Central Valley
Gabriel Moraga was one of the first Europeans to see and explore the Central Valley of California (1806–1808). He led expeditions of soldiers to do the first Spanish explorations of the valley.
Moraga became the source of many place names in the region which are derived from the same names of the rivers that he named:
- San Joaquin County, and San Joaquin Valley after the San Joaquin River
- Sacramento and Sacramento, County after the Rio del Santissimo Sacramento ("River of the Most Blessed Sacrament")
- Merced County, and Merced after the Merced River, which he named El Río de Nuestra Señora de la Merced (The River of Our Lady of Mercy)
- Kings County and the Kings River, which he named Río de los Santos Reyes (River of the Holy Kings)
- Calaveras County and the Calaveras River or Río de las Calaveras named after skulls found there
- Mariposa County, Mariposa, Mariposa River and the old name of the Chowchilla River, Big Mariposa River, which was named after the swarms of butterflies Moraga found in the region of Chowchilla, California.
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Famous quotes containing the words central and/or valley:
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“Ah! I have penetrated to those meadows on the morning of many a first spring day, jumping from hummock to hummock, from willow root to willow root, when the wild river valley and the woods were bathed in so pure and bright a light as would have waked the dead, if they had been slumbering in their graves, as some suppose. There needs no stronger proof of immortality. All things must live in such a light. O Death, where was thy sting? O Grave, where was thy victory, then?”
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