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Hello!
I am looking for any information/connections with the family surname of Martinez of the Los Californios of early California history. Specifically with the Rancho Pinole in the Contra Costa county and the town of Martinez.
My name is Amiee Conn, I am the granddaughter of Margaret Mary MARTINEZ (born: 4 Jan. 1919) and Robert Harold PENOLI DONELSON. My grandmother is from the long line of the los Californios Martinez's going back to Don Ignacio MARTINEZ who owned Rancho Pinole in Martinez, CA. This family has many ties in California history and marriages with Vallejo, Carrillo, etc. family members. The problem is that each generation's family is sooooooo huge (Don Ignacio had about 11 children!) it's been VERY hard trying to find the exact link to my family side of the Martinez branch from the history books. If anybody knows of any cites available that would help or any knowledge to the following names please send me a message! I would love to exchange information and share family history!
My grandmother's parents were: Laura May COLBURN and Walter Charles MARTINEZ. His siblings were: Carmelletta MARTINEZ (who was believe to have had a twin?), Herbert MARTINEZ & Woodward MARTINEZ (also twins), John MARTINEZ, Theodore MARTINEZ, and Rafael MARTINEZ Jr. There is also a Carmel Grace MARTINEZ but I'm not sure if she was a sister, wife or daughter/niece to one of them. I believe she received some of the acres of the Rancho Pinole later on in the years. There was also some speculation to my grandmother's true biological father. She has known for many years that she was adopted, but it's strongly believed that she was adopted through her own family. It's very possible that her biological father was Woodward MARTINEZ, whom she would grow up to know as "Uncle" Woods, and that the family - Walter Charles MARTINEZ and Laura May COLBURN who had trouble with producing their own children, covered up the "child out of wedlock scandal" of that day by adopting her as their own. She grew up as an only child, but there also may have been a second child -twin girl - sister to my grandmother that the biological mother kept and raised possibly in Berkely (name possibly ironically Mary Margaret MARTINEZ. Everything was hushed hushed but my grandmother says she had a few looks at hidden away documents as a child and has been struggling to piece this information together ever since. She's never had a birth certificate (supposedly the building burned down that it was kept in) so we can't find legal documents that would show this information accurately.
Anyway, the MARTINEZ children mentioned above, their parents were Alice McCARTIN and DON Rafael MARTINEZ. From him I have no direct linkage names until, I believe, Rafaela MARTINEZ who married Dr. Samuel J. Tennent in the 1850's and she was one of the daughters of DON Ignacio MARTINEZ.
I've been told Don Ignacio Martinez family originally came from Spain and was Castillian. I don't know anything about his wife, family in Spain and/or Mexico, or his past. Possibly went to Mexico first then to California region to set up his Rancho Pinole while it was still apart of Mexican territory. We still have family heirloom of a cattle branding iron of the Rancho Pinole's symbol/logo that has been passed down our line for generations. :)
If anyone has ANY information to ANY of the names written above please don't hesitate to write back to me! I've been working on this side of the family for a very long time and need help finding organized, accurate information with the rich California history. I hope I may also be of help to some people by providing some more names to possibly their side of the family and may find a connection to one another.
Thank you very much for taking the time to read this as I've poured out as much as I know at this point. Thank you! :)
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