Spanish explorers (original) (raw)

Spanish exploration of the Northwest Coast of North America

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This page was started in early January 2002. It is a work in progress and was last added to on 28 January 2002.

Background

The Spanish authorities in New Spain (Mexico) decided, in the middle of the eighteenth century, to expand their empire northwards. Working with the Catholic Church, the Spanish moved by sea and overland past Baja California into Alta California. A network of Government military posts (Presidios) was established with associated religious missions. Their attention had been alerted originally to Russian activity much farther north in a region that the Spanish claimed as their own. Later, British ships began to appear and the Spanish felt they needed to assert their authority. A new port was developed at San Blas on Mexico's Pacific coast from which a series of ships sailed north over period of twenty years.

A feature of the Spanish throughout this time was secrecy. They were reluctant to publish the results of their explorations and refused, usually, to share information with other countries. The Pacific Ocean was regarded by the Spanish as their domain and, as such, any ships sailing in the Pacific were intruding and had no rights to claim territory. The Spanish attitude was that only Spain could make claims and it had no obligation to inform other countries of what it was doing.

The Governments of Russia and Britain did not accept Spanish rights to the Pacific and had begun exploring the ocean with a view to extending their own areas of influence. Because of Spanish secrecy, it was impossible for the Russians or British to know whether they were visiting locations already seen by the Spanish or virgin territory.

Early Spanish activity.

The Pacific Ocean was sighted on its American coast for the first time by the Spanish in September 1513 when Vasco Nunez de Balbao crossed the isthmus of Panama. Seven years later in November 1520, Fernao de Magalhaes (Magellan), a Portuguese sailing for Spain, brought his ships through the Strait named after him, becoming the first European to enter the Pacific from the east. In 1494, the Pope, through the Treaty of Tordesillas, divided the world between Spain and Portugal and the Pacific lay within the Spanish sphere of influence. Straight away, Spain regarded the ocean as its own, leading to it sometimes being known as the "Spanish Lake".

In America, Spain spread its empire from Mexico in the north through Central America and down the west coast of South America past Peru to Chile. On the western side of the Pacific, Spain had control of the Philippine Islands. Major ports were established at Panama, Callao (for Lima in Peru), Manila (Philippines) and Acapulco (Mexico), and over the two hundred years after Magellan, most of the Spanish naval activity was concentrated between these ports. As a result the Northern Pacific was largely neglected and only occasional sorties were made into these waters. Sometimes these sorties were the result of ships being carried off course as happened with Manila galleons returning from Manila to Mexico. Remains, which have been found on the Northwest Coast, indicate that Spanish ships either visited or were wrecked in the area.

In the early 1500s, a few expeditions moved north from Mexico by land and sea but it was only in 1542 that a naval expedition passed beyond Baja California to Alta California (which approximates to the U.S.A. state of California). Joao Rodrigues Cabrilho, a Portuguese, and Bartolome Ferrelo led an expedition that left La Navidad in Mexico in June 1542. Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo, as he is known in Spanish, had two ships, the_San Salvador_ and the Victoria for his mission. Progress was slow but they reached a harbour on 28 September that Cabrillo named Bahia de San Miguel (later renamed San Diego). They discovered the Santa Barbara Islands in October and by mid-November they were north of San Francisco Bay. They returned to the Santa Barbara Islands where Cabrillo died on 3 January 1543. His crew named the island after him, Isla de Juan Rodriguez, but it is now called San Miguel. Ferrelo assumed command and took the expedition north again. No charts have survived so there is no certainty how far he sailed but is believed he reached a point close to Eureka, near the Oregon-California border. The Spanish then sailed back south and reached La Navidad on 14 April 1543.

A British interloper and mythical explorers.

The next known ship to visit the Northwest Coast was not Spanish but the British Golden Hind under the command of Francis Drake. In the course of a round-the-world voyage Drake spent time in the Pacific harrying Spanish ships and ports. In April 1579, Drake left the Mexican port of Guatulco after a raid and sailed north in a large sweep into the North Pacific. He made land once more on 5 June. If there is uncertainty about some of the Spanish visits to the coast, there is considerable uncertainty as to where Drake went ashore. Many points between San Francisco and Vancouver Island have been suggested. Drake claimed the coast for Britain and called it New Albion. He returned south and entered an inlet and, once again, there is debate as to which inlet he visited. An inlet just north of San Francisco is even called Drake's Bay but people now claim that Drake entered San Francisco Bay itself. A small chart depicting "Portus Nova Albionis" does not help as it resembles neither inlet. Drake then left the Northwest Coast on 23 July 1579 and crossed the Pacific. He reached Plymouth on 26 September 1580, the first Briton to circumnavigate the world.

As well as documented visits to the Northwest Coast there have been several instances of unsubstantiated voyages, some of which may have been fiction. Among these were the supposed voyages of Juan de Fuca and Bartholomew de Fonte. The reports of both of these voyages appeared in British publications.

In 1625, the popular "Purchas, His Pilgrims" carried the account of a Greek pilot sailing to the Northwest Coast. He was Apostolos Valerianos, more commonly known as Juan de Fuca, and, in 1592, he is supposed to have found a large inlet on the North American coast near 50N. It possibly led to the Northwest Passage. A person called Michael Lok wrote about the voyage after Fuca told him about it in Venice in 1596 and the story found its way to Britain. Cartographers believed the story and the feature began appearing on maps. Interestingly, a large strait existed where Fuca had stated it did and, when it was eventually identified in 1787, it was called the Strait of Juan de Fuca after him. No mention of Fuca has ever come to light in Spanish archives.

Juan de Fuca possibly did exist but Bartholomew de Fonte is most probably fiction. His story appeared in London in 1708 in "Memoirs for the curious". Fonte was supposed to have found the Northwest Passage in 1640. Cartographers gave it credence by including a "Rio de los Reyes" or "Fonte's Strait" on their maps at about 55N.

More Spanish exploration.

After Cabrillo's voyage Spain lost interest in sending naval expeditions north for some years though Manila galleons continued to occasionally touch the Alta California coast. Drake's presence and that of another British sailor, Thomas Cavendish, who attacked and captured the 1587 Manila galleon with its treasure changed things. The Viceroy, Luis de Velasco, was prompted to renew efforts to chart the Northwest Coast. However, the Treasury was short of funds and Velasco was forced to arrange for private consortia to carry out the explorations.

In the 1590s, Sebastian Vizcaino was one of the principal men involved in organising and carrying out expeditions northwards. It may even have been on one of Vizcaino's trips that Juan de Fuca sailed. One of Vizcaino's associates, Sebastiao Rodrigues Cermenho, sailed a galleon, the San Agustin from Acupulco to Manila and returned to America, making landfall, in 1595, near Trinidad Head, near Cape Mendocino. He sailed south along the coast and encountered Indians in balsa canoes. Cermenho decided to land. A launch took a party ashore and Cermenho named the location Bahia de San Francisco. He also began to chart the bay but the San Agustin was driven onto rocks and destroyed. The launch, named the San Buenaventura became their means of rescue and took the survivors south to Mexico.

Felipe III, who took over the Spanish throne in 1598, was interested in Pacific exploration. He ordered a new expedition and Vizcaino received royal authorisation to lead it. Vizcaino left Acapulco in May 1602 with three ships, the San Diego, the_Santo Tomas_, and the Tres Reyes. He was aiming to sail beyond Cape Mendocino. We have a record and even charts of this voyage through its chronicler, Fray Antonio de la Ascension. It is not known whether Vizcaino had copies of the records of Cabrillo's voyage or even knew about it, as he duplicated much of the earlier voyage and substituted his own names for Cabrillo's. It may have been due to the normal Spanish policy of secrecy. The progress north was very slow and Vizcaino only reached Bahia de San Miguel, which he renamed San Diego, on 10 November. He passed the Santa Barbara Islands and, on 15 December, entered a bay, which he named Bahia de Monterey, after the then Viceroy, Gaspar de Zuniga, Conde de Monterey.

The Santo Tomas was sent home from Monterey with the sick while the other two ships sailed north for Cape Blanco. Bad weather soon separated the ships and the San Diego was forced south. There were insufficient well crew to sail the ship properly as more storms buffeted it. They made it safely to Santa Catalina in the Santa Barbara Islands but large numbers of sick on board caused them to sail on for Mexico. The ship was, by now, a floating infirmary.

Meanwhile, the Tres Reyes had continued northward to about latitude 43N before cold and scurvy took their toll. Martin de Aguilar, the captain, and his first pilot were among those that died. Esteban Lopez, the boatswain, took over command and sailed the ship southward. He sighted a large river entrance and named the river after the dead captain, Rio de Martin Aguilar. It is possibly modern Humboldt Bay, north of Cape Mendocino. The supposed large size of Rio de Martin Aguilar caused it to be another of the possible outlets of the Northwest Passage. Lopez brought the Tres Reyes back to Mexico in March 1603.

The Conde de Monterey was succeeded as Viceroy by Juan de Mendoza y Luna, Marques de Montesclaros, who showed no interest in pursuing the exploration of Alta California and diverted all resources into finding various islands in the Northwest Pacific Ocean. Alta California was then neglected by the Spanish for over 150 years.

San Blas.

The small town of San Blas is situated on Mexico's Pacific coast in the state of Nayarit, south of Mazatlan and north of Bahia de Banderas. The island group, Las Tres Marias, lies about 100 kilometres offshore to the west. The state capital, Tepic, is situated in the hills about 70 kilometres to the east, while Guadalajara is 250 kilometres away and Mexico City 750 kilometres away. Before 1767, San Blas was swampy land close to mouths of the Rio Grande de Santiago. Since 1800, it has been a sleepy small backwater. But for over twenty years it was a busy port serving the Spanish settlements further north in Nueva Galicia, and Baja and Alta Californias. At its height, the town had a population of 20,000.

The Viceroy of New Spain, Carlos Fransisco de Croix, ordered that a settlement be created on the Pacific coast at San Blas, but storms, flooding and disease wrecked the place that same year and the people retreated to Tepic. Jose de Galvez, the Visitador-General to New Spain, held a military council in San Blas in 1768, which officially established San Blas as a royal seaport, shipyard and supply base. Spain was keen to extend its influence to include Alta California, where presidios were founded at San Diego and Monterey. The expansion took place jointly with the Catholic Church, which built a series of Franciscan missions. Fray Junipero Serra, the president of the Frnasiscan missions, was involved directly in all the planning.

The choice of San Blas remains a strange one as a larger, existing and thriving port was located at Acapulco, south of Mexico City. The climate of the new port was also a factor against its selection. Storms and floods regularly affected the town and spoiled provisions, while many diseases took their toll of the garrison. Senior officials often spent much of their time in the cooler climate at Tepic. It did provide access to fresh water though and there was a good supply of hardwood timber in the hinterland. Its big advantages were that it was many sailing days closer to California than Acapulco, and could easily be serviced from the major centre of Guadalajara.

For the first few years, the senior naval personnel at San Blas were pilots. No officers aere allocated to San Blas until late 1774 and, in the meantime, the pilots commanded all the ships based there. While not acknowledged by rank or salary, the pilots were trained and more than able to command. Their position was not unlike Masters on British Royal Navy ships who carried out most of the tasks of running a ship, even under the presence of a Captain and lieutenants.

Two packetboats, the San Carlos and the Principe, were built and launched nearby on the Rio Santiago in 1767, together with two much smaller schooners, the Sonora and the Sialoa. All these vessels were based in San Blas and would feature repeatedly in events on the coast over the next twenty years. In 1768, orders were received from the Marquez de Grimaldi, the zzzzzzz in Madrid, for De Croix to immediately send forces to Alta California to secure the region against the threat of Russian expansion. After many initial problems with the ships, the "Sacred Expedition" sailed north in 1769. The commanding officer of the Principe was Juan Perez, a pilot, who would later sail on two of the important missions to the north.

As Alta California became more self-sufficient, the role of and need for San Blas diminished quickly and, by 1800, its usefulness had been virtually eliminated. San Blas fell into a total decline as the population moved away and the port was no more.

Alta California.

In 1769, the "Sacred Expedition", dispatched by Galvez, sailed north to Alta California. At the same time two overland expeditions were making their way north and they all came together at San Diego, from where they proceeded to Monterey. One of the overland parties was led by Padre Serra and Gaspar de Portola. Portola would be designated as first Governor of Alta California and he soon led the first European party to reach Bahia de San Francisco (San Francisco Bay) by land. Alta California was the territory along the Pacific coast and north of 32N and Baja California.

The mission of San Diego (de Alcala) was established in 1769 while San Carlos Borromeo was established at the southern end of Monterey Bay in 1770. Monterey's mission was transferred a few kilometres south to Carmel in 1771, leaving the Presidio in Monterey. Monterey was made the capital and the seat of the Governor, Portola, while Padre Serra ran the nearby San Carlos Borromeo mission at Carmel. Various other settlements and missions sprang up over the next few years, including San Francisco (de Asis) and Santa Clara in 1776, San Buenoventura in 1782, and Santa Barbara in 1786.

Alta California was unable to sustain itself for many years and the supply base at San Blas was crucial for its survival. For twenty years, the ships of San Blas carried out a regular service, ferrying supplies and personnel to maintain the province. Gradually, though, the province became more self-sufficient and other supply routes were devised rendering San Blas redundant.

Juan Perez's expedition in 1774.

In 1773, the Spanish Government in Madrid sent news to Mexico about Russian activity in Alaska. The Viceroy, Antonio Bucareli, was ordered to dispatch a ship north up the American coast to investigate. Bucareli had been the Viceroy in New Spain for two year and already shown himself to be capable and interested in expanding Spanish authority by sending expeditions to Alta California.

Fig 1: Juan Jose Perez Hernandez.

Juan Jose Perez Hernandez was a sailor with considerable experience and had been based at San Blas since its establishment in 1767. He held the rank of Pilot First Class. (A Pilot was a junior officer carrying out many of the duties that a Royal Navy Master performed). He had sailed several times with the Manila galleons and had commanded one of the ships that went to San Diego in 1769, leading to the colonisation of Alta California. Over the next few years he visited California regularly taking supplies to the new colony. Perez is believed to have been born in Palma on the island of Mallorca in the Mediterranean. His year of birth is not known but was circa 1725. He was, however, born on 24 June as his birthday was celebrated on board one of his voyages. In 1774, Perez led an expedition from San Blas, which reached the Queen Charlotte Islands. The following year he returned north, this time as Pilot on Hezeta's Santiago voyage, but died shortly before the ship returned to San Blas. He was buried at sea. Perez played a crucial role in Spain's history on the Northwest Coast.

In 1773, Perez was the most senior officer available in San Blas and probably the most experienced. Bucareli ordered Juan Perez to prepare for an expedition and asked him to draft plans for the voyage, which he then amended and approved. A ship, the Santiago, a San Blas built ship, was commissioned and made ready for departure in early 1774. The Santiago was 225 tons and 82 feet long. Eighty-eight officers and men and twenty-four passengers were to travel on board though many of these people were being shipped to Monterrey. The second-in-command on the Santiago was Esteban Jose Martinez, who would feature later in the history of the Northwest Coast.

Perez sailed on 24 January 1774 and made his way north. By early March, the ship was experiencing structural problems and Perez worked the ship back inside the Channel Islands off Santa Barbara to San Diego. The ship remained there from 11 March to 6 April, when it resumed its journey to Monterey. Monterey was reached on 8 May and another month was taken up with discharging cargo. On 11 June, the Santiago finally began the exploration of new waters noth of Monterey. Perez's instructions were to make landfall at about 60N so he kept well out to sea and sailed north far from land. In mid-July in latitude 50N Perez changed course and struck northeast to encounter lad on 18 July. He had reached the northwest coast of Graham Island, one of the Queen Charlotte Islands.

On 19 July, as the Santiago drifted toward the shore, three canoes came out to greet them. The local people, Haida, would later gain a warlike reputation but on this occasion all the contact was peaceful. Perez rounded the northern headland making a tentative search for a safe harbour but adverse corrents forced him back and northwest. He drifted for three days while the Spanish and Haida traded and tried unsuccessfully to communicate. None of Perez's men went ashore. He named the small island, off which the Santiago plied back and forth, Isla Santa Margarita (later called Langara Island). To the north, across a strait of water (Dixon Entrance), Perez named two headlands. The western one, Santa Christina, is the southern point of Forrester Island while the other, Santa Maria Magdalena, the southern point of Dall Island was later renamed Cape Muzon.

Perez had reached 54N but now decided to return south and made no attempt to press on to 60N as set out in his instructions. He had been told to follow the coast south and he kept close to the Queen Charlotte Islands without attempting to land or having any further contact. He could see the mountains on the islands and called them Los Cerros de San Cristobal. They maintained a southeast course after the land finished on 28 July. On 4 August they turned northeast and sighted land again the next day before being enveloped in fog.

As the fog cleared on 7 August, the Spanish approached an inlet and canoes paddled out to the ship. The Santiago did not enter the inlet but turned and anchored near rocks off a small peninsula. Trading with the local Nootka people quickly began and among the items given by the Spanish were four silver spoons. Four years later when Captain James Cook visited Nootka, these spoons were shown to the British, who remarked on them and pondered their origin. They would achieve importance in 1790 when Spain cited them as evidence that Spain had reached the region before the British.

Perez launched a small boat to examine a nearby inlet but conditions changed and the Santiago was in danger of being driven onto rocks. Perez tried unsuccessfully to raise the anchor and had to cut the cable, leaving the anchor behind, as he sailed away. He named the inlet he had approached Surgidero de San Lorenzo (Nootka Sound) and the point off which he had anchored, Punta de San Estavan (Estevan Point). The rocks that were nearly his downfall were later called Perez Rocks.

The Santiago now began his journey home in earnest. There is uncertainty whether the Spanish saw the entrance of the Strait of Juan de Fuca as Martinez later claimed. Banks of fog caused the coast further south to be only seen irregularly. Perez reached Monterey on 28 August. It is believed that Perez had intended to visit San Francisco Bay to chart the bay but in mid September he took the Santiago south. He and his crew were probably sick and Perez realised they would recive better medical treatment back in Mexico. On 5 November, the Santiago finally struggled back into the harbour of San Blas.

The voyage was only partly successful. Perez brought the ship safely home to San Blas but he had only carried out part of Bucareli's instructions, leaving much unknown. He had not sailed sufficiently far north and had, therefore, not approached anywhere near the region of Russian activity. Nor had he landed anywhere and made claims of possession for Spain. But he had shown that Spain could extend its influence up the coast and he had reached Nootka Sound, which would prove crucial sixteen years later.

Bucareli received the reports from Perez and forwarded copies to Spain. Though somewhat disappointed at the results, Bucareli was not dissuaded and began planning for another expedition.

Bruno de Hezeta's expedition in 1775.

Viceroy Bucareli was still determined to pursue Spanish interests and decreed that another expedition would sail north in 1775. A group of junior naval officers had recently arrived from Spain and Bucareli quickly appointed one of them, Bruno de Hezeta, to lead the new expedition. The Santiago would be used again but this time taking a companion vessel. The Santiago had proven difficult to manoeuvre in shallow water and this had been one of the reasons Perez had never landed on his 1774 voyage. A schooner, the_Sonora_, another San Blas built vessel, was selected.

Fig 2: Bruno de Hezeta y Dudagoitia.

Lieutenant Bruno de Hezeta y Dudagoitia was one of a small group of junior naval officers who arrived in Mexico from Spain in late 1774. Bucareli immediately sent the officers to San Blas and began using them in the Pacific. Hezeta was a Basque, born in Bilbao circa 1744 and was already experienced having joined the navy when he was 14. Shortly after his arrival in Mexico he led an expedition in 1775 to the Northwest Coast. In 1784, he captained the San Felipe, a Manila galleon between the Philippines and America. He then returned to Europe where he fought for Spain in naval battles against the French and British. He died in 1807, a Lieutenant General.

Accompanying Hezeta on the Santiago was the pilot Juan Perez, who had led the expedition the previous year. The Sonora was a much smaller vessel, only 37 feet long, and Juan Manuel de Ayala was appointed as its captain. Two men who would make lasting impressions on the Northwest Coast were named as Ayala's fellow officers. Juan Fransisco Bodega y Quadra was Ayala's deputy and Francois Mourelle sailed as pilot. The ship was so small that it only had room for 14 crew. Its size meant it had a shallow draught and would be able to sail close to shore for surveying purposes. Before sailing, the Sonora needed a complete overhaul.

Bucareli instructed Hezeta to go to 65N and explore in that region. He was to look out for Russians and take possession of lands visited for Spain. A third ship, the 195 ton San Carlos was to sail north with Hezeta but only as far as Monterey. Captain Manuel Manrrique, and Pilot, Jose Canizares, were then to proceed to proceed to San Francisco and chart the bay. On 16 March 1775, the three ships left San Blas.

Three days into the voyage, Manrrique started showing signs of insanity and he was sent back to San Blas. Ayala transferred from the Sonora to take charge of the San Carlos and Bodega took over on the Sonora. Ten days later, Hezeta's two ships lost touch with the San Carlos. They made very slow progress in contrary conditions and were forced west away from land. On 9 June, they finally regained the coast and the Sonora led them into a bay, north of Cape Mendocino. The bay was named Puerto de la Trinidad (Trinidad Bay). They stayed for ten days, during which the Sonora was careened and the bay charted. Hezeta climbed a hill at the western end of the bay, took possession and planted a cross, which was still there 18 years later when Vancouver put into the bay.

The ships sailed north on 19 June, being forced out to sea again. By early July they had closed in on the coast near 50N and searched unsuccessfully for the Strait of Juan de Fuca. They needed water and, on 13 July, the ships anchored near a headland (Point Grenville in modern Washington State). They had been separated slightly near the coast so the Sonora was to the north of the headland, while Hezeta and the Santiago were to the south. Hezeta went ashore and took possession early on the morning of 14 July. In the meantime, Bodega sent men ashore to obtain water and cut timber for a new mast. Suddenly these men were ambushed and all seven were killed. Bodega raised the anchor and went to rejoin Hezeta. Together they decided not to attempt retaliation and set off once more. The bay where Hezeta had taken possession was named Rada de Bucareli after the Viceroy (Grenville Bay). The ambush took place near the mouth of the Quinault River, south of Punta de los Martires (Cape Elizabeth).

Men on the Santiago began to express wishes to abort the expedition even though the tragedy had befallen the Sonora. As the ships sailed west, a meeting was held on 19 July with Hezeta and Perez calling for a return while Bodega and Mourelle felt they should continue. Hezeta backed down and the expedition continued. By 29 July, they were at 50N when the ships were separated. It is quite possible that Bodega affected the separation on purpose in order to sail north, feeling Hezeta was not committed to such a course.

Hezeta spent some time looking for the schooner and sailed east believing he would find the Sonora in that direction. The schooner had vanished and the Santiago instead sighted land on 10 August. It was Vancouver Island and Hezeta turned southeast to follow the coast. Four days later some canoes came off and the Spanish were able to trade. Sailing on, they missed the entrance to the Strait of Juan de Fuca again and soon passed Rada de Bucareli, the site of the ambush a month earlier. The next day Hezeta became the first European to see the mouth of the Columbia River.

Hezeta realised that it was the mouth of a large river and wondered if it was the Strait of Juan de Fuca. He dismissed this idea and, after unsuccessfully trying to enter the river , called it Bahia de la Asuncion. Strong tides and currents persuaded Perez and the other pilot, Cristobal Revilla, that it would be too dangerous to attempt to enter the river. Many of the crew were sick and there were not sufficient fit men if there was an emergency. A chart of the river mouth was drawn. The Spanish called the northern point of the river mouth Cabo San Roque (Cape Disappointment) and the southern point Cabo Frondoso (Point Adams).

The Santiago continued south. Late on 19 August, the ship approached Cape Blanco and nearly ran aground on the reefs and small islands near the cape. It passed Cape Mendocino on 26 August and two days later Hezeta sighted the Farallones, the small islands near the mouth of San Francisco Bay. The next day, the 29th, the Santiago anchored in Monterey Bay. Most of the men on board were in need of urgent medical attention and 35 were taken ashore immediately to the Presidio hospital. One man died in the transfer. The Sonora was not in the bay and there was no news of the schhooner.

When sufficient men had recovered, Hezeta took a small party to San Francisco Bay to prepare a chart. He found word there from Ayala (of the San Carlos). On 1 October Hezeta returned to Monterey and six days later he was pleased to see the Sonora arrive. Unfortunately, Bodega's crew were all very sick and needed time to recover. They had recovered sufficiently for both ships to leave Monterey on 1 November. Three days out, Juan Perez died and was buried at sea. He had been weak for several weeks. On 20 November 1775, the_Santiago_ and the Sonora arrived back at San Blas.

Bodega y Quadra's voyage in 1775, after the separation from Hezeta.

Bodega and Mourelle were determined to sail further north and the separation of the_Sonora_ from the Santiago provided an ideal opportunity for them . After two weeks the Sonora reached land at 57N when a volcano on Kruzof Island was sighted. Bodega called the volcano San Jacinto (Mount Edgecumbe). On 18 August 1775, the ship anchored in a bay just north of the volcano and which Bodega named Puerto de Nuestro Senora de los Remedios (Sea Lion Bay). Bodega was wary about landing after his previous experience a month earlier at Rada de Bucareli and organised a shore party with great care. They went ashore and were met by local people, though contact was limited. The Spanish took possession of the land, raised a flag and erected a cross. They went ahore again the next day to another location in the bay for water and timber.

Fig 3: Juan Francisco Bodega y Quadra.

Juan Francisco Bodega y Quadra was one of the most interesting and important individuals that spent time on the Northwest Coast between 1770 and 1800. He is sometimes known as Quadra. Bodega was born in Lima, Peru in 1743 but went to Spain in 1762 to enter the marine guard. Not being born in Spain would always prove difficult for Bodega as Spanish-born seamen tended to receive prefernce in promotion. However, his ability was obvious and he became an ensign in 1767.

In late 1774, Bodega was one of a small group of junior officers sent from Spain to command the ships based in the Mexican port of San Blas. His Lima background would cause Bodega to invariably be selected as second-in-command on expeditions over the next few years. The first occasion happened in 1775 when he commanded the Sonora on Hezeta's voyage. Four years later Bodega accompanied Arteaga to Alaska in the Favorita after travelling to Peru to collect the ship.

Bodega was promoted to Frigate Captain in 1780 and left Mexico for Havanna to fight the British in the Caribbean. He later moved to Cadiz where he became a Ship's Captain. Bodega returned to Mexico in 1789 as Commander of the port of San Blas before being chosen to sail to Nootka Sound to represent Spain in the negotiations with the British to resolve the Nootka Sound Incident. He sailed north in early 1792 and arrived at Nootka where he had to wait for his British counterpart. This was George Vancouver and the two men began a series of meetings. Little was achieved in the meeting but Bodega and Vancouver became very good friends. Vancouver had just shown the insularity of Vancouver Island and proposed that it be called Quadra and Vancouver's Island.

Bodega sailed to Monterey to report on the progress of the meetings but he was not well and was unable to return to Nootka. He travelled to Mexico City and died there in 1794.

Fig 4: Francisco Mourelle.

Francisco Antonio Mourelle was born in 1754 at San Adrian de Corne in Galicia, northwestern Spain. One of Mourelle's many skills was his ability to record the events that took place on the expeditions he undertook. His reports became known beyond Spain, especially in France, where his name was altered to Maurelle. He often appears in historical documents as Maurelle.

He began as an apprentice pilot in 1768 and transferred to Mexico in the 1770s where he sailed as a pilot out of the port of San Blas. Mourelle accompanied Bodega on the two Spanish voyages toward Alaska in the 1775 and 1779. When Spain declared war in 1780, Mourelle sailed the Princesca to Manila. On the return journey he made discoveries in Tonga and Tuvalu before reaching San Blas in late 1781.

Mourelle returned to Europe and fought in the Napoleonic Wars. He was promoted to the rank of Admiral in 1818 but died in Cadiz in 1820.

The search for the Northwest Passage was one of Bodega's priorities. One possibility, a passage called the Strait of Bartholomew de Fonte was supposed to be in these latitudes and Bodega now left Los Remedios to make a search. He sailed south following the coast and checking all the inlets. After several days the Sonora entered a large sheltered bay, where it anchored. Bodega was ill so Mourelle set off to explore the bay, its many islands and inlets. Mourelle called the bay, Puerto de Bucareli (Bucareli Bay), honoring the Viceroy once more. The bay is located on the west side of Prince of Wales Island.

When Bodega left Puerto de Bucareli, he sailed north again passing Los Remedios and reaching 58 30N on 27 August before inshore winds and the ill health of the crew combined to force him south. A few days later there were insufficient hands to man both sails and the rudder when bad weather struck. Bodega had not reached as far north as instructed by Bucareli but it was much farther than had knowingly been achieved by a Spanish ship before. They had no sightings of Russians at all. Chirikov was the only Russian to have been in this area when he lost his boat party near Yakobi Island in 1742.

Through September, the Sonora worked its way south. On 3 October, it entered a bay just north of San Francisco. Bodega named it Puerto de la Bodega after himself. The bay is called Tomales Bay while another bay a few kilometres to the northwest has acquired the name Bodega Bay. The next day, a tidal bore smashed the schooner's launch and threatened the Sonora itself. It then sailed the short distance south to Monterey where Hezeta was waiting. If Hezeta had been waiting to punish Bodega and Mourelle for disobeying orders, he was more relieved to have his companions back and to learn what they had achieved. However, both Bodega and Mourelle were so sick that they had to be carried ashore for treatment. On 1 November, they had recovered and they and the Sonora left for San Blas.

The Aftermath to the Northern Voyages of 1774 and 1775.

Jose de Galvez had returned to Spain where he was appointed Minister of the Indies. He and Bucareli were reasonably pleased with the outcomes of Hezeta's expedition and rewarded the leaders with promotions. Hezeta became a Captain while Bodega became a First Lieutenant. Spain had long been aware of expeditions by other European countries into the Pacific but their frequency was increasing and Galvez was becoming very concerned. The French and the British had sent several expeditions into the South Pacific in the last ten years and Spain had responded by sending ships to Tahiti in 1774 to assert what it believed were its rights to the island. The main cause of their concern was Captain James Cook, who had already led two successful voyages to the Pacific, and who, spies informed Galvez in 1775, was about to lead another voyage to the Pacific. What is more, the spies told Galvez that Cook had been instructed to search for the Northwest Passage on the Northwest Coast, Spanish territory.

Galvez passed on this information to Bucareli with instructions that Bucareli should organise an expedition to thwart Cook. All the Spanish presidios and missions would be told not to co-operate with Cook while the Spanish would claim rights to the Passage by locating it first. Hezeta and Bodega were to lead the expedition using the same ships. However, Bucareli had major problems. The base at San Blas only had so many ships and men and all of them were already deployed supplying California and on other duties. It was also short of iron and other materials with which to build new ships. Bucareli suggested that new ships be built in Peru for use at San Blas, to which Madrid agreed and Bodega left San Blas to travel to Peru to collect a ship.

Bodega was originally from Lima and probably leapt at the chance to visit his family. He left Mexico in late 1776 and was away for 15 months, returning on 27 February 1778 with the_Favorita_, a newly built frigate. Bruno de Hezeta was employed elsewhere so another officer, Ignacio de Arteaga, was appointed to lead the proposed expedition. In Bodega's absence, San Blas had been able, after all, to build another ship and the frigate Princesca was ready for Arteaga. It would still be another year before the ships were ready to sail.

The delays made redundant some of the reasons for Arteaga's voyage. Cook left Britain in 1776 and dawdled in the South Pacific before leaving Hawaii in Feruary 1778 to head for the Northwest Coast. At the same time as Bodega was returning to San Blas and, a full year before the Sapnish sailed north, Cook was cossing the North Pacific. He was just north of Cape Blanco on 13 March and landed in Nootka Sound on Vancouver Island two weeks later. The same day Arteaga left San Blas, Cook returned to Keakekua Bay on Hawaii Island with a broken mast. Three days later, he died on the shore at Kaawaloa.

Cook believed he had done enough to disprove the existence of the Northwest Passage, though many believed he had not investigated closely enough and there was still a possibility that the Passage existed. Others would have to make a more thorough search. The other major implication of Cook's voyage for the Spanish though was development of the sea otter trade. Sea otter pelts had been acquired on the Northwest Coast and they were later traded for large profits by Cook's crew in Macao. The news of this soon spread and caused many ships to head for the Northwest Coast into territory held by Spain to be its own.

The Voyage of Arteaga and Bodega in 1779.

While Cook was exploring the North Pacific in 1778, the Spanish were still preparing at San Blas for their own voyage. It was already two years since Galvez had ordered the expedition to pre-empt Cook. The ships were finally prepared and crews assembled for Arteaga and Bodega to sail on 11 February 1779. Arteaga had Fernando Quiros as his Lieutenant and Francisco Mourelle was sailing again as Bodega's number two. Their instructions were to sail past Alta California and so the ships sailed in a large sweep to the west and then north to reach Bucareli Sound on 3 May.

Fig 5: Ignacio de Arteaga.

The Favorita and the Princesca anchored in the sound and they had a stopover of eight weeks. Arteaga dispatched launches to chart the sound. Soon after their arrival, an epidemic broke out on the Princesca and several men died. The ship's surgeons organised an isolation unit on shaore and the epidemic was brought under control. Thankfully for the Spanish, relations with the local people were good and the Spanish were safe from attack. Shortly before the ship's departure, two men tried to desert though Arteaga thought they had been abducted. Confrontations resulted and relations soured before the men were recovered. When Arteaga learned of their desertion he punished the men and tried to restore relations. The ships sailed from Bucareli Sound on 1 July and headed north.

On 21 July the Favorita and the Princesca entered a large inlet at about 61N. Arteaga landed in a small side bay and took possession of the region. He named the bay Puerto de Santiago de Apostol. It is now called Port Etches and lies at the western end of Hinchinbrook Island. (Cook had visited the large inlet in May 1778. He had called it Sandwich Sound but it was later changed to Prince William Sound). Arteaga sent boats out to make a swift reconnaissance but, apart from a red, white and blue flag, they saw no signs of British or Russian visits to the inlet. The Spanish left the inlet on 24 July and followed the coast as it trends southwest.

Another possession ceremony took place on 2 August 1779. Its precise location is uncertain but was either close to the southern tip of the Kenai Peninsula or on the western shore of Cook Inlet. As with Prince William Sound, Cook had been here before them and had made a survey of the inlet though the Spanish saw no signs of Cook's visit. The site where the possession ceremony occurred was called Ensenada de Nuestra Senora de la Regla. Arteaga and his crew aboard the Princesca were, by now, sick with scurvy and Arteaga was ready to return home. Bodega and Mourelle were still fit and made a survey of Cook Inlet. They sighted a large volcano (Iliamna Volcano) and named it after the expedition's chronicler, Antonio Miranda, Vocan de Miranda.

Despite Bodega's desire to continue, Arteaga ordered the ships back to California and they left Alaska on 7 August. They soon lost touch and made their way to the rendezvous in San Francisco Bay separately. The Favorita anchored in the bay on 14 September and the Princesca arrived the next day. There were many sick on both ships and an infirmary was set up on shore where members of the mission looked after them. The ships stayed at San Francisco for six weeks allowing the sick to recover and while they were there they heard two important pieces of news. Viceroy Bucareli had died on 9 April and Spain had declared war on Britain, taking sides with the French and the newly independent United States of America.

On 30 October the two ships left San Francisco and sailed south to Mexico. The Favorita reached San Blas first on 21 November 1779 and the Princesca followed on the 25th. The expedition was successful in that the ships and most of the crews had returned to Mexico and Arteaga had taken possession of more land at Prince William Sound and Cook Inlet, thus extending Spain's empire. No signs of Russian or British presence in the region had been detected so Spanish concern was reduced.

Spain had once again shown their organisation to be lacking and their choice of leaders poor. Their voyages continued to suffer from scurvy and other illnesses that depleted the crews and forced their curtailment before reals gains and new discoveries had been made. Arteaga, like Hezeta before him, showed himself vulnerable to illness, lacking resolve and ready to return home at the first opportunity. Bodega and Mourelle, on the other hand, showed themselves ready to carry out all the required instructions and capable of doing more. It is somewhat surprising that, when the ships separated on leaving Alaska in September 1779, Bodega and Mourelle did not attempt to explore further in northern waters.

Aftermath of Arteaga's voyage.

Because the Spanish had seen no signs of the Russians and the British on Arteaga's 1779 voyage they felt the immediate threat was over and there was no need to send any further expeditions north in the foreseeable future. This viewpoint was enhanced by Bucareli's replacement as Viceroy, Martin de Mayorga, who did not share Bucareli's interest in California and the Northwest Coast. Spain's declaration of war was the telling move though as ships and men were deployed to the war effort. No further expedition to the Northwest Coast would take place for another nine years until that of Martinez and Haro in 1788.

The settlements in Alta California required regular supplies and through the 1780s a few ships went from San Blas to Monterey and San Diego. As most of the officers had been transferred from Mexico, the responsibility for taking the ships fell to the Pilots again and one of them especially, Esteban Martinez. Martinez sailed the Princesca to Monterey several times and was present there in September 1786 when the French explorer Laperouse brought his two ships to the port. He helped Laperouse and learned from him what the French knew about Alaska and the Russians.

Martinez reported on his meeting on his return to San Blas and the information was forwarded via Mexico to Madrid. Galvez was already aware of Laperouse's voyage having received word from Ambrosio O'Higgins, the Governor of Chile, who had met the Frenchman in Concepcion the previous year. The news would be one of the prompts that led to Malaspina's Pacific voyage that left Cadiz in 1789. In the meantime, on 25 January 1787, King Carlos III gave orders for the Viceroy of New Spain to send an expedition north to Alaska.

The orders arrived just before a new Viceroy took over. Manuel Antonio Flores arrived i April 1787 and immediately began organising the expedition. There was still a shortage of ships and experienced naval officers, and Jose Camacho was the senior one available. He was appointed to command and the Concepcion was chosen as his vessel if it returned from its current mission to Nicaragua in time. The experienced and capable Francisco Mourelle was given command of the companion ship, the Favorita. The Spanish had realised the need for better preparation and lime juice was ordered to offset scurvy. Camacho received his instructions in October 1787 but withdrew from the expedition on 29 November, citing poor health.

The experienced pilot Eseban Jose Martinez, who had sailed north with Perez in 1774, was selected to replace Camacho and was promoted to Lieutenant. There is suspicion that Martinez, who had been overlooked for previous expeditions, was a relation of Flores, the new Viceroy. The Concepcion was not available so the Princesca was made available for Martinez while the San Carlos replaced the Favorita. Mourelle was still away and he was replaced by Gonzalo Lopez de Haro in charge of the_Favorita_. A russian-speaking pilot, Esteban Mondofia, and an apprentice pilot, Antonio Serantes, were part of the crew.

Finally, on 8 March 1788, the two ships sailed from San Blas for Alaska. In mid-May the ships were off Prince William Sound and Martinez and Serantes had a disagreement over their exact location. According to Haro, it was the beginning of continued irrational, violent and drunken behaviour by Martinez. Serantes suffered badly before being transferred to Haro's ship. Martinez appeared reluctant to enter Prince William Sound and only on 10 June did a shore party land on Montague Island. They took possession and sighted a european-style storehouse but saw and met no Russians.

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