We are excited to have the Inspired by Juana: La Doña de la Frontera exhibit co-curator Dr. Perlita Dicochea lead the Modern Latina Book Club this month as we read Juana Briones of Nineteenth-Century California
Meet Juana Briones: 19th Century Healer, Pioneer y una Voz
By: Perlita Dicochea, Ph.D.
The story of an ordinary Afro-mestiza who led an extraordinary life during tumultuous times is the driving force behind Jeanne Farr McDonnell’s book Juana Briones of 19th Century California. Weaving together both a rich history and biography with a wealth of available evidence—including court testimonies, government documents, personal letters, and well-preserved artifacts—McDonnell reveals a multifaceted Juana (1802-1889) in her roles as entrepreneur, pioneer, curandera, landowner, mother, and remarkably courageous voice.
Born in Branciforte (present-day Santa Cruz) to parents whom were among the first colonizers under Spain from the northern regions of present-day Mexico, Juana overcame personal suffering while healing others throughout the Spanish, Mexican, and Anglo-American political eras and independently accumulating the capital to own over 4000 acres of land in present-day Los Altos and Los Altos Hills.
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