9 Generations in LA
Welcome!
Hello. My name is Tony Leon - thanks for stopping by! This website is an attempt to briefly share information about my family roots as a 9th generation Angeleno. In 2004 I finally became interested in learning about my heritage, and since then I've discovered a lot about Los Angeles history as a descendant of an original settler of the city, founded in 1781. It has been a labor of love unlocking doors to the past and I hope you will be inspired by your visit.
A Brief History
How we all got here....
King Carlos III decided a city should be founded for Spain in Alta (upper) California. The threat of English colonists migrating westward and Russian fur traders coming down by way of Alaska initiated the Mission system and established the California coast as Spanish territory. The task was eventually to begin for the recruiting of interested individuals from Sinaloa and Sonora Mexico (not called Mexico back then) to settle a city far off in the north. From a prior expedition, an area near what would become known as the Los Angeles River had been deemed a prime location for a settlement.
After traveling by foot for months, 11 families made up of 44 individuals escorted by 4 Spanish soldiers made their way northward. These settlers (pobladores) are responsible for giving birth to El Pueblo de la Reyna de los Angeles sobre el Rio Porciuncula, "the town of the Queen of Angels on the Porciuncula River.” Little did they know, their humble pueblo would eventually turn out to become one of the largest and most influential metropolitan cities in the world. As they say, 'the rest is history'.
I first became aware of my connection to LA settlers from my cousin Felix Medina. He was an original member of Los Pobladores 200, an organization of descendants of the founding families of Los Angeles which began in 1981, 200 years after the city was born. He presented family members with certificates and genealogy charts detailing our lineages, but at 19 years of age I hardly had an interest in such things. I credit my wife with eventually getting me hooked after she read an article in the LA Times in the summer of 2004 about the Pobladores' annual 'Walk to LA', which was to occur the coming weekend. I read it also and realized this was the same group "Uncle" Felix used to be with. Every year LP200 honors their ancestors by retracing the same path that completed their journey on Sept. 4, 1781, from Mission San Gabiel to the LA plaza, which represents the birthplace of Los Angeles. I agreed it would be fun and I planned to take my son Anthony. Terri was pregnant with our daughter Alex and would have to meet us at the plaza for the ceremony and festivities.
That week I read everything I could find on the original pobladores. I discovered I was a descendant to someone by the name of Luis Quintero and that census information listed him as 'Negro'. I found information about Spain having also brought African slaves to the New World, and at one point there were more slaves south of what would eventually become the US/Mexican border. Another surprise was finding out that Quintero was also a sastre (tailor) like Felix. Quintero was the second oldest, 55, to be recruited for the journey. One thing I learned that stood out about the pobladores was that they represented the common people. They were not wealthy or of high esteem within society. They were a racially mixed group - half had African blood in them. They were descendants themselves of the racially mixed people that began to populate early Latin America as the mixing of races was common practice for European Spaniards, in contrast to Anglo Americans who'd come to force the native peoples they encountered onto reservations. It's interesting that the people of the early pueblo reflect the racial and cultural diversities that make Los Angeles what it is today.
Los Pobladores 200
The family movin' on...
It was a pleasure meeting distant cousins during my first experience with the group at the annual Walk to LA in 2004. We had arrived early in the morning at the mission for registration, and the first thing I noticed was that those who are actual descendants wear red sashes to identify themselves with. Some LP200 members wear festive costumes at public events to represent those founding fathers, farmers, of a time over two centuries ago. After the kick-off announcements had finished the walk began. The nine-mile trek takes about three hours to complete. Many of the older members don't actually walk the entire trip and are picked up to be taken to the end to greet arriving walkers. Finally, the participants cross the street at Union Station as Pobladores descendants lead the way to the plaza to the sounds of cheers and festive music.
The 2005 walk was a little different. Apparently, the crowd left San Gabriel a bit late and less than a mile from the end a few of us were walking as a group, including our president Paul Guzman, when his nephew pulled up in a van saying, "The mayor's waiting for you guys - get in!" That year marked the first time a Los Angeles mayor walked with everyone and there must have been a tight schedule to keep. The plaza ceremony began without us! But much fun was had as the year before. I wanted to be more festive that year and wore a Franciscan priest's robe that my cousin Felix had actually made. Later after the ceremony, Anthony and I managed to get a picture with Mayor Villaraigosa.
It's always fun when someone new comes along. I recently met someone at the 75th anniversary of Olvera Street, for which the Pobladores marched in a short parade. She found out about her genealogy while researching online and discovered LP200. The experiences I've had so far with the group at our different events have truly been a blast. At last year's annual Mexican Independence Day celebration at Pio Pico State Historical Park in Whittier we got to be interviewed for a CBS2 News segment on California: a special series called California Dreams. Newsman Josh Rubenstein did a fine job of putting together the piece which has aired several times. Every once in a while someone tells me they saw me on TV. I'm hoping my 15 minutes of fame does not end too soon. I was eventually asked to be parliamentarian for the group, which I gladly accepted, however, that was a briefly held position that I had to give up to take on the secretary and newsletter editor positions that became open in early 2006. What a great way to kick off the start of our 25th anniversary year!
Something special that Felix can say he experienced as a Pobladores member was to meet King Don Juan Carlos I and Queen Dona Sofia of Spain when they visited LA in 1987 for the dedication of the statue of King Carlos III at the plaza. Also, the year before LP200 was founded, Felix was among twelve descendants to be interviewed for a special televised film to be sent to Spain at the request of the King who was interested in learning about Los Angeles history for which one of his ancestors, King Carlos III, was responsible for directing the founding.
In early 2006, LP200 participated in the annual Swallows Day parade in San Juan Capistrano. The weather was great, and it was nice to be a part of the event celebrating with the happy locals who were full of excitement cheering on all involved. It was funny listening to non-Spanish speaking parade announcers along the route try to pronounce Los Pobladores.
