John McDougall

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Governorship

Due to widespread discontent with his administration by the California State Legislature and press, Burnett resigned from the governorship in early January 1851. McDougal assumed the post on January 9. He had limited prior experience in elected office. In one of his first acts, McDougal signed legislation sponsored by state senator and former Mexican general Mariano Vallejo on February 4 to move the capitol from San Jose to Vallejo. The legislature convened in Vallejo in January 1852 but found no usable capitol had been built; after twelve days it relocated to Sacramento for the remainder of the session, and the capital ultimately moved to Benicia in 1853 before settling permanently in Sacramento in 1854.

In the first weeks of his governorship, McDougal was pressured by miners and residents in Mariposa County to intervene in a growing conflict later known as the Mariposa War, with the local Miwok, Chowchilla, and Yokuts tribes opposing encroachment on their land. In late January, he authorized the creation of the 200-man Mariposa Battalion, a state militia unit, to tackle natives he believed were in open rebellion against the state government. In the ensuing conflict, which left an unknown number of Indigenous people and several militiamen dead, the Mariposa Battalion became the first documented non-indigenous people to enter Yosemite Valley, reaching it around March 21, 1851.

While McDougal continued the Burnett administration's policies of violent action against California Native Americans and support for exclusion laws barring African Americans from the state, he favored Chinese immigration as a source of agricultural labor, declaring in his January 7, 1852, address to the State Legislature that the Chinese "were one of the most worthy classes of our newly adopted citizens, to whom the climate and the character of California were peculiarly suited." His successor, Governor John Bigler, reversed this position within months, calling on the legislature in April 1852 to restrict Chinese immigration.

McDougal's popularity peaked in the early days of his administration. Known for his earthy personality, McDougal's demeanor connected well with Sierra Nevada miners and Mexican–American War veterans. However, recurring drinking, gambling with assembly and senate members, and frequent quarrels over minor bureaucratic matters hurt his political career. McDougal's political mannerisms were also a source of popular amusement. McDougal issued so many proclamations beginning, "I, John McDougal," that the governor was soon known throughout the state as "I John".

Towards the end of 1851, McDougal quarreled with the growing vigilante movement in San Francisco. In a gubernatorial proclamation, he openly condemned the movement's lynching of two criminals that year, citing its complete disregard of the city's municipal authorities. State law enforcement was still in its infancy, however, and his proclamation was ignored. Bureaucratic frustration with San Francisco's vigilante movement returned during the administration of Governor J. Neely Johnson five years later.

During the 1851 state general elections, the Democratic Party refused to renominate McDougal as the party's choice for governor. Instead, state Democrats nominated Assembly Speaker John Bigler as their party's nominee.

John McDougall

John McDougall

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