025: What it Means to Be a Californio: Author and Descendant Greg Bernal-Mendoza Smestad
This is a special episode from the California Frontier Show archives.
In this episode, I speak with Greg Bernal-Mendoza Smestad, a direct descendant of the families who settled Alta California over 200 years ago. Greg talks to us about their journey, the character of those who risked their lives to come north, and the legacy they passed on.
When Spanish explorers came to Alta California in 1769, they soon understood that they would never be able to defend the province from the English and Russians if they did not found a colony populated by families.
In 1775, Felipe de Neve, the governor of…
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