The Temecula Massacre: A Forgotten Battlefield Landscape of the Mexican-American War

The sequence of events surrounding the Temecula Massacre illustrates a complex narrative of pre-statehood California. The Battle of San Pasqual is considered in the textbooks of United States and California history to be the bloodiest conflict of the War, with eighteen Americans killed. However, the loss of Native American lives during the Temecula Massacre, which occurred a few weeks after this battle, claimed four times that number. Further, in the aftermath, the bodies of the deceased were removed from where they were slaughtered and buried in a mass grave. The event and its people have since been overlooked in California annals.

Today, the Temecula Indian Cemetery is one of the last visages of the disastrous tumult of 1846-1847 and is a case study of contemporary historic preservation efforts. It stands inside an irreplaceable landscape with dynamic histories that demonstrate the cultural complexities of Native California. The cemetery also brings a paramount sense of place to the earliest known people and their descendants.

The living landscapes in this book contain stories that continue to be told and possess continued significance. Often the experiences of Native people are lost through history, and only by unraveling the many perspectives of the Temecula Massacre can this pivotal intersection of California and Tribal histories begin to be understood.

What’s included in this book:

• Timeline of events
• Glossary of 'Atáaxum (Luiseño) names and words with pronunciation provided using English phonetics
• Unknown Tribal testimonies and accounts
• Aerial and detailed maps depicting the battle grounds, troop movement, and surrounding landscape
• QR Code for accompanying documentary about the Temecula Massacre