# Portolá Expedition **Domain:** Colonial History / California Geography **Doc Type:** Historical Event Node **Maturity:** Developed ## Definition The **Portolá expedition** was the Spanish overland expedition of 1769–1770 through Alta California associated with the colonial reconnaissance of the San Francisco Bay region and the naming of numerous sites. ## Evidence and Colonial Context The expedition's records are part of the documentary history of the name Santa Cruz and El Palo Alto. They are also records of colonial entry into Indigenous territories, not neutral geographic discovery. [[articles/The Evolutionary Roots of Silicon Valley|The Evolutionary Roots of Silicon Valley]] invokes the expedition to reject a false etymological connection between Santa Cruz, California, and Santa Cruz Island in the Galápagos. The connection between the places is disciplinary and retrospective, not a single naming event. ## Continuity Context Naming is an exercise of power over archives and maps. A later official name can obscure older place relations. Provenance therefore requires retaining both the documentary event and the prior Indigenous context. ## Sources / Provenance - U.S. National Park Service, Spanish exploration of Alta California: https://www.nps.gov/subjects/travelspanishmissions/ - City of Palo Alto historical context: https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/ ## See Also [[wiki/Ohlone|Ohlone]], [[wiki/El Palo Alto|El Palo Alto]], [[wiki/Galápagos Islands|Galápagos Islands]], [[wiki/Provenance|Provenance]]