In honor of International Women’s Day, we are highlighting the life story of Rafaela Cota de Temple. She was the wife of John Temple, who established a cattle ranch at Rancho Los Cerritos in 1844 and commissioned the construction of the Rancho’s adobe home. Rafaela Cota was born in March 1812 at the Santa Barbara Presidio to[…]
Rafaela Cota de Temple: Hija del Pais (Daughter of the Land)
By Sarah Wolk FitzGerald history Mar 08, 2021
Recruited by Long Beach Police Captain Tom Williams as a “social experiment” in January 1908, Fanny Bixby Spencer (1879-1930) is believed to have been America’s first policewoman. In her own words, “My work as a special officer was unique because I entered before the days of regular policewoman and I blazed a trail. I went[…]