[2][3] At the direction of Governor José Figueroa in 1835, Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo began construction of the Presidio of Sonoma to counter the Russian presence at Fort Ross.
The mill on Rancho Cañada de Jonive operated until 1849, when they sold all the lumber they had and left for the gold mines.
[4] McIntosh and Dawson agreed to make application jointly to the Mexican government for the 2 square league grant known as the Rancho Estero Americano, to confirm the title given by General Vallejo.
With the cession of California to the United States following the Mexican-American War, the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo provided that the land grants would be honored.
O'Farrell married Mary McChristian in 1849 and they moved to Rancho Cañada de Jonive, and resided there until his death in 1875.