She Was the First and Only Woman to be Hanged in California: The Tragic Tale of "Pretty Juanita"
Pretty Juanita might have been a footnote in history, but her claim to notoriety has echoed through time. In the summer of 1851, she became the first and only woman ever hung in California
Background
Today, Downieville, California, is a small, quiet town in Sierra County. In 1851, though, it was a rugged gold mining camp and one of the state’s most popular and populous towns.
First settled during the California Gold Rush of 1849 by Major William Downie, a Scotsman, and located where the Downie River and the north fork of the Yuba River meet.
After gold was discovered nearby in September 1849, Downie led an expedition of seven African American men and two Caucasians.
They discovered a rich vein, built a cabin, and settled in to wait for spring. During the interim, a town sprang up around them.
A year later, in 1850, Downieville had grown to fifteen hotels, four bakeries, four butcher shops, and plenty of saloons. By 1851, the town had gained a reputation for lawlessness among its 5,000 residents. Sadly, it became the perfect setting for crime and murder.
Who was “Pretty Juanita”?
A young woman named Josefa Sergovia, often called “Pretty Juanita” in historical accounts of the time, worked in Jack Craycroft’s Gambling Palace as a card dealer. Little is known about Juanita’s early life or her birth. Sources say Juanita was petite, less than five feet tall, very pretty, intelligent, and well-loved by the local miners.
Other sources say Juanita had a temper and wasn’t afraid to show it. She was around her mid-twenties when she died.
The story goes that Juanita lived with a man named Jose Loaiza., whom she had followed from Mexico to Downieville. They lived in a small adobe on Downieville’s Main Street.
It is unknown if they were married, but most historians say they weren’t. Because of this, many of the town’s “respectable” citizens shunned her.
Juanita or Josefa?
There’s always been some controversy over Juanita’s true identity. No known photographs exist, and the only depiction of the infamous event is an artist’s sketch of the hanging from William Downie's Hunting for Gold, published in 1893.
A historian named Rodolfo F. Acuna states Juanita’s real name was Juana Loaiza. He bases his information on an 1877 Schedule of Mexican Claims Against the US.
Jose Maria Loaiza claimed damages for the lynching of his wife, Juana. Other historians believe this might have been a false claim. No mention is made of Juana Loaiza in the 1850 census of the time.
The term “Juanita” was often considered a derogatory slur used for any woman of Mexican origin during that time period. Oftentimes, Mexican Americans were treated with bias and suspicion.
This could have been why Josefa, if that was her true name, was given the name “Pretty Juanita.” Newspaper accounts of the trial and lynching often refer to her as “the Mexican” or “the little woman.” Many people thought Juanita didn’t have a surname.
In 1976, to settle the matter and give Josefa the respect she deserved, Martha Cotera, an activist of the Chicano Movement, informed Chicano scholars Juanita’s last name was Sergovia.
The Chicano Movement was a social and political movement in the US that helped its members embrace a Chicano identity to fight against racism directed towards Mexican Americans.
Although there is no historical reasoning behind this name, in later accounts, Juanita is known as Josefa Sergovia.
Fourth of July Celebration
Like the rest of the country, Downieville celebrated the 1851 Fourth of July holiday in style. It was the first holiday since California became a state. There was plenty of drinking, and the saloons were overflowing with miners whose pockets were lined with gold dust.
Crowds grew rowdy with celebration and wild merriment. There were parades and a speech by the state’s first governor.
Like most of the other men in town, one Scotsman, Frederick Cannon, known as “Jock,” drank to excess. At one point during the evening, he and his friends ended up in Jack Craycroft’s Gambling Palace, where he bought drinks for everyone.
While in a drunken stupor, Jock stumbled and grabbed the shoulder of the pretty lady dealing cards. It was an accident. However, Josefa Sergovia did not see it that way.
She whipped out a long Bowie knife and threatened him. Everyone stopped as all eyes watched the drama unfold. Josefa was ready to defend her honor. To the relief of some in the crowd, Jock’s friends dragged him away. Incident forgotten.
Later that night, Jock and his friends made their way home. Still in a jubilant holiday mood, like schoolboys flushed with too much beer, they banged on doors as they walked along.
When they passed the home of Juanita and Jose, they knocked the door down and barged inside. “Jock” Cannon was the instigator.
Deputy Sheriff Mike Gray would later state that the men had entered the Loaiza home and created a disturbance. However, he was not allowed to testify at Juanita’s trial.
Witnesses said Juanita was furious. Known for her temper, she threatened Jock. Lucky for him, his friends stepped in and dragged Cannon home to sleep it off. Juanita’s knife went back under her pillow.
The Incident
Most violent confrontations have an inciting incident, often something so seemingly small that someone else might shrug it off. The same held true for the actions that led to Jock Cannon’s death and Juanita’s charge of murder.
Witnesses later stated that by the next morning, Jock had sobered up. He went to apologize to the couple for his hijinks the night before. Jose, worried about replacing the front door that Jock had damaged with his fist, demanded payment. Jock refused.
As the argument intensified, Juanita stepped into the fray. Jock and the couple then went into the house to continue the discussion. People could hear loud arguing coming from inside the home.
As Juanita would later relate, fearing for her and Jose’s life, she pulled out her knife. Minutes later, Jock stumbled out the door, bleeding from a fatal knife wound to the chest.
Murder or Self-Defense?
Cries of murder filled the streets. For a town known for lawlessness, the miners were a united group. Jock’s body was exhibited for everyone to see, shirt open to show the fatal knife wound.
An angry mob demanded justice for Jock. Still protesting their innocence, both Juanita and Jose were arrested. A sham trial was hurriedly put together. The previous day had been a time of celebration, but now, the festive mood of the crowd had disappeared.
Now, they seemed like a blood-thirsty gang set on vengeance. The trial was held on the same platform where, the day before, the town had celebrated the nation’s birth.
More than 2,000 of the town’s citizens came to watch.
Juanita was given a defense lawyer who tried to help her. He arranged for a doctor named Aiken to examine her. Aiken stated that Juanita was pregnant, and he argued the child should not suffer for the sins of the mother.
She should be allowed to live, at least until she gave birth.
Not happy with this turn of events, the angry mob ran Aiken out of town and sought out other doctors to disagree with his diagnosis.
Deputy Sheriff Mike Gray wasn’t allowed to testify that Jock and his friends had caused trouble for Juanita and Jose the night before. Other witnesses for her defense were also barred from testifying.
Jose was allowed to testify that Jock had called Juanita a slur. That she had stabbed Cannon to protect him.
When it came time for her testimony, Juanita admitted to killing Cannon. She confessed to being afraid of the miners and slept with a knife for protection. She cited several incidents when the miners, including Jock, had threatened her.
However, nothing she or Jose said mattered. The verdict came quickly – Guilty. Juanita was sentenced to hang. Immediately.
Juanita was given an hour to prepare herself for death. Jose was asked to leave town.
Execution
A gallows was hastily built over the bridge on the Yuba River. The townspeople lined the riverbanks to watch Juanita’s execution. Historians would later say the hanging was to quell the anger people felt at Cannon’s murder.
The only way to soothe the agitated feelings of the townspeople and keep more trouble from breaking out. Juanita was the sacrificial offering needed to satisfy the town’s blood lust.
Preparing to die, Juanita dressed in a red hoop skirt, her best. She continually maintained her innocence and is known to have said, “I would do the same again if I were provoked.”
The little woman was calm and courageous. She adjusted her long, dark hair and put the noose around her own neck. A newspaper account recorded her final words, “Adiós, señores,” before she stepped off the block and into history.
She remains the only woman ever hung in California.
Justice Served?
As time goes by, more and more questions become glaringly obvious. Did Juanita die because she was Mexican? Did an angry mob’s mentality prevent testimony that could have rendered her a verdict of self-defense?
Even as Juanita was buried, ironically right next to Jock Cannon, the town was reviled for their rash actions.
Eventually, the city of Downieville placed a historical marker on the Craycroft Building to commemorate the event.
It reads simply, “In Memory of Juanita,” and goes on to describe events, including the “mob” trial. Perhaps it’s a reminder and a warning of what can happen on a heated summer day when emotions run high and tempers flare.
Sources:
Bishari, N. S. (n.d.). Yesterday’s Crimes: Lynching a Woman in Gold Country. SFWeekly. https://www.sfweekly.com/archives/yesterday-s-crimes-lynching-a-woman-in-gold-country/article_6dd354ec-e3e3-5bbe-81cc-a29b28adaf42.html
Boardman, M. (2020, November 4). Hanging Pretty Juanita. True West Magazine. https://truewestmagazine.com/hanging-pretty-juanita/
Farrier, N. J. (n.d.). Josefa Segovia - Pretty Juanita. https://www.hhhistory.com/2016/08/josefa-segovia-pretty-juanita.html
Hewins, S. (2023, December 25). The Hanging of Juanita: The Only Woman to Be Lynched in California. Owlcation. https://owlcation.com/humanities/Downieville-and-the-Hanging-of-Juanita-The-First-Last-and-Only-Woman-to-be-Lynched-in-California
McPhate, M. (2019, July 3). The murky case of Josefa Segovia. California Sun. https://www.californiasun.co/the-murky-case-of-josefa-segovia/
Thank you for telling this story. One of the details that surprised me was the promptness with which she was tried, and executed. Do you know if this was common? Where does the wait between conviction and execution come from?