All the marriages were extravagant and gala occasions, with feasting and dancing and games that went on for days.
Don Ygnacio fired his cannon to celebrate his eldest son’s first marriage. Gold Mexican utensils decorated the
tables, with Indian servants serving all types of foods.
It was a time to show off skills of horsemanship and wealth. Every rancho had its own race track.
Besides horse racing, a favorite sport to show one’s skill as a vaquero was to bury a live rooster so only its head was
showing. The rider at full gallop would lean down and “snatch” the rooster’s head from the body.
This was the sequence of events of love and courtship before marriage in early California:
Parents were in charge. First, the son would ask his father if he approved of his lady fair. If the father approved, he
wrote a letter to the girl’s father asking if his son may marry the daughter.
If the girl’s parents approved, they discussed with the daughter if she liked the young fellow. If so, a letter was
written to the young fellow’s father accepting the marriage proposal.
If the offer was rejected by the girl and parents, a letter was also sent turning down the offer.
When Don Ygnacio’s son, Jose, married, the celebration lasted a week at El Rancho Pinole.
Don Ygnacio invited 100 guests and had to add extra rooms to his house for them to sleep over.
Dancing went on all night long with only short naps. Each morning guests went on picnics and in the afternoon
there were bullfights and horse racing and betting.
Feasting and dancing went on continuously.
Don Ygnacio Martinez was so proud of his sons’ marriages to prominent neighbors that he built two adobe homes
next to his large casa for the newlyweds.
These became known as the three adobe homes of El Rancho Pinole, later called “Pinole Viejo” or “Old Pinole.”
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