Ygnacio del Valle
| Ygnacio Ramón de Jesus del Valle | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
July 1, 1808 Jalisco, New Spain |
| Died | 1880 United States |
| Occupation | rancher, alcalde |
| Spouse(s) | Ysabel Varela |
Ygnacio Ramón de Jesus del Valle (July 1, 1808 – 1880) was a rancher and landowner in the eastern Santa Clara River Valley, California, United States, as well as an alcalde of Los Angeles. His estate, Rancho Camulos, is registered as a National Historic Landmark.
Del Valle was born in Jalisco, Mexico. His father, Antonio del Valle, was a soldier in the Spanish army who came to California in 1819 and was mayordomo (administrator and/or foreman) of Mission San Fernando Rey de España. Ygnacio joined the army as a cadet in 1825 at the Presidio of Santa Barbara. In 1828 he was promoted to second lieutenant and transferred to the Presidio of San Diego. In 1832, his commander became involved in a power struggle with the commandant of the Presidio of Monterey, where Antonio served. Ygnacio's side won the conflict on the battlefield, causing a rift between father and son, and they never spoke again.
Ygnacio then moved to the Monterey Presidio and was in charge of the secularization of Mission Santa Cruz and Mission San Francisco de Asís. He became a trusted officer, enough to be left in charge of the Presidio in José Figueroa's absence. For his service to the Mexican Army, del Valle received the Rancho El Tejon land grant in 1843. During this time, he married Maria de Los Angeles in 1842, who died in childbirth five years later.
Antonio died in 1841 without leaving a will. On his deathbed, he decided he wanted to reconcile with his son and, in a letter, offered Ygnacio several properties, including the 48,612-acre (197 km2) Rancho San Francisco land grant he had received. Unfortunately, he died before the letter was delivered to Ygnacio, but the son returned to the family homestead to administer the ranch anyway. Without a will specifying how the estate was to be divided, Jacoba Feliz, Antonio's second wife who remarried after his death, filed a lawsuit to claim part of the land, which was the site the first recorded discovery of gold in California, sparking a minor gold rush in 1842, six years before the more famous California Gold Rush. Eventually, the lawsuit was decided and the land was split, with Ygnacio receiving the 13,599-acre (55 km2) Rancho Camulos.
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