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MARRON, Sylvester. Son of Juan María and Felipa Osuna Marron, married Leonora
Osuna. They had children: Felipa, who was married to J. Chauncey Hayes, now
of Oceanside; and another daughter became the wife of John S. Barker. He married a
second time, and lives at Buena Vista, California.
MENENDEZ, Father Antonio. Was a Dominican friar who came from Mexico with
Echeandía in 1825 and was chaplain and cure at the Presidio until 1829 at an irregular
salary of $15 a month. His part in the Fitch-Carrillo elopement has been related. In December,
1828, his name appears in a list of Spaniards who had taken the oath of allegiance.
From August to December of this year he taught a school in San Diego, had 18
pupils enrolled, and was paid the same munificent salary. He was chaplain of the assembly
which met at Santa Barbara from July to October, 1830.
His character seems to put him in the class with the coarser Mexican priests who
followed the Spanish missionaries. In fact he illustrated the old saying of "the world, the
flesh, and the devil," in an unusual degree. "Men's souls for heaven," says Bancroft,
"but women for himself he loved and wine and cards." Pio Pico, who was then a young
man engaged in trading with Lower California, played cards with him, with varying fortune.
On one occasion in San Diego, after Menendez had, in a game of cards, despoiled
Pico of all his stock of sugar, he added insult to injury by hurling at him a couplet
which may be translated: "Christ came to ransom man of woman born; He sought his
sheep, himself departed shorn. "
OSUNA, Juan María. Born in California before 1800. A soldier and corporal of the
San Diego Company, and later a settler. District elector in 1830, and took part in revolution
of
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1831. Was the first alcalde of San Diego, 1835, juez de paz in 1839-40 and 1846.
Grantee of San Dieguito in 1836-45. Died about 1847. Daughter Felipe married to Juan
María Marron. Had sons Leandro and Ramon.
OSUNA, Leandro. Son of Juan María; took part in fight at San Pasqual, December,
1846. He committed suicide by shooting himself through heart, April 3, 1859. His
son Julio married Chipita Crosthwaite.
OSUNA, Ramon. Comisario de policia, 1839. Collector of tithes, 1839. Grantee
of Valle de los Viejas, 1846. Member of first grand jury at San Diego, September, 1850.
PEDRORENA, Miguel de. The best biographical sketch of this much respected
citizen is that contained in Wm. Heath Davis's Sixty Years in California. He says:
"In 1838 Don Miguel de Pedrorena, a resident of Peru, arrived here, being at the
time part owner and supercargo of the Delmira.... Don Miguel was a native of Spain,
and belonged to one of the best families of Madrid. After receiving an education in his
own country he was sent to London, where he was educated in English, becoming a
complete scholar. Most of the Castilian race of the upper class are proud and aristocratic;
but Don Miguel, though of high birth, was exceedingly affable, polite, gracious in
manner and bearing, and, in every respect, a true gentleman. He married a daughter of
prefect Estudillo, and resided in San Diego until the time of his death in 1850, leaving
one son, Miguel, and two daughters, Elena and Ysabel. He was a member of the convention
at Monterey in 1849, for the formation of the state constitution. He owned the
Cajon Rancho and the San Jacinto Nuevo Rancho, each containing eleven leagues,
with some cattle and horses. Notwithstanding these large holdings of lands he was in