Recognizing the Financial Contribution of New Mexicans to the U.S. War of Independence
Excerpt from my Introduction to the book ‘The Santa Fe Presidio Soldiers: Their Contribution to the American Revolution’ by Henrietta Martinez Christmas (2006)—
When Carlos III, King of Spain, issued his decree of June 21, 1779, he threw down the proverbial gauntlet. Openly declaring as his enemy the King of Great Britain and all British subjects, Carlos III ordered the withdrawal of his ambassadors from London and informed his subjects of his will to cease all commerce with England. He authorized all of his vassals “to seek amends by way of reprisals and to commence hostilities, on land and by sea, against the subjects, ships and estates of His British Majesty, treating them as my true enemies and as their own.”
This decisive declaration of war set the course for the eventual support of the rebellious English colonies in the Americas by Spain and its American realms, which would tip the scale in favor of the freedom fighters in gaining the hard fought independence of the United States. The support came in the form of money collected as a one time, voluntary “donativo—donation” made by Spanish citizens capable of giving two pesos and by Indian citizens of the Spanish realms in the Americas who gave one pesos.
During the course of the past two decades, various efforts were conducted by members of the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) and the National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution (SAR) to formally document the names of individuals of the Spanish Americas who gave funds to support the war against Great Britain during the time that the patriots of the United States of America fought for their independence against the British crown. These efforts, supported by volunteer efforts of several people of Colorado and New Mexico, resulted in the official recognition of numerous citizens of the Spanish Americas as patriots of the revolution of the United States of America. The volunteer efforts of several people of Colorado and New Mexico helped to identify and verify the names those citizens of New Mexico who gave funds to the cause.
Individuals such as Donna Santistevan, Harriet McCallum, Dr. Granville Hough, N.C. Hough, and Charles Martínez y Vigil worked diligently to document the names of New Mexican soldiers and civil officials who contributed money for Spain’s war against Great Britain. Virginia Sanchez and Henrietta Martinez Christmas have also made valuable contributions to raising the awareness about the New Mexican Spanish patriots through their articles published in various genealogical journals and online. Henrietta’s genealogical compilations of the immediate descendants of the soldiers of the Santa Fe Presidio recognized by the DAR and SAR, and found in her book, ‘The Santa Fe Presidio Soldiers’ (New Mexico Genealogical Society, 2006), serves as an essential reference for any person interested in submitting an application for membership into the DAR or SAR.
One of the main challenges in identifying which citizens of New Mexico gave money or goods towards the donativo is the fact that the lists of names and amount they gave have yet to be located in any archives in New Mexico, Mexico, Cuba, or Spain. In March 1784, it was officially acknowledge that a total of 3,677 pesos were collected from the citizens of New Mexico, consisting of 3,533 pesos and 3 reales in cash and 133 pesos and 5 reales in the form of grain, including contributions by Pueblo Indians. Of this total, 247 pesos were collected from the soldiers of the Santa Fe Presidio.
In the 1990s I had the opportunity to correspond with Donna Santiestevan of Colorado. She served on the National DAR Spanish Task Force and her research, with the assistance of translator Michael David Gray, resulted in the acceptance by the DAR of the twelve “alcaldes mayors—chief magistrates” of New Mexico Subsequently, Donna submitted her documented lineage as a descendant of Alcalde Mayor Antonio José Ortiz and was inducted into the DAR as the first women descendant of the New Mexican patriot of the Revolution of the United States of America.
Harriet McCallum, the Stephen Watts Kearny Chapter Regent of the DAR, picked up the torch in researching New Mexican patriots. In 2001, she sifted through various archival records to uncover a series of documents related to the participation of Spanish soldiers in the donativo process. I volunteered my time in translating the extracted documents that helped to determine the soldiers who served at the Santa Fe Presidio during the period of April 3, 1782 and November 18, 1782, including several key muster rolls. Harriet’s findings, which were accepted by the DAR in 2001, are presented in her book, ‘New Mexico’s Contributions to the American Revolutionary Cause’(2005).
Based on the acceptance by the DAR of Harriet’s findings, Eva Torres Aschenbrener stepped forward as a descendant of Santa Fe Presidio soldier Juan Luis de Herrera with the intent of proving her lineage for acceptance into the DAR. It was my privilege to compile many of the documents that confirmed Eva’s lineage. With the guidance of Harriet, Eva’s application was accepted and she was inducted into the DAR in March 2002 as the first female descendant of a New Mexico patriot soldier of the Santa Fe Presidio. Others have since followed.
Dr. Granville W. Hough, a member of the Sons of the American Revolution, took an interest in documenting the names of Spanish soldiers that served during the period of 1779 through 1783. Compiling lists of soldiers from archival documents and well-documented published sources, Dr. Hough and his daughter, N.C. Hough, produced names of soldiers from the various presidios of the northern frontier of the Spanish Americas. In addition, they produced the rationale for the SAR’s acceptance of Spanish soldiers who served in the Spanish army from 1779 through 1783. This rationale resulted in the acceptance of two descendants of California soldiers into the SAR in 1998.
The Hough’s then moved on to compile list of Spanish soldiers from Arizona and Northern Sonora, and then New Mexico, which included New Mexico’s two presidios, one in Santa Fe and one in El Paso. Dr. Hough enlisted the assistance of Charles Martínez y Vigil of New Mexico in documenting and compiling and the names of soldiers of the Santa Fe Presidio serving in the years 1779 through 1783, which also included information about the enlistment of these soldiers, a summary of their services record, as well as names of their wives and children if married. On September 25, 1999, I attended Charles’s induction ceremony held on the grounds of the Palace of the Governor’s, the site of the former Presidio de Santa Fe. Charles became the first male descendant of a New Mexican soldier to become a member of the Sons of the American Revolution.
Today, The DAR recognizes 136 soldiers of the Santa Fe Presidio (http://www.nmgs.org/artPatrDAR.htm) and the SAR recognizes 173 soldiers of the Santa Fe Presidio and one Franciscan priest as patriots of the U.S. war of independence (http://www.southcoastsar.org/SantaFe.htm). The DAR and the SAR are actively encouraging application of membership by descendant of the recognized New Mexico Patriots.
Virginia Sanchez and Henrietta Martinez Christmas have enthusiastically promoted the awareness of the New Mexico Patriots of the Revolution of the United States. Both have written articles and conducted presentations on the subject, and have made valuable contributions to this field of study.
Henrietta’s compilation of the immediate descendants of the New Mexican Patriot soldiers of the Santa Fe Presidio in her book, ‘The Santa Fe Presidio Soldiers,’ is a valuable resource for those who are descended of any one of the New Mexico Patriot soldiers. The well-researched genealogies of her book serve as an indispensable guide for any person interested in locating and collecting copies of original records necessary for completing an application for membership in the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution or the National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution.
The book, ‘The Santa Fe Presidio Soldiers: Their Contribution o the American Revolution’ by Henrietta Martinez Christmas can be ordered through the New Mexico Genealogical Society, www.nmgs.org.
When Carlos III, King of Spain, issued his decree of June 21, 1779, he threw down the proverbial gauntlet. Openly declaring as his enemy the King of Great Britain and all British subjects, Carlos III ordered the withdrawal of his ambassadors from London and informed his subjects of his will to cease all commerce with England. He authorized all of his vassals “to seek amends by way of reprisals and to commence hostilities, on land and by sea, against the subjects, ships and estates of His British Majesty, treating them as my true enemies and as their own.”
This decisive declaration of war set the course for the eventual support of the rebellious English colonies in the Americas by Spain and its American realms, which would tip the scale in favor of the freedom fighters in gaining the hard fought independence of the United States. The support came in the form of money collected as a one time, voluntary “donativo—donation” made by Spanish citizens capable of giving two pesos and by Indian citizens of the Spanish realms in the Americas who gave one pesos.
During the course of the past two decades, various efforts were conducted by members of the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) and the National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution (SAR) to formally document the names of individuals of the Spanish Americas who gave funds to support the war against Great Britain during the time that the patriots of the United States of America fought for their independence against the British crown. These efforts, supported by volunteer efforts of several people of Colorado and New Mexico, resulted in the official recognition of numerous citizens of the Spanish Americas as patriots of the revolution of the United States of America. The volunteer efforts of several people of Colorado and New Mexico helped to identify and verify the names those citizens of New Mexico who gave funds to the cause.
Individuals such as Donna Santistevan, Harriet McCallum, Dr. Granville Hough, N.C. Hough, and Charles Martínez y Vigil worked diligently to document the names of New Mexican soldiers and civil officials who contributed money for Spain’s war against Great Britain. Virginia Sanchez and Henrietta Martinez Christmas have also made valuable contributions to raising the awareness about the New Mexican Spanish patriots through their articles published in various genealogical journals and online. Henrietta’s genealogical compilations of the immediate descendants of the soldiers of the Santa Fe Presidio recognized by the DAR and SAR, and found in her book, ‘The Santa Fe Presidio Soldiers’ (New Mexico Genealogical Society, 2006), serves as an essential reference for any person interested in submitting an application for membership into the DAR or SAR.
One of the main challenges in identifying which citizens of New Mexico gave money or goods towards the donativo is the fact that the lists of names and amount they gave have yet to be located in any archives in New Mexico, Mexico, Cuba, or Spain. In March 1784, it was officially acknowledge that a total of 3,677 pesos were collected from the citizens of New Mexico, consisting of 3,533 pesos and 3 reales in cash and 133 pesos and 5 reales in the form of grain, including contributions by Pueblo Indians. Of this total, 247 pesos were collected from the soldiers of the Santa Fe Presidio.
In the 1990s I had the opportunity to correspond with Donna Santiestevan of Colorado. She served on the National DAR Spanish Task Force and her research, with the assistance of translator Michael David Gray, resulted in the acceptance by the DAR of the twelve “alcaldes mayors—chief magistrates” of New Mexico Subsequently, Donna submitted her documented lineage as a descendant of Alcalde Mayor Antonio José Ortiz and was inducted into the DAR as the first women descendant of the New Mexican patriot of the Revolution of the United States of America.
Harriet McCallum, the Stephen Watts Kearny Chapter Regent of the DAR, picked up the torch in researching New Mexican patriots. In 2001, she sifted through various archival records to uncover a series of documents related to the participation of Spanish soldiers in the donativo process. I volunteered my time in translating the extracted documents that helped to determine the soldiers who served at the Santa Fe Presidio during the period of April 3, 1782 and November 18, 1782, including several key muster rolls. Harriet’s findings, which were accepted by the DAR in 2001, are presented in her book, ‘New Mexico’s Contributions to the American Revolutionary Cause’(2005).
Based on the acceptance by the DAR of Harriet’s findings, Eva Torres Aschenbrener stepped forward as a descendant of Santa Fe Presidio soldier Juan Luis de Herrera with the intent of proving her lineage for acceptance into the DAR. It was my privilege to compile many of the documents that confirmed Eva’s lineage. With the guidance of Harriet, Eva’s application was accepted and she was inducted into the DAR in March 2002 as the first female descendant of a New Mexico patriot soldier of the Santa Fe Presidio. Others have since followed.
Dr. Granville W. Hough, a member of the Sons of the American Revolution, took an interest in documenting the names of Spanish soldiers that served during the period of 1779 through 1783. Compiling lists of soldiers from archival documents and well-documented published sources, Dr. Hough and his daughter, N.C. Hough, produced names of soldiers from the various presidios of the northern frontier of the Spanish Americas. In addition, they produced the rationale for the SAR’s acceptance of Spanish soldiers who served in the Spanish army from 1779 through 1783. This rationale resulted in the acceptance of two descendants of California soldiers into the SAR in 1998.
The Hough’s then moved on to compile list of Spanish soldiers from Arizona and Northern Sonora, and then New Mexico, which included New Mexico’s two presidios, one in Santa Fe and one in El Paso. Dr. Hough enlisted the assistance of Charles Martínez y Vigil of New Mexico in documenting and compiling and the names of soldiers of the Santa Fe Presidio serving in the years 1779 through 1783, which also included information about the enlistment of these soldiers, a summary of their services record, as well as names of their wives and children if married. On September 25, 1999, I attended Charles’s induction ceremony held on the grounds of the Palace of the Governor’s, the site of the former Presidio de Santa Fe. Charles became the first male descendant of a New Mexican soldier to become a member of the Sons of the American Revolution.
Today, The DAR recognizes 136 soldiers of the Santa Fe Presidio (http://www.nmgs.org/artPatrDAR.htm) and the SAR recognizes 173 soldiers of the Santa Fe Presidio and one Franciscan priest as patriots of the U.S. war of independence (http://www.southcoastsar.org/SantaFe.htm). The DAR and the SAR are actively encouraging application of membership by descendant of the recognized New Mexico Patriots.
Virginia Sanchez and Henrietta Martinez Christmas have enthusiastically promoted the awareness of the New Mexico Patriots of the Revolution of the United States. Both have written articles and conducted presentations on the subject, and have made valuable contributions to this field of study.
Henrietta’s compilation of the immediate descendants of the New Mexican Patriot soldiers of the Santa Fe Presidio in her book, ‘The Santa Fe Presidio Soldiers,’ is a valuable resource for those who are descended of any one of the New Mexico Patriot soldiers. The well-researched genealogies of her book serve as an indispensable guide for any person interested in locating and collecting copies of original records necessary for completing an application for membership in the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution or the National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution.
The book, ‘The Santa Fe Presidio Soldiers: Their Contribution o the American Revolution’ by Henrietta Martinez Christmas can be ordered through the New Mexico Genealogical Society, www.nmgs.org.
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