A Scotch Paisano in Old Los Angeles

By Susanna Bryant Dakin

This is an interesting story of Hugo Reid, who once owned Rancho Santa Anita. The book provides an insight into the days of southern California both before and after annexation by the United States.  

Hugo Reid immigrated from Scotland, perhaps after losing at love, to Mexico.  On impulse, he sailed to the port of San Pedro in Alta California in 1832.  He was able to observe first hand the California of the Mission period, where the Missions controlled the land, which was worked by the Native Americans, known as neophytes.

Hugo Reid married Dona Victoria, who was a widow with two children.  More importantly she was a Gabrielino Indian.  Of course, as an immigrant, Hugo was a naturalized Mexican citizen and was baptized Catholic, taking the name, Perfecto.

Hugo Reid made a lasting contribution to the history of early California by publishing letters in the local newspaper that described the culture of the Gabrielino Indians and was critical of their treatment under the Mission system.

Governor Pio Pico granted Hugo Reid the land that became Rancho Santa Anita, which he ultimately sold to his former business partner, Henry Dalton.  Hugo Reid and William Workman became co-owners of the San Gabriel Mission, which Pio Pico sold to finance the defense of California from possible invasion by the United States.

Of interest is the author’s description of the attic of Reid’s adobe, “where red peppers were strung from the rafters...”, reminiscent of the rafters in the Workman House.