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Source: Thompson, Robert A., Historical and descriptive sketch of 
Sonoma County, California. Philadelphia: L.H. Everts & Co., 1877, 122 pgs. 

Notice: This data is donated to the Public Domain by TAG, 2004, 
and may be copied freely by anyone to anywhere.
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Monterey on the first of September. R. Semple, one of the delegates from the
Sonoma district, was chosen president. The constitution was framed, was sub-
mitted to the people, and on the 13th day of November was ratified by them.
At the same time Peter D. Burnett was elected the first civil governor. At this
election the district of Sonoma polled but five hundred and fifty-two votes, of
which four hundred and twenty-four were for Burnett, and one hundred and
twenty-eight were for Sherwood. One of the last civil appointments made by
General Riley before the adoption of the constitution, was that of Richard A.
Maupin, a well-remembered Sonoma pioneer, to be judge of the superior tribu-
nal, vice Lewis Dent, who had resigned. Jacob R. Snyder, now a resident of
this county, was a member of the constitutional convention from Sacramento
district.

The first legislature met in San Jose in January, 1850. General M.G. Vallejo 
was a member of the senate from Sonoma. J. O. Bradford and J. E. Brackett 
were members of the assembly. General Vallejo's seat was first given 
to Jonas Spect, but on the 22nd of December the committee reported that the 
official return from Larkins ranch gave Spect but two votes instead of twenty-
eight, a total of but one hundred and eighty-one votes against General Vallejo's
one hundred and ninety-nine. Mr. Spect then gave up his seat to General Vallejo. 
At this session of the legislature General Vallejo made his well-known
report on the derivation and definition of the names of the several counties of
this State; a report unequaled in its style and in the amount of interesting
information crowded into its small compass. In that report first appeared the
explanation of the Indian word Sonoma, signifying "Valley of the Moon".
The Senator further said, the tribe occupying Sonoma valley was called the
Chocuyens, but, in 1824, on the arrival of the first expedition to establish a
mission, the name Sonoma having been given the chief by Father Jose Altimira, 
the Chocuyens then adopted the name, which they still retain. This
tribe was subject to a great chief named Marin de Licatiut, who made his 
headquarters near Petaluma.

There was not much done at this session further than organizing the State
and county government. Assemblyman J. E. Brackett was elected major-
general of the second division of the militia, and Robert Hopkins was elected
district judge. Mr. Hopkins was a lawyer, living in Sonoma, and had been
appointed, with the Hon. George Pearce, a committee to visit San Jose, the then
capital, and prevent the establishment of a boundary line which would include
the valley of Sonoma in the county of Napa. Arriving, they found the ques-
tion of appointing a district judge for the Sonoma district coming up, and the
only candidate was W. R. Turner, who had never been in the district, or at
all events did not reside there. Pearce proposed to Hopkins to run for the
office. Turner, who up to this time had, as he thought, no opposition, and a
sure thing was beaten just as he was stretching his hand for the prize. Hopkins 
got a unanimous vote, and Turner went for some other district, and was
appointed. Mr. Pearce who had gone to San Jose for one purpose, very unex-
pectedly accomplished another, and Mr. Hopkins returned as the district judge
of Sonoma.

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