by Garrison Frost

On the East Coast, one can't go down any road or enter any town without finding markers and signs indicating where various important battles took place long ago. The French and Indian War. The Revolutionary War. The Civil War.

So when people come out west, they always criticize us for not having any history here. Well, obviously there is history here, even the kind they're looking for. For the battle for Los Angeles was fought right where mini-malls and urban sprawl now sit. And just because we don't remember much about it doesn't mean it didn't happen.

The war between the United States and Mexico was barely two months old when forces under Commodore Robert Stockton and Major John C. Fremont occupied Los Angeles peacefully on Aug. 13, 1846. The two brought 500 men, which were more than enough to scare off the Mexican commandante of California, José Maria Casto, whose Californio army scattered.

That would have concluded the story of the conquest of Los Angeles if not for a poor personnel decision by Stockton. Before leaving for northern California, he placed Archibald Gillespie in charge of the city. Gillespie, who had joined the army as one of Fremont's associates, was overly domineering with the Angelenos, Quite anxious to remain peaceful if left alone, the Angelenos bristled at Gillespie's pointless regulations, unreasonable curfew and arbitrary arrests.

On the night of Sept. 23, a number of Angeleos, reportedly drunk, attacked the army garrison. Gillespie ordered arrests, including one of José Maria Flores, who eventually escaped and organized compatriots outside the city. When he had amassed 400 men, he attacked the city. At about the same time, another Californio group forced a group of American settlers to surrender near Pomona. The victory spurred the Angelenos to surround Gillespie and his men in a hilltop fort in the middle of the city.

Fort Moore, as it was eventually named, is long since buried under downtown's growth. The spot where the fort was located is now occupied by the administrative offices of the Los Angeles Unified School District on Hill Street between Temple and Ord. There is a plaque on the spot commemorating the men lost during the fall of 1846.

Gillespie did make one good decision during his tenure. At the height of his battle with the Californios, he sent a courier, John Brown, with word to Stockton up north. Amazingly, Brown broke through the Angeleno lines and made San Francisco and Monterey. If he had been captured or killed by the Californios, the history of Southern California might be very different today.

Eventually, Gillespie did have to surrender from his hilltop position in Los Angeles. The Californios let him go with a promise that he would take his men to San Pedro harbor and leave the area forever. After the treatment they received under his rule, the Californios should have known better than to expect Gillespie to keep his promise.

Meanwhile, a group of Americans under Captain William Mervine came ashore in San Pedro. With about 300 men Mervine and Gillespie attempted to retake Los Angeles, only to be fought back to their ships by Californios wielding lances and a light cannon, which they had hidden in town during the occupation. The cliffs of Palos Verdes, dotted in modern times with million dollar homes, then served as a parade ground for the Californios, who fired both curses and shot at the hapless Americans who took refuge in Mervine's ship. This loss, coupled with other losses at Santa Barbara and San Diego, completed the retaking of Southern California by the Californios.

Stockton finally arrived in San Pedro in late October, but after seeing the hopeless situation, decided to try his luck at San Diego. After fighting his way into the hills above San Diego, Stockton received word that General Stephen Kearny and his "Army of the West" were traveling overland from Santa Fe. Kearny's troops, in fact, were pinned down by Andres Pico and San Pasqual. After making a hasty rescue of Kearny's men, Stockton found his strength greatly increased.

After some time, Stockton was able to advance to the north and meet with Gillespie outside of Los Angeles. Traveling north, they were first met by Californio forces at the San Gabriel river. A short battle ensued, resulting in two dead and eight wounded on each side. Today the battle site is located near Bluff Road near the border of Whittier and Montebello. Bluff Road is a pleasant shady lane with houses and horse stables overlooking the Rio Hondo River, which took the place of the rerouted San Gabriel during a flood in the channel 20 years after the events under discussion.

While the actual battle site is now a residential neighborhood with well-cared for lawns, a historic marker located a few hundred yards down the road at Washington Boulevard commemorates the spot where the Californios lay in wait for the Americans. From the spot on the bluff, one is afforded an excellent view of the plain below. If not for the concrete walls of the river, a visitor might be able to picture the battlefield as it was in January of 1847. All one has to do is turn around to be reminded of the 20th Century, however. Just behind the marker is a 60s-style motel called the Motel Bahia, advertising "Low Weekly Rates. Welcome truckers. High Security. Cable Movies." Across the street is the less interesting King's Motel and Taco Bell.

Anyway, after crossing the river, the American troops advanced to meet Flores' 300-strong force near a ravine where the curious industrial city of Vernon now stands. People not familiar with Los Angeles would probably be surprised to learn that such a place as Vernon exists here. Nothing could be further aesthetically from the beach and glitz that L.A. is known for.

According to historian Lynn Bowman, the "Battle of La Mesa" took place near the 4500 block of Downey Road, a spot now desolate with wide empty streets, overhead wires, anonymous warehouses and decaying railroad crossings. To the south now rests a gigantic white building ominously labeled "Federal Cold Storage." Across the street is an old brick building, Kee Kee Liquor. Save the distant clanging of a railroad bell, there is no quieter place in Los Angeles on a Sunday afternoon.

In the battle itself, Flores made the mistake of firing wildly with his cannons, and eventually ran out of gunpowder. His men advanced on the Americans and clashed unsuccessfully. Flores and his men scattered and Stockton reoccupied the city of Los Angeles on Jan. 10, 1847, with Gillespie raising the American flag over the same quarters he was forced to abandon four months earlier.

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