I stole my mom from her house a few weeks ago. I took her with me on a family history research journey into southern California. Bear with me. The next few entries will be about discoveries.

One of the stops on my itinerary was the Holy Cross Cemetery and Mausoleum in San Diego. This is where Leonardo’s half-sister, Maria Ramirez de Barbachano is buried.

As a recap, they shared the same mother, Mariana Bustamante. She is my hero. From the 3 children I have found, she has hundreds of grandchildren who share her DNA. Maria Ramirez was her child from a second marriage to Juan Ramirez. She married Manuel Barbachano.

After working at the San Pedro Customs House for many years, they moved to San Diego. I’ve been wanting to go and connect with this elusive aunt for years.

When I drove into Holy Cross Cemetery, I could see that many had been filling the lawns and newer mausoleums on the grounds. Families were gathered around tombstones, remembering their loved ones. We were there on a weekday and I was surprised they were busy. But sometimes needing to remember is important at that moment.  Right then and there.

We drove up to the main building. I made a huge assumption. After reading all I had about the Barbachanos, I figured they would be right up in the “big place.”

Main Chapel. Holy Cross Cemetery, San Diego, CA

I could say that perfect timing put us there on a weekday when the office was open. But I’d by lying. My mom and I were overwhelmed by the number of people laid to rest here. The building space is VERY well utilized. I caved and went to a nice maintenance man for assistance.

He took me to the office and kindly waited for the map. Then he took us just around a few corners.

Main Chapel, after having walked in the front doors.

When we walked in the front door, we entered this main chapel area. Do you see the lovely statue of the Virgin Mary on the right? That is the entrance to the small Immaculata Chapel.

Immaculata Chapel

We never would have found their vaults but for the map. However, I should have known that they were going to be right up front. Once we went into the chapel, we saw there were two sides. The Barbachanos were on the right side. The bottom two burial vaults were theirs.

Manuel P. Barbachano

The top vault belongs to Manuel and Maria’s son, Manuel P. Barbachano. Feb 1891 – Feb 1954.

Manuel and Maria Barbachano

Below their son, were Manuel A. Barbachano, Sept 1858 – Feb 1948, and his wife, Maria Ramirez de Barbachano, Aug 1870 – Nov 1957.

It was a wonderful experience to say hello and goodbye to persons that I had never met but have thought of many times. After a few quiet moments thinking about Maria’s relationship with my great-grandfather, their mom, their home experiences growing up, etc., my mom noticed something very interesting.

Visitors

Both had recently had visitors. There were two red carnations each flower vase. It was simple. It was touching.

I think I was the first to “rediscover” where my great-grandfather Leonardo was buried over 20 years ago. At that time I thought, “well, if no one comes to see you in 80 years, cremation is the way to go.” But then I went to this gravesite. Even after 60 years, there is someone who still gets comfort from visiting their loved ones. Sharing their love for those they miss. Paying their respects.

This blog post has to be corrected. Thanks to Facebook and updated Ancestry records, the truth is in a more recent post! 🙂

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I have been planning a “Family History” trip to California for a while. After a few hiccups, I am finally going in less than two weeks. The word “excitement” cannot even begin to describe me right now. All of my family is finding me increasingly annoying.

I will be leaving the hubby and son behind to guard the homestead. I will fly into Arizona, steal my mom away and then be off to southern California.

I’m not always organized, but with this kind of thing, I’ve needed to be. I’m making lunch dates, sending emails, taking calls and being very grateful for the wonderful people in my life making this adventure possible.

My mom had asked me to do one thing for her. It is to take an old interview and convert it from video tape to a DVD. We went to Mexicali in 1991 to interview her aunt, Tia Cuca (Maria de Refugio Palacios de Escalante). She wants to share it with the aunts’ children and grandchildren, if they are interested.

[Side Note: One of my great shames as a woman of Mexican-American descent is that I cannot speak Spanish. So during this interview I had absolutely no idea what was going on. At all. I trusted those around me to provide me with the “A-ha Moments” they heard. Well, we never really talked about it again.]

My handy husband got the interview converted. I watched it, pretending like I could understand it. And then I heard a few names that I did recognize. I stopped ironing and rewound a few seconds. I had to do it several times to get it.

23 years later, my “A-ha moment” came! Rufina and Lupe were sisters to Cuca’s uncle by marriage, Jose Maria Valenzuela. Shut the front door! I had known that my great-grandmother Rufina had a sister named Lupe. My paper trail helped me figure that out. Then after an interview with Tia Cuca’s son, he mentioned that his mom was related to Lupe via marriage somehow.

The ironing had to stop. I took over the computer that lovely Sunday afternoon to see if Ancestry could help me.

And yes. Yes, they could! Jose Maria Valenzuela married Armida Palacios, Tia Cuca’s aunt. They were from Santana, Sonora. They lived in Mexicali for years. Their children would have been my grandfather’s first cousins. AND there was even a picture on his manifest! Rockin’ the moustache.

Jose Maria Valenzuela’s travel manifest, 1927.

It took me 23 years to sit and watch this video. And about 23 minutes to find him.

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In sending out my emails, I’ve asked family for assistance to get us into Mexicali to the cemetery where Tia Cuca is buried. Other family is supposed to be buried there and I thought we might do some hunting. Well, back in my photo archives I found a picture of the cemetery.

Panteon Municipal No. 2, Mexicali, Baja California

My lack of Spanish skills had me internet searching for a “cementario” rather than “panteon.” Again, I had procrastinated in not looking at this picture, which I had taken to help me remember.

[Side Note: When you do an internet search with the correct words, you will probably find what you are looking for.]

There is a searchable site for this cemetery. It includes grave locations and a map!! The Escalante’s I’m searching for are NOT there. But that is good to know before I get there to save me some time. But guess what? My “new-to-me” great-uncle Jose Maria Valenzuela and his lovely wife are there.

When we get there, I’ll be introducing myself. “Hello there. I’m Edwina. I’m your great-niece. I’d have come sooner, but I have a small procrastination problem.”

Jose Maria Escalante – Courtesy L. Escalante

Leonardo and Rufina’s first child was Jose Maria Escalante. One of the reasons it has taken me so long to write about Jose is that he has been missing all of my life. No one knew where he went, or where his life led.

Jose Maria Escalante was born March 19,1888, in San Pedro Palominas, Sonora, Mexico. He moved with the family to Ventura County at the end of the 19th century. He wasn’t one to do what his father did. That job was left to his younger brother, Leonardo Jr. He was not listed as living at home in the 1910 US Census when he would have been 22 years old.

Jose Escalante – WWI Draft Card.

He was near his family again when World War I broke out. According to his Draft Card he was living in Gloryetta, CA in 1917.  With his wife and child.

When Jose reappears (on paper) it is in 1918. He is on his way to Bisbee, Arizona. The purpose of his visit is to see his cousin, Frank Blackburn. Now this stumped me for quite a while. The Blackburn’s are considered a pioneer family in Bisbee. I have been in contact with a family member who is working on their tree. Judge Blackburn married one Margarita Escalante in 1888. She is later referred to as Margaret Blackburn. Frank was her son. Margarita’s father is Ramon Escalante. No one seems to be investigating Ramon’s family. I can find no relation between Ramon and Leonardo Sr, except for Jose’s say-so on this form.

Jose visiting Frank Blackburn in Bisbee, 1918.

On this travel manifest, it also says that Jose is single. No wife. No child. Had they died from the Spanish Influenza epidemic? He also made one pilgrimage across the border in 1920. This was around the time that Rufina went to see her daughter Maria and her children. My guess is that the whole family made a trip to see the expanding family. And luckily, our government took a picture.

Jose traveling through, 1920.

Jose became a traveling salesman. He seemed to disappear from Imperial Valley. Somewhere along the way he met a woman, 20 years his junior, named Ester Arias. They married.

Ester was born to Juan Arias and Tiburcio Dolores Salas on May 26, 1907 in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Juan was a succesful tailor in town. Ester remembered having very fine clothes. Her mother died when she was young, before 1920. She was now the oldest female in the home with three younger sisters. After the death of her father, Ester moved back to where her Arias family was from, El Paso County, Texas. Her family was Texan from the 1790s, calling San Elizario home.

She met Jose and they married. They had their first child in 1927. Her name was Josephina Escalante. Sadly, the baby did not thrive and died within the week.

Josephina’s Birth Certificate, 1927.

Josephina’s Death Certificate, 1927.

After that tragedy, the couple was blessed with two more children.  John Joseph Escalante, born 3 Jan 1930, in Bisbee, Arizona. Their second son was Harry Daniel Escalante, born 30 Jan 1932, in El Paso, Texas.

Harry Daniel Escalante’s Birth Certificate.

Ester was a good secret keeper. Her daughter-in-law recalls that Ester never discussed her years with Jose. One time she did let slip that he was a salesman that was on the road often while she was left with the two children.

In 1932, Jose appeared in Calexico. He was traveling across the border to see his brother, Ruben. He was thinking of relocating to the area.  (The form below was how I was able to find his living family with the name of his wife Ester and that they had come from El Paso.)

Jose crossing the border, August, 1932.

The second half of his manifest.

He used Victoria Romo de Romo as a witness to living in the country. He also referred to his beloved aunt, Guadalupe Valenzuela de Garcia, Rufina’s sister. An odd thing was that on his travel manifest he stated that he was born in 1898, 10 years after his real birth.

And then something happens. Maybe Ester learned that she was not his first wife. Maybe she learned he was 10 years older than she thought. Maybe it was meeting his extended family that did it. We will probably never know.

Whatever the reason, it affected their relationship. I found Ester. Living in Long Beach. And remarried. Something occurred between the time they visited Calexico to 1933, when Ester decided to leave Jose and never look back.

Ester (27), John (4), and Harry (2). – 1934

Ester remarried Manuel Sais. They had a son together, Manuel Jr., born in 1938.

Ester Arias Sais, Pasadena, 1942-45.

Ester volunteered during the war. Her daughter-in-law said that Manuel was a very good step-father. The boys loved him. She also noted that her husband John had kept an eye out for the father he never knew. He had a cigar box with Jose Escalante printed on it.

Recently, I came across this “older man” draft card for WWII. Tio Jose was in Brawley, California, in 1942. He worked at a restaurant called Quatro Luces. He also seemed to live at the business. He still used his Tia Lupe as a reference.

Jose Escalante, Brawley, 1942.

The second half of his WWII Draft Card.

The second half of his card was interesting simply because we can see he was short, dark complected, slim with grey hair. And alone.

Brothers: Manuel Sais, Jr, Harry Escalante, and John Escalante, 1986.

Whatever reasons that Jose was set apart from his family may never be known. He was there, but on the fringes in Brawley. He missed out on seeing his boys grow up from apparent choices he had made that his wife no longer wanted to deal with as well.

So much of my research could not be done without the kindness of others. I found John’s widow, Jose’s daughter-in-law. She and her family have been so helpful in my getting to know Jose, even though Ester kept her secrets. All of these photos came from her and I am grateful. She didn’t think Ester would like me knowing so much about her life. That made me giggle. Okay, it was more of a “Muahahaha.”

Ester did mention one last thing about Jose. She said he died a blind man. She never said where or when he died. But she did know that much. Had she been contacted upon his death? Receive a will? A last letter of regret? One last thing to find to get the chapter closed….

Ana Romo, 1930s.

I could have written this a while ago, but since 2010, I’ve had a few things to chase down.

In April of that year, we went to Disneyland. Not too far down the road is the Santa Ana Cemetery where a great deal of the family is interred. On this trip, we were finally able to pay our respects to the Romo family. Here at Tia Ana’s headstone was an interesting inscription.

Ana Escalante de Romo’s Gravesite, Santa Ana Cemetery, CA

Loosely translated, it says “In memory of her daughter and her grandchildren.” In 2010, it made me think that Mercedes was still alive at Ana’s death. Unfortunately, she wasn’t.

Mercedes died in 1924. I found Manuel Romo had died in 1927. He died in Banning, California. He was also a widower. I can find no record of his wife’s name, as his brother David was the one to claim the body in Banning. In 1930, Rodolfo, David Sr., and Ana were in Tijuana. My guess is that Rodolfo was looking to work. (Maybe from his Barbachano cousins.) But by Christmas Day, 1930, he died in Orange County. All of these siblings died of complications from Tuberculosis.

Ana’s husband of over 50 years, David Romo Sr., died in 1938. He died of coronary occlusion. Her last living child, David Jr., died 3 years later of Tuberculosis.

So then who is left to be her “daughter?” This would be Carmela Romo, her ex-daughter-in-law. You read “ex” right. But that is for another post. Carmela married David when she was so very young. She had been married to him for almost 30 years. Who else would she call “mother?” But Carmela remarried and Ana needed a place to go. So Ana looked up her half-sister, Maria Lucia Ramirez de Barbachano, in San Diego.

Their mother, Mariana Bustamante, remarried Juan Ramirez. They had a child together in 1870 named Maria Lucia Ramirez. Juan must have been the father-figure to Ana and Leonardo. Maria married Manuel A. Barbachano. He had been in charge of the San Pedro Customs House in Sonora, but moved to Tijuana Customs later. They resided in San Diego. Maria’s children were quite successful. One of her sons, Manuel Jr., started the first electric and phone company in Tijuana.  He also purchased, and made famous, the Rosarito Beach Hotel.

As Elvira Barbachano was witness to Mercedes Romo’s 1920 wedding, the families were obviously in touch with each other. Because Leonardo Escalante died in 1915, his children never made a connection with Maria’s family.

I found several travel manifests. She visited Rosarito in the 1930s and 40s. This is where I have found a picture of her. I do like how the Border Patrolman said she was “very deaf.”

Ana’s Travel Manifest.

I believe all of the nieces or nephews that had seen her at the house on Canterbury Street in San Diego all those years ago have since passed away. I would love to have heard any stories about her.  I think that she stayed with her younger sister the entire time. Until her death.

Ana’s Obituary

On May 4, 1948, Ana Escalante de Romo died at her sister’s home in San Diego, CA. “The San Diego Union” inaccurately reported that she shared Maria’s father, Juan Ramirez. What made the biggest impact on me was the following sentence. “Mrs. Romo was the mother of  17 sons and daughters, all deceased.” This particular sadness in her life must have been overwhelming.

She was sent back to Santa Ana to be buried near her family. There is one last mystery that involves her Death Certificate.

Ana’s Death Certificate with real age.

Correction to Ana’s Death Certificate.

In the original Death Certificate, her date of birth is listed as May 2, 1862. But 21 days later, Maria and her son, Ruben, file a revised Death Certificate claiming that Ana was born in 1870. Now, Maria was born August 27, 1870. I really do admire Mariana Bustamante but there is no way she could have two babies, from 2 daddies, 3 months apart. I have no idea what the reason for this was. None.

Ana’s life was full. From losing her own father at a young age, to a long marriage with David in their adopted country, a strong relationship with her brother’s family, and then with her sister’s. And all of the baby heartache in between. Life, location, time and tragedy caused these families to drift apart.

However, all was not lost for Ana. Her legacy lives on in the descendants of one child, David Romo Jr.

Thanks to new information discovered in the Calexico Chronicle, I am able to update and close Lupe’s story.

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The eighth sibling in the Escalante family was Guadalupe (Lupe) Escalante. She was born in 1909 in Santa Paula, CA. She was born during the last great year of the Escalante’s living in Ventura County. She was the baby for 5 years, until her brother Fernando was born. Her eldest brother had already moved out of the house. Her dad died when she was 6, then she was her mom’s responsibility. The last three kids in the house were Alberto, Lupe and Fernando.

Guadalupe Escalante – on a travel manifest to see her sister in Mexicali.

In 1923, Rufina died. Alberto was 16, Lupe was 14, and Fernando was 9. The children went to live with various older siblings. From what I can gather, they moved in with Tia Panchita and Tio Alejandro. This was a key fact. Oscar had been born. Tia Panchita was busy mothering her own child. The reason this was important is that, while I’m sure the siblings were cared for, they no longer had parents to dote on them, and love them more individually. Alberto started working on his boxing career. But Lupe was a little less supervised.

Not much is known about her either. My grandfather never talked about her much. I had asked my mom’s cousin about her. He said that she had died at an early age, away from Imperial County and that the family had to go and get her body to bring back for burial. Something about “a man and a broken heart.”

It was difficult to find any information on a girl who was already a forgotten person in a big family. I was on the genealogybank.com website. I was doing my usual “go down the list of family members” routine, putting in everybody’s name when I got a hit on Lupe. Really?? Oh wait! Quite a few hits on Lupe. And her brother, my grandfather.

The first articles I had found were from the Spanish Los Angeles newspaper “Heraldo de Mexico.” For convenience of the reader, I am attaching somewhat equivalent articles from the “Imperial Valley Press.” (I will give a shout out here to the kind staff of the Imperial County Campus of San Diego State University. They used their microfilm machine to dig these up for me).

The cast of characters are as follows: Guadalupe Escalante, a 17-year-old girl who had been drugged, and raped. Antonio Escalante, her 19-year-old brother. You may ask, “But wait! Your grandfather’s name is Alberto.” My grandfather’s nickname was Tony. His boxing name was Tony “The Mexicali Kid” Escalante. The papers assumed that his full name was Anthony. Octaviano Moran – a married man from Mexicali. He was fascinated by Lupe. He took her to dances and promised to marry her after he left his pregnant wife.

Lupe ended up pregnant. Eventually, Tia Panchita found out about it and had Tio Alejandro file charges with the police department. Antonio wasn’t about to wait for the proper channels to get the man extradited to the United States. Understand that those who live in Calexico/Mexicali might not have seen the big border line that others saw. They were pretty much one big town. Not two independent and sovereign nations.

Antonio proceeds to take a gun across the border and bring Octaviano back to Calexico police custody. The court proceedings begin. However, there is a glitch. Antonio kidnapped Octaviano out of one country and brought him to the United States. Without his consent. And this is where the troubles started.

IVP – July 1, 1927

IVP – July 8, 1927

IVP – July 9, 1927

IVP – July 13, 1927

IVP – July 15, 1927

The articles told us:  Antonio then had a warrant issued for his arrest by Mexico. There was an “application for release of the prisoner (Octaviano) on a habeas corpus writ.” Antonio was arrested and taken to a jail in Mexico. Mexican ambassador to the United States, Manuel Tellez, and Secretary of State Kellogg were going to be discussing this matter together.

In the end, Octaviano Moran was freed because he was brought into custody illegally. From what I could find, he never came back to the United States. While I have the original trial minutes before all of the “you captured him illegally” stuff came out, he was never brought back in to stand trial for the attack on Lupe. Antonio was released from the jail in Mexicali in November, 1927. This was never discussed at Thanksgiving get togethers.

Octaviano was married to a Clara Escalante de Moran (no relation that I can find). She had been pregnant at the time that her husband was romancing Guadalupe. The son she bore was Luis Octavio Moran.

Lupe Court Transcript

Guadalupe is still a mystery. The court documents say that she was pregnant, that Octaviano kept meeting with her at an apartment he kept in Calexico, and that he gave her pills (possibly to miscarry) but she never took them. What happened to the baby?

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Recently, I found digital access to the Calexico Chronicle. What I normally do is put in the names of every family member to see what pops up. I found this article by putting in the address of Tia Guadalupe Garica – 910 Third Street. It was very fortunate, because I never would have put in the name Lupe Holman.

Announcement of Lupe Holman’s passing. From the paper dated August 23, 1934.

I’m not exactly sure why the funeral was held out of Manuel Garcia’s house. She had siblings who could have hosted. Also, Mrs. Manuel Garcia was her aunt, Rufina’s sister. Oh well.

She is buried in the Mountain View Cemetery. However, she is no where to be “found.” I had been told that Hems Brothers Mortuary has control over the cemetery. I have asked them repeatedly via letter to help me find those family members without headstones. To no avail. But at least we know where she is now.

I have ordered her Death Certificate from California. As soon as I get that I will post it. I am so glad that we know she was back with the family. Her life was not an easy one. It seems like she was happy on her own in San Francisco. I truly hope so.

There are times where I think I have all the answers. I believe that after years of family hunting, I have found as much as I can – whether that be due to my brilliance (haha!) or because I’ve run out of leads and simply must accept what I know.

Kathleen, from the Orange County Cemetery District, was kind to provide me new information on the Romo Family. But with that new info, I had to find new information resources. And in there, I place every name from the tree that I know. Just to see what develops. Well, Boy Howdy! On a dime, it all changes.

Tia Maria. You saucy thing, you. I had thought your marriage was to Gabriel Morales was her first. But, no. (Insert crazy maniacal laughter here.)

Maria and Hipolito’s Marriage License, 1915.

In January 1915, Maria married Hipolito Sepulveda. It was about 5 months before her father died. He probably got to walk her down the aisle!! They got married in Santa Ana, CA. On September 11, 1917, they had their first child, Elena Sepulveda. This contradicts what the Border Patrol Officer had written on Maria’s travel manifest of “Helen.” (Elena Sepulveda was easier to find than Helen Morales, when Helen doesn’t exist). Believe me.

Hipolito’s Manifest, 1920.

Hipolito was an Electrician/Electrical Engineer, depending on the paperwork that is read. He was born in Mexico, DF. His parents were Joaquin Sepulveda and Maria de Jesus de la Portilla. He was handsome in his picture. The couple moved down to Mexicali.

Tia Maria, Elena, Leonardo and Maria Luisa (twins), April, 1920.

I was quite pleased to have found a picture of Tia Maria with her first three babies. This confirms my theory that the family went to see the new babies, Leonardo and Maria Luisa, in 1919. Possibly for their baptism? And that was about the time the family moves to Imperial County.

One of the major questions I had about Leonardo when he was older and living in Mexicali, was why would his last name go from Morales to Sepulveda. Maybe he had grown up in Gabriel’s household, but in the end, he went back to his legal name.

Elena’s Manifest. She lives with her father, Paul (hiPOLito) Sepulveda.

Close up picture of Elena.

So then I found the eldest. Elena Sepulveda Escalante (remember the father’s surname comes first in Mexican families, then the mother’s last name) was in Mexicali. She was living with her dad! I found this interesting. So many kids go and live with their moms. Was she a daddy’s girl? I’ll bet she was. The manifest says that she was accompanied by her sister, Maria Luisa. However, that was crossed out and there was another name there. Maybe Hipolito had more children with his second wife, Maria de Luz.

Hipolito lived along border towns for much of his career.  He traveled to New York. He moved to Nuevo Laredo.

I hope to find Elena and Leonardo’s other American cousins. On one of Hipolito’s manifests, it stated in a corner that he visited a woman named Elpidia Aguirre who lived in Wilington, CA, in 1947. Random? Nope. She was his half-sister. And she stayed in that house until she died in 1997. Then I searched Census Reports to find her kids. And kept searching until I found their kids. We’ll see if they respond to my request to chat.

This was fascinating. Maria was willing to divorce in the early 1920’s. Saucy! But why? Was it incompatibility? Social mobility? Was Gabriel devastatingly handsome? We may never know.

Charlie and Lupe’s Marriage License, 1928.

I’m also happy to report that one of many of Uncle Charlie’s mysteries has been uncovered. For me, his love of, and devotion to the Romo family has never ben doubted. After Rufina died, he moved back to Santa Ana, CA. In 1928, he lived at 828 2nd Street. He met the nice girl next door, Guadalupe Navarro. They got married! While I knew this, I now have dates! I have witnesses! David, Jr. and Carmela Romo. And we also learn that Tia Lupe had parents! Joaquin Navarro and Guadalupe Gurrola. They came from Suaqui Grande, Sonora, Mexico.

No living Escalante couins knows what happened to Tia Lupe. Her son never talked of her either. She had a brother who stayed in Orange County. Maybe someone there knows the answers. (I have letters out to the brother’s children as we speak).

After frantic searching and discoveries, I sent Kathleen a Thank You note.  She deserved it.

Mercedes’ head stone at the Santa Ana Cemetery.

Mercedes Ana Romo marries Frank Carrillo, 1920.

It is 11:45 pm here. I’m wide awake. I never have trouble sleeping. But I have my family on my mind.

Last week, I sent a request to the kind staff of the Santa Ana Cemetery. They had been good enough to send me all kinds of info on Leonardo when I requested it. Then it dawned on me that they might share info with me on the Romo family members that are buried there. Kathleen, the awesome secretary, hooked me up!

Now my brain was able to get off the hamster wheel it had been spinning on and was following up all sorts of new leads. Holy moly, Batman! I found so much stuff that I will need to rewrite or add some items to posts I’ve already written about Uncle Charlie and Tia Maria. But that’s a good thing. I always want to know the “rest of the story.”

Tonight I was thinking of Mercedes Ana Romo. She was one of Anna and David’s children. If Mercedes Romo was born in Oxnard in 1902, she knew my grandfather. They’d have been friends. It was probably more like a little girl with a baby doll. But where did she go?

Thanks to familysearch.org, I discovered that she married Frank Carrillo in 1920. They had a baby in 1921. She died in 1924 of tuberculosis. Her son Frank David Carrillo died in 1940. At 19.

Her wedding license also had an interesting fact. Elvira Barbadiero was a witness. This was probably Elvira Barbachano, Leonardo and Ana’s niece. The Romo’s and Barbachano’s were reconnecting in Orange County by 1920.

Much of my persistence is brought on by my need for “closure.” I find a comfort in knowing that for a brief moment in time she was thought of once again. Her short life was seen. Appreciated. And that was a sweet way to fall back to sleep.

The seventh child of Leonardo and Rufina was the second girl in the family, Francisca Escalante, also known as Panchita. While her “Delayed Birth Certificate” stated her birthday was May 4, 1904, her baptism certificate from the Santa Clara Church stated she was born in 1903.

Francisca’s Baptism 1903, Santa Clara Church, Oxnard, CA.

She was named after Rufina’s mother, Francisca Moreno de Valenzuela. Her godmother was Anna Romo, her godfather, Eduardo Gonzales. She lived in Ventura County for 7 years. Then the family started the move to Orange County. Not much was known about this time of her life. The tragedy of her father’s death in 1915, undoubtedly shook her. But as her elder sister got married and moved into Mexicali, the teenager probably started to be consoled with a social life.

Her family moved to Imperial County sometime after 1918. While they left behind one Romo family, they found comfort in two others. Dolores Romo de Orduño and Victoria Romo de Pesquiera were living in Calexico and Mexicali.  How directly related to these ladies they were is not certain. They could be nieces of their uncle David Romo, although here, Panchita called Dolores her cousin. The women were close to the Escalante’s during this pivotal time.

Frances Ruth Escalante’s Delayed Birth Certificate.

In May, 1919, the Escalante family was moving into brighter times. Two of the siblings were a part of a large baptismal party for Armando Marcelo Grisanti. She was 16 at this time. Here we know she was at the party with Alejandro Garcia, Jr. (her future husband).

mexicalibaptism

Alejandro Garcia’s Draft Card, June, 1917.

Alejandro Garcia was the eldest son of Alejandro Garcia Zamudio and Rosa Martinez Moreno. Now try to stick with me here. Alejandro Sr. had a brother named Manuel Garcia. Manuel was married to Rufina’s sister, Guadalupe. They were probably thrown together more than at that one baptismal party. His above draft card states that in 1917 he was working for the Mexican government as a customs agent in Mexicali.

According to her Delayed Birth Certificate, Panchita married Alejandro March, 17, 1922. She looked so very happy in her wedding photo.

Tia Panchita and Tio Alejandro’s wedding photo, March 17, 1922.

Her mother got to see this happy day before she died in 1923. In fact, Rufina probably also got to see Panchita’s first baby, Oscar Alejandro Garcia, who was born on January 14, 1923.  Her family life settled down a bit. Her father-in-law owned a grocery store and her husband worked there.

When Rufina died in 1923, things changed for the young couple. It appeared that Guadalupe began to live with this young couple. More than likely, the youngest brother, Fernando did as well. She became mother to her siblings as well as her own son.

Those who knew Tia Panchita when she was older shared these adjectives about her: strict, obsessively clean, status conscious, firm, controlling. The stories were never very light-hearted. After some digging into her childbearing years, I think I discovered why.

Oscar was her first child. Then came Elia Julieta Garcia on March 2, 1926. The little girls middle name came from Dolores Orduño’s daughter, Julieta, who had been named after her father, Julian. I’m sure all was quite well in the family, except for Guadalupe Escalante’s story in 1927, but that is a whole different entry. In 1930, Elia became ill with dysentery. Sadly, it killed her.

Elia’s Death Certificate, 1930.

I would imagine Tia Panchita’s obsession with cleanliness started after this. Soon, another baby came along. Ruben Adolfo Garcia was born on November 12, 1931.

Ruben Adolfo Garcia, Birth Certificate.

This child was named after her brother. All was going well. She did have one more immediate set back. A year later she gave birth to a stillborn girl.

Baby Girl Garcia – Stillborn.

I truly cannot image such heartache. However, it did continue.

Panchita idolized her sister, Maria. By this time, Maria’s family was in Mexico City. No doubt, Gabriel Morale’ star was still shining brightly as a lawyer. She would visit her sister often. I have no documentation on exactly when it happened, but at some point, during a visit to Maria’s home, Baby Ruben also got sick and died. Several of the Escalante brothers were dispatched to Mexico City to retrieve the child. What is odd about this is that there is no grave marker for him at the Mt. View Cemetery in Calexico. And because he died in Mexico, I can find no paperwork on what killed him or how old he was at his death.

Poor Oscar was the only child left to Panchita and Alejandro. He was smart. And as Maria had a son who was going to medical school, it became evident that Oscar was going to have to do the same thing. He became a doctor.

WWII came along in the late 1930s. And so did the draft.  While the world kept taking her babies away from her, the US call to war was thinking of taking her only remaining child into its service. She was not going to let that happen. Below is a travel manifest for Oscar in 1945.

Oscar’s travel manifest, 1945.

He was made to give up his United States citizenship so he would not have to fight in, and possibly die in, WWII. His mother was a force to be reckoned with and it appears that she won this battle of keeping her only child safe.

In 1940, Alejandro is a merchant in his own right, having a grocery shop. Yet, something took them to Mexicali, probably by 1950. Uncle Charlie lived with them for a while. They acted as parents at Carlitos’ wedding. They “took in” many nieces and nephews that needed care at one time or another.

They had adopted a girl that they named Elia. I had met her once in Port Hueneme when they visited my grandfather. After they passed away, we lost contact with her. No remaining cousins know where she is. Oscar died in the mid-1980s (?). Panchita and Alejandro were buried in Mexicali’s Cementerio Dos. Ruben and Charlie were also buried there.

I hope to find her gravesite this November. I’d like to put more of an official close on a life that was full of maternal pain but full of steadfast resilience for her family.  My grandfather admired her. He named his daughters after her and her daughter. As you can see, she anglicized her name as well. She became Frances Ruth Escalante Garcia. And even though she was just “child number seven,” she greatly influenced the Escalante family as its matriarch.

Additional Pictures:

Alejandro Garcia and Rosa Martinez wedding photo (Tio Manuel Garcia in back).

Elia’s gravesite – Mt. View Cemetery, not far from her grandmother, Rufina.

Tia Panchita with unknown baby. (Ruben? A niece or nephew?)

Tio Alejandro – probably before he was married.

Oscar Garcia (1960s?). At family party.

Maria Escalante de Morales.

The third Escalante child was Maria Escalante. Maria was supposedly a twin. For the longest time I thought Maria was twins with Lupe, but that proved not to be the case. On the 1900 US Census, it stated that one of Rufina’s children had died already, maybe it was Maria’s twin that passed.

Be that as it may, Maria was the only girl in the family until 1903 when Panchita was born. She was the only girl in the Romo family too, now that I think about it. She followed her family as her siblings had done. Between the time her dad died in 1915 through 1917, she got married. Her husband was Gabriel Morales. Gabriel was born in Guadalajara, Jalisco. He was an attorney.

The two settled into domestic life and started having children. According to her Travel Manifest, dated 1928, her children were born: Helen (1917), Leonardo and Mary Luisa (1919), Arcelia (1924), and Gabriel (1926). She and her husband live in many different places, including Los Angeles, Mexicali, Jacumba, CA.

Maria Escalante de Morales’ manifest. The two children pictured are Arcelia and Gabriel.

By 1926, Gabriel was making a name for himself in the Mexicali political world. In a November, 1926 article in “Heraldo de Mexico,” there was a discussion about the electric company wanting to leave Mexicali. “Mr. Gabriel Morales, Secretary of the Municipality” was quoted in the article.

Gabriel Morales 1926

In January 1927, the newspaper was relieved to find Mr. Morales was recuperating from a dislocation injury he suffered on New Year’s Eve, 1927, with friends and family at a ballroom.

gabrieljan151927

He is quite busy. March 1927 finds him returning on business from Mexico City.

Gabriel Morales’ 1927 Travel Manifest.

His above manifest stated that his occupation was a lawyer. A District Attorney in Baja California, to be more specific. According to the newspaper, he went as “Secretary of the City Council.”

Gabriel was also mentioned in an article from a situation that takes place in July 1927. It involved his sister-in-law, Lupe, and his brother-in-law, Albert. But that ordeal will take several posts to get through.

June 1928 is the last time we see Gabriel mentioned in relation to Mexicali political business. He decided not to run in a district election.

Gabriel, June 1928

Eventually, the Morales’ moved to Mexico City. We know a little about what the family was doing because Tia Panchita went to visit her sister often. On a visit to Mexico City, Panchita’s second son, Ruben, died when he was about 3 or 4. When Maria’s son, Leonardo (yes, named after her father), went to medical school, Panchita made sure her son, Oscar, did the same.

Then one day, her son, Leonardo showed up to visit.

Leonardo Morales visits Tio Ruben, 1943.

He was visiting Tio Ruben and Tia Cuca in Mexicali. One fascinating item on his manifest is “Sepulveda-Escalante” as a secondary name. What?? Did Gabriel Sr. die and Maria remarry??

In 1944, Arcelia Morales comes to visit Tio Ruben and Tia Cuca as well.

Arcelia visiting Mexicali, 1944.

Wasn’t she lovely?  She stated her father is Gabriel Morales. She stated her mother was Maria Escalante, but that Maria was dead. That would have Maria dying in her 40s. The manifest stated that Arcelia wanted to stay in Mexicali permanently. I don’t think she did.

The last visit we see from one of Maria’s children was when Leonardo visited once again in 1950.

Dr. Leonardo Sepulveda – Escalante, 1950.

Leonardo was now a full medical doctor on his own. He was visiting. He was now married to Alicia Vildosola. If Leonardo stayed in the area, there was no further documentation. And the same with Areclia.

The Morales’ had established a life in Mexico City. It sounds as if several of the children wanted to come and reconnect with their Escalante family members. Did the other three children die early? Are their offspring living on in Mexico City?

Maria managed a family of 5 children and an educated husband with an active political career. She was a role model to her younger sister. She worked to educate her children for a better life back in the country from which her parents had come.