captained by Jose Bustamante y Guerra), arrived at Yakutat Bay, Alaska, then known as Port Mulgrave. Initially, four Filipinos were among the crew departing from Cadiz, Spain. More Filipinos were conscripted in Acapulco to replace deserting crewmembers. Filipinos were in Acapulco as a result of the Manila-Acapulco Spanish galleon trade. 

1794

Grigorii Ivanovich Shelikhov, a Russian, organized his fur trading company in Alaska and recommended to the Governor General of Irkutsk, who had jurisdiction of Russian America (Alaska), to trade with the Philippines. Attempts were made to pursue trade relations, but all proved unsuccessful.

1848

July 23, whaling began off the Arctic coast of Alaska when Captain Thomas Roys sailed the bark Superior north of the Bering Strait. 

1865

Whaling ships' records available at the New Bedford Whaling Museum positively identify whaling crewmembers in Alaska as "Manilla men" or from the Philippines. 

1898

The Philippines was ceded to the United States under the terms of the Treaty of Paris, with the U.S. paying Spain $20 million for the Philippines.

Taken from: http://www.epilipinas.com/chronology.htm

1781
Antonio Miranda Rodriguez Poblador, a Filipino, along with 44 other
individuals were sent by the Spanish government from Mexico to establish what is now
known as the city of Los Angeles.

Book "Cultural Diversity in the United States", by Larry Naylor 

http://books.google.com/books?id=T1Tjo5bY4zoC&pg=PA181&lpg=PA181&dq=antonio+miranda+Rodriguez&source=web&ots=h4-m0Fl0Vd&sig=KfGdEZ_QTNmeA8UsTjZvAwc9Dnw&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=2&ct=result#PPA181,M1

Taken from: http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/CAROOTS/2001-07/0995790190

From: "Karla Everett" < <a href="mailto:
 This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
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 </a>> 
Subject: [CAROOTS] Antonio Miranda - Update 
Date: Sun, 22 Jul 2001 01:23:10 -0700

 
Gary G questioned my comment regarding Antonio Miranda being among the first families,

so I did some more checking and found the following conflicting reports (thanks, Gary!):

 
 
"From the Mountains to the Sea" by John Steven McGroarty, copyright 1921,
Volume I, page 30:
 
"Josede Lara, Spaniard, 50 years of age, wife Indian, 3 children; Jose
antonio Navarro, mestizo, 42 years, wife mulattress, 3 children; Basilio
Rosas, Indian, 68 years, wife mulattress, 6 children; Antonio Mesa, negro,
38 years, wife a mulattress, 2 children; Antonio (Felix) Vilavicencio,
Spaniard, 30 years, wife Indian; Jose Vanegas, Indian, 28 years, wife
Indian, 1 child; Alejandro Rosas, Indian, 19 years, wife coyote (Indian);
Pablo Rodriguez, Indian, 25 years, wife Indian, 1 child; Mamuel Camero,
mulatto, 30 years, wife mulatress; Luis Quintero, negro, 55 yers, wife
mulattress, 5 children; Jose moreno, mulatto, 22 years, wie mulattress;
Antonio Miranda, chino, 50 years, 1 child. 

 
 
" . . . although historians dispute among themselves as to whether Antonio
Miranda, who was listed as a 'chino' was a Chinaman. The great Bancroft,
who would be infallible if it were not that he also made errors (grin),
declares that Miranda was not a Chinaman. And maybe he wasn't, but we like
to think that he was, because it is desirable that the great Mongolian race
should have had its hand in starting Los angeles, as well as a hand in
pushing it along after it was started."
 
HOWEVER . . . 
 
"Los Angeles - City of Dreams" by Harry Carr, copyright 1935, page 37:
 
"The names of our First Families have been preserved for fame. They were:  

Basilio Rosas, an Indian sixty-eight yers old with a mulatto wife and two children;

Antonio Mesa, a Negro, thirty-eight, mulatto wife, two children;

Antonio Felix Villavicanso, Spaniard, twenty-eight, an Indian wife, one child;

Jose Vanegas, Indian, twenty-eight, Indian wife, one child;

Alejandro Rosa, Indian, nineteen, Coyote Indian wife;

Pablo Rodriguez, Indian, twenty-five, Indian wife, one child;

Manuel Camero, mulatto, thirty, mulatto wife; Luis Quintero, Negro, fifty-five, mulatto wife.

Antonio Miranda, described as a chino, fifty, started with one child but dropped out at Loreto;

probably died." 

City of Los Angeles, District 13 

Taken from Eric Garcetti's 'Our Pacific Destiny'

http://209.85.141.104/search?q=cache:8S1JUWdCmWYJ:www.lacity.org/council/cd13/oped/ND11141.pdf+antonio+miranda+Rodriguez&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=30&gl=us

Our city's links with Asia are deep and old-as old as the city itself. Our region's first residents were Asian immigrants, mostlikely from Siberia. In 1781, a Spanish subject of Filipino heritage, Antonio Miranda Rodriguez, joined 43 other pobladores totrek to the area that became El Pueblo de Nuestra Senora, la Reina de los Angeles

Web Research:

Álvaro VanEgas

Founder, President

Proyectos Saluda

www.proyectos-saluda.org