Santa Cruz, CA

Santa Cruz is a coastal city located in Santa Cruz County, California. The population was 106,942 at the 2010 census. Santa Cruz is known for its natural beauty and progressive politics. The city has been called "the most beautiful town on the West Coast" and "the cultural capital of the Pacific Northwest."

The history of Santa Cruz can be traced back to 1769 when Spanish missionaries established Mission Santa Cruz de Asís. In 1814, the Spanish Governor of Alta California Manuel Micheltorena granted Rancho Los Guijarros to Juan Bautista Alvarado and his wife María Josefa Castilla. The land grant was named for Saint Catherine of Siena, who had helped defend Siena from an attack by the French army in 1355. One story tells of how a group of local women persuaded Micheltorena to grant them land—by sitting on his lap and singing while they wept.

In 1839, José Figueroa built the first adobe house in what would become downtown Santa Cruz. In 1846, an American named William Ayer purchased Rancho Los Guijarros from Juan Bautista Alvarado and María Josefa Castilla. Ayer moved into the house now known as Ayer's Castle which is open to visitors today as part of the University of California, Santa Cruz campus Historic District.

In 1850, two Englishmen named John Rowlands and Thomas Hutton bought Rancho Los Guijarros from Ayer. They built a wharf at what is now Watsonville Point and started shipping goods downriver to San Francisco via sea route for the first time.

A small community began to form around these businesses and the name " Santa Cruz" was suggested in 1851 by Dr. James Savage who was visiting town with his wife Elizabeth Agnes Savage (daughter of General Joseph Eager Savage). Dr Savage noted that both Saint Catherine's feast day (July 25) and President James K Polk's birthday (June 15) fell on similar days each year so he proposed naming their new community after both saints - San Carlos Borromeo de Santiago de Compostela in Spain and St Charles Borromeo di Siena in Italy - since both towns were famous for their universities.(1)

On August 6th., 1851, representatives from San Francisco met with local leaders at Rowlands' store to sign a petition requesting that Santa Cruz be renamed "Santacruz". However, due to miscommunication this petition was instead signed by representatives from Pajaro Valley including Don Luis Arguello who advocated retaining the name "SantaCruz".(2)

On December 28th., 1851 a resolution was passed by the Board of Supervisors declaring: "...that it be henceforth called...SANTA CRUZ."(3)