It is currently the 5,600-acre Rancho Jamul Ecological Reserve, operated by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
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.
While stationed in San Diego, Captain Henry Stanton Burton (–1869) of the First Regiment of New York Volunteers and his new wife, María Amparo Ruiz (1833 –1895), occupied Rancho Jamul in 1854.
In 1867, nearly twelve years after the claim had been rejected, an appearance was entered in the United States district court on behalf of General Burton.
[7] The rancho was used as collateral for mortgages, and numerous claims were filed against the estate and the litigation continued for years.