MS 175 Denton Family Papers
Table of Contents
- Summary Information
- Biographical / Historical Notes
- Scope and Content
- Arrangement
- Administrative Information
- Related Materials
- Controlled Access Headings
- Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
- Comments
- Collection Inventory
- Family Papers
- Family Estates
- Business Relationships
- Baja California Maps
Summary Information
- Repository
- San Diego History Center Document Collection
- Creator
- Denton family
- Title
- Denton Family Papers
- ID
- MS 175
- Date [inclusive]
- 1852-1930
- Extent
- 0.25 Linear feet (1 box)
- Language
- English
- Language of Materials
- Collection materials are in English and Spanish.
- Abstract
- The collection contains family papers, land deeds, business papers related to Denton land surveys, and several maps of the Baja California region.
Preferred Citation
Denton Family Papers, MS 175, San Diego History Center Document Collection, San Diego, CA.
Biographical / Historical Notes
Colonel William Denton (July 27, 1828-April 14, 1907) was born in Harrowby, England, to William Smith Denton and Sarah Nixon. He was the fourth of seventeen children. Denton came to the United States during the Gold Rush and worked as a civil engineer for the United States geodetic survey. Between 1858 and 1860, Denton participated in a surveying expedition of the Sea of Cortes and coastal Sonora region, accompanied by Federico Fitch, son of a prominent San Diego businessman. It is very likely that he met his future wife during this expedition since their ship stopped at her hometown of Mulege, Mexico. In 1860, he was married to Elena Cano de los Rios aboard the English battleship “The Cleo” at La Paz, Mexico. Elena Cano de los Rios Denton (May 8, 1845-September 23, 1930) was born in Mulege, Baja California, to Mariano Cano de los Rios and Petra Ruiz. Together, William and Elena had eight children: Eleana, William Smith, Oscar Allan, Sarah Brent, Paul Isham, Alexander Marion, Maria Soldad, and Morgan Gascoigne.
In 1874, the Denton family moved to San Diego, where they remained for many years. Denton was employed by the International Colonization Company as a land surveyor in the Baja California region between 1884 and 1886, when he appears to have had a falling out with the powerful North American land syndicate. William Denton became a naturalized Mexican citizen in 1894 and was a prominent landowner in Baja California. Although at the time of his death, his American estate totaled only $1000, he owned several mines and ranches in Northern Baja California. These included: the Blanco Bay and Trinidad iron mine groups; Los Algodones Rancho, situated near the Colorado River; Rancho Jacume, situated on the U.S.-Mexican border; one-half interest in Toronjil, Angel de la Guarda, Nueva Esperanza, and La Vaca copper mines, situated on the Pacific coast; one-half interest in the Chubasco and Sireno gold mine groups; and one-half interest in the Vulcan iron mines, situated near the Pacific Coast.
Upon Col. Denton’s death, his estate was shared amongst his family: half going to his wife, and the other half split evenly among his remaining children. His son Alexander appears to have taken over much of the responsibility for maintaining the family’s properties after Denton’s death. Alexander Denton carried on his father’s work as a land surveyor, drawing up several maps of the Baja California region that encompassed the Denton property in Mexico.
William Denton’s daughter Maria Soldad was married to Sam Showley. The couple had two children: Samuel Denton Showley and Dan Showley. Dan Showley, who donated at least part of this collection, was a teacher of Spanish and History at Hoover High School.
Scope and Content
The Denton Family Papers includes documents on the Denton family history and Denton family estates (in U.S. and Mexico) as well as documents related to William and Alex Denton’s business relationships including their land surveys, and several maps of the Baja California region, including maps of specific Denton properties. Documents of particular interest include William Denton’s original Mexican Naturalization papers, original Mexican land deeds for each mine owned by the Denton family, numerous documents related to the International Colonization Company (also known as the International Company of Mexico), including a published statement from a lawsuit against the company, and field notes for the San Vicente Basin published by the company. Maps of note include an original, hand-drawn map of the lands surrounding the Cucupa Mountains, an original site plan of the Jacume area and of Los Algodones Rancho, and an oversized map of the entire Baja California region.
Arrangement
This collection is arranged into four series:
Series I: Family Papers
Series II: Family Estates
Series III: Business Relationships
Series IV: Baja California Maps
Within each series, items are arranged by subject.
Administrative Information
Publication Information
San Diego History Center Document Collection May 19, 2011
1649 El Prado, Suite 3
San Diego, CA, 92101
619-232-6203
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
The San Diego History Center (SDHC) holds the copyright to any unpublished materials. SDHC Library regulations do apply.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Accession numbers 851108A, 860318A
Processing Information
Collection processed by Katrina White on May 19, 2011.
Collection processed as part of grant project supported by the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) with generous funding from The Andrew Mellon Foundation.
Related Materials
Separated Materials
The Federico Fitch diary has been removed and is now part of MS 25 Fitch Family Papers. Photocopies of relevant pages are included in this collection.
Controlled Access Headings
Corporate Name(s)
- California Academy of Sciences.
- International Colonization Compnay.
- International Company of Mexico.
Family Name(s)
- Denton family
Genre(s)
- Maps
Geographic Name(s)
- Algodones (Baja California, Mexico)
- Baja California (Mexico : Peninsula)
- California, Gulf of (Mexico)
- Colorado River Watershed (Colo.-Mexico)
- Durango (Mexico : State)
- Ensenada (Baja California, Mexico)
- Las Cucupas Mountains
- Mexicali (Mexico)
- San Diego (Calif.)
- San Vicente (Baja California, Mexico)
- Sonora (Mexico : State)
Personal Name(s)
- Cantu, Esteban
- Cummings, Roland
- de Esparza, Timoteo R.
- Denton, Alexander
- Denton, Elena Cano de los Rios
- Denton, William
- Diaz, Porfirio, 1830-1915
- Huller, Louis
- McAleer, Christopher
- Moore, Justin P.
- Rubio, Manuel, 19th cent.
- Saenz, Santana
- Scofield, Charles
- Scott, Chalmers
- Showley, Dan
- Showley, Maria Soldad Denton
- Sisson, George H.
Subject(s)
- Arquitas mine
- Blanco Bay mines
- Deeds
- Genealogy
- Jacume Rancho
- Land surveying
- Mining
- Rancho Punta Banda
- Real property surveys
- San Pedro mine
- Surveying
- Trinidad copper mines
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
Original William Denton Mexican Naturalization document encapsulated and in Oversize Collections D1. (May 19, 2011)
Original hand-drawn color map encapsulated and in Oversize Collections D1. (June 13, 2011)
Comments
We have been unable to establish any connection between the Indiana land deed (in Oversize Collections D1) and the rest of the documents in this collection.
Collection Inventory
Series I: Family Papers |
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Box-folder | ||||
Official documents (some in Spanish), 1894-1917
Includes: William Denton Mexican Naturalization document, 1894 (translation) (original encapsulated and in Oversize Collections D1) (original in Spanish). |
1:1 | |||
Family history (some in Spanish), 1907 April-1952 April
Includes: Letter to Elena Cano Denton from Baja California Governor Esteban Cantu, January 14, 1919. (Spanish) |
1:2 | |||
|
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Series II: Family Estates |
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Box-folder | ||||
United States properties, 1852, 1904
Includes: Winamac, Indiana land deed for Andrew Remersnider, July 1, 1852 (in Oversize Collections D1). |
1:3 | |||
Mexican estates (some in Spanish), 1863-1930
Includes: Land transfer documents for Los Algodones Rancho, 1899-1922. (some Spanish) Court-ordered report of several Denton family properties including Jacume Rancho, Los Algodones Rancho, and various mines, March 15, 1923. (Spanish) |
1:4 | |||
Mexican mines (some in Spanish), 1889-1924
Includes: Original deeds to mines signed by Portofirio Diaz, including site plan for each mine, October 3, 1903-May 31, 1904 (in Oversize Collections D1). (Spanish) |
1:5 | |||
Legal disputes (property), 1924 May-September | 1:6 | |||
|
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Series III: Business Relationships |
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Box-folder | ||||
Land surveys (some in Spanish), 1858-1906
Includes: Copies of pages from Federico Fitch’s diary that mention William Denton, 1858-1860. Compiled reports on the Colorado River Basin completed by William Denton, in cooperation with Justin P. Moore of the California Academy of Sciences, 1878-1879. |
1:7 | |||
International Colonization Company, 1878-1891
Includes: Published International Colonization Company field notes from the San Vicente Basin, 1887. Published “Allegation of Facts” by Timoteo R. de Esparza in lawsuit against the International Colonization Company, 1888. Original correspondence between Geoge H. Sisson of the company and Denton’s lawyer regarding William Denton’s disputed lands claims, August-November 1891. |
1:8 | |||
Legal disputes (business) (Spanish), undated | 1:9 | |||
|
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Series IV: Baja California Maps |
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Box-folder | ||||
Maps of Denton property (some in Spanish), 1870-1903
Includes: Original site plan of the Jacume area, 1870. Original site plan of Los Algodones Rancho, 1873. |
Oversize Collections D1 | |||
Regional maps (some in Spanish), 1875 and undated
Includes: Original map of Baja California Region, drawn up by William Denton, 1875. Original hand-drawn map of lands surrounding the Cucupa Mountains, undated. |
Oversize Collections D1 | |||
Return to Archival Collections.