How was Los Angeles area affected by the American Civil War?

By David J. "Duke" Dukesherer, Sr.

A few months back, I discussed the land holding of General William Rosecrans, which eventually became parts of Hawthorne, Gardena and Redondo Beach. The land bordered on another California Rancho: the 2,219 acre Rancho Aguaje de la Centinela, owned at the time by Bruno Avila,which today makes up all of Inglewood and most of Westchester.

This is a story of another general, a general who would not join the Army until after the American Civil War was declared, and unlike Rosecrans, fought for the Confederate States of America.

Joseph Lancaster Brent, a Maryland native and attorney, moved to the Pueblo of Los Angeles in 1851 from Baltimore on a windjammer bringing with him Southern California's first law library. He was a pioneer attorney and one of the first Americans to own land in what is now called Glendale. Between 1855 and 1858, Brent purchased a portion of Rancho San Rafael adding up to 671 acres from Julio and his sister Catalina Verdugo. The land was located across from the Los Angeles River at what is now known as Griffith Park. He named his property Santa Eulalia Ranch, named for a martyred Christian saint.

When Bruno Avila could not pay debts, his ranch was foreclosed by Halliard Dorsey, and later Francis Carpenter had to evict him. Dorsey had kindly loaned Avila $1,400.00 at 72% interest.

Finally Brent became the owner although he did not own it for long.

In mid-February 1861, as several southern states succeeded from the Union, some of the good ol' boys of early Los Angeles got together and formed a militia. It was called the Los Angeles Mounted Rifles. Brent was a founding member.

Troops stationed at Camp Latham near Ballona Creek saw right through the scheme, as it was nothing more than a group of Southern sympathizers. Charges of treason were imminent. Sensing the tension, Brent decided to sell of the ranch and tried to sneak out of California via San Diego, and he boarded the Panama steamer ORIZABA. On this ship, he and two fellow passengers, former U.S. Senator William Gwin and former U.S. Attorney Calhoun Benham were trying to make it back to the South to join the South's war effort.

As luck will have it for Brent and the other Confederates, they were arrested for treason (punishable by hanging), by Brigadier General E. V. Summer while in Colombian waters. This incident could have involved the United States in a war with Colombia except for the trio giving consent to the arrest in order to avoid any harm to the citizens of Panama City. They were finally released upon order of U.S. President Abraham Lincoln at Washington.

They immediately "went South." Brent became the Ordinance Officer for General Magruder on the Virginia Peninsula. He then transferred west as General Richard Taylor's Ordinance Officer and gained recognition for organizing and leading the capture of the U.S.S. INDIANOLA on the Red River. He was thereupon promoted to Brigadier General and given command of the Louisiana cavalry brigade on April 17, 1864, becoming the only California citizen to become a Confederate General.

Joe Brent never returned to California and lived his days out in Louisiana and Maryland.

Daniel Freeman would later own the rancho and subdivide it, creating Westchester and Inglewood.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR; D. J. “Duke” Dukesherer is a writer and historian based in Playa Del Rey, CA. He is the Founder of Full-Count Productions. As a writer, his short stories have been published, online and in print; in the USA, Canada and Ireland. His latest book; Beach of the King, The Early History of Playa Del Rey, Westchester and Playa Vista, is available at amazon.com, and in bookstores everywhere.