Plat map of the 48,611.88-acre Rancho San Francisco as confirmed to Jacoba Feliz in June 1874 — by which time her family no longer owned it.

Mexican Army Lt. Antonio del Valle was granted the Rancho San Francisco by the Mexican governor of Alta California in 1839. Antonio's second wife was Jacoba Feliz. Antonio died in 1841 and Jacoba remarried (Jose Salazar). Statehood came in 1850; under the Land Act of 1851, the U.S. government upheld the legitimate claims of Spanish and Mexican (and other) landowners but required that the land be surveyed. It often took time. In the case of the Rancho San Francisco, it took more than 20 years. The U.S. government finally granted a land patent on the rancho to Jacoba Feliz et al. (other family members) on March 18, 1875.

Meatime, the drought of the early 1860s wiped out the Del Valles. The practice was to borrow money at the beginning of the season and pay it back at the end when the cattle were fattened and brought to market. The drought killed the Del Valles' herd and they couldn't repay the loans. They lost the rancho to the lenders — all but the western edge (Camulos), which they were allowed to keep.