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The 1806 romance of a young Spanish girl and a Russian explorer continues to captivate people. The love story of Maria de la Concepcion Marcela Arguello and Nikolai Petrovich Rezanov has inspired books, a poem, a rock opera, a mural, and art tiles on Benicia’s First Street. Their tragic relationship began at the Presidio of San Francisco, while it was still under Spanish rule. Its poignant end is commemorated by a monument at St. Dominic’s Cemetery in Benicia, California.

As the story goes, in April 1806, Nikolai Petrovich Rezanov, Chamberlain of Tsar Alexander I of Russia, brought the ship Juno to San Francisco from the struggling fur-trading settlement at Sitka, Alaska, where the Russians were in desperate need of supplies. Nikolai’s intention was to establish a barter system with the Spanish in order to secure provisions for Sitka. During his time at the Presidio, Nikolai met 15 year-old Maria de la Concepcion Marcela Arguello. Concepcion, as she is commonly known, was born on February 19, 1791, at the Presidio of San Francisco. She was one of eight children born to Don Jose Arguello, the Presidio's Comandante, and his wife, Maria Ygnacia Moraga. Nikolai was a 42 year-old widower from the Russian court who needed to establish good trading relations with potential partners in California.  She was a catholic and he was a Russian orthodox.

Despite a language barrier, an age difference, and religious differences, they fell in love.  One can only imagine the impression this Russian officer would have made. His stories of the Russian court would have seemed like a fairytale adventure to the young girl from California. They spent several weeks together before Nikolai proposed marriage.  A betrothal ceremony was held. As a memento of her devotion, Concepcion gave Nikolai a locket. He promised to return from St Petersburg after he gained permission for their Russian Orthodox-Roman Catholic marriage. Then, they could begin their life together.

Concepcion waited and waited for Nikolai to return. Five years later, she learned of his death. He had contracted pneumonia and, in a weakened state, fell from his horse while riding across Siberia to reach St. Petersburg. An officer who had been with him returned to the Presidio. The officer told Concepcion that Nikolai’s last words were of her and returned the locket she had given Nikolai. After learning of his death, Concepcion refused all offers of marriage and began a life devoted to the service of others.

Concepcion cared for her parents and accompanied them to her father’s new post in Loreto, Baja California Sur. Traveling by clipper ship, they sailed down the coast of California to their new home. After her father’s service in Loreto, she accompanied her parents to Guadalajara, Mexico. Following their deaths, Concepcion became deeply involved in charity work there. Later, she returned to southern California at the invitation of family friends, where she continued her charitable efforts and became a member of the Franciscan Third Order. Eventually, she joined the Dominican nuns in the newly formed diocese of northern California, becoming the first native-born Californian to take religious vows.

For some, this story is more than a sad love affair—it is a link to their family ancestry. While researching his family tree, Don Holloway, the family historian, discovered a connection between his lineage and that of Concepcion. When Don’s family members learned of the love story and the importance of Concepcion in California’s early history, they decided they should come to Benicia to visit the site of her burial in St. Dominic’s Cemetery. In May of 1997, several family members came to Benicia to visit Concepcion’s grave and to more fully understand the significance of their relative to Benicia history and the Dominican order of nuns.

The genealogical history of the family has since been passed on to the current generation. Prior to his passing, Don spent many hours relaying the family history to his niece Ramona Mallonee of Yuba City.  Ramona decided to celebrate her birthday in Benicia visiting the grave site along with her three cousins, Sam Abid of Modesto, Kathryn Shallcross of Antelope, and Phyllis Voorhees of Lincoln.  Ramona shared, “My mother was insistent that I learn the family history from my Uncle Don, and now I am the family historian.” On April 14, 2025 this new generation of family members paid a visit to Concepcion’s–also known as Sister Dominica’s–grave site in St. Dominic’s Cemetery. They were welcomed by several members of the Benicia Historical Society and representatives of St. Dominic’s Church. Afterward, they visited St. Dominic’s Church and viewed the tile on the 900 block of First Street, created by artist Guillermo Wagner Granizo, commemorating the love story and Concepcion’s importance to the Dominican order. Concepcion’s relatives spent the rest of the afternoon in downtown Benicia enjoying their renewed connection with Benicia history.

Nikolai and Concepcion’s story was first made famous by Bret Harte in a beautiful poem titled, Concepcion de Arguello. In Russia, the love story inspired a 1979 rock opera entitled Juno and Avos, after the two Russian ships that brought Nikolai and his men to Sitka, Alaska. Over the years, visitors from Russia have come to visit Concepcion’s gravesite. In 2000, one Russian man was so moved by the story that he sought to bring the two lovers together by taking a little soil from Niokla’s grave to place on Concepcion’s, and taking a little soil from Concepcion’s grave back to Russia to place on Nikola’s grave. 

We live in a town rich with history.  It is always a pleasure to be able to help others experience the Past that is an every-day Present for us.  We invite you to join the Benicia Historical Society to discover more about Benicia’s role in California history.

Belinda Smith

President

Benicia Historical Society

In recognition of Women’s History Month, Belinda Smith, President of the Society, gave a presentation at the Benicia State Capitol on March 23, 2025 which focused on the history of laws governing property rights of married women. Many eastern states had laws copying English Common Law which did not allow married women to own property separate from their husbands. However, California under Mexican rule had in place laws similar to

 Spain and France, which did allow married women to own property. At the state constitutional convention in October, 1949, the majority of California legislators supported the constitutional right for women to own property not only to avoid the chaos of women losing a right they currently held, but also to attract more women to a new state where the ratio of men to women (not counting native peoples) was more than 13:1. In May, 1853, a related key constitutional amendment was passed in the Benicia Capitol. The amendment gave married women additional property ownership rights, including ownership of rental income and freedom from liability for their husbands’ debts.

Local historian, author, and Society member, H. Allan Gandy, spoke to a standing room only crowd in the Dona Benicia Room of the Benicia Library on Feb. 15. The attendees were eager to learn about the subject of the author’s latest book entitled Captain Matthew Turner: World-Class Shipbuilder. The author gave an overview of Turner’s long, remarkable career as our nation’s most prolific builder of sailing ships. When Turner had to close his shipyard in San Francisco, he chose to rebuild in the W 12th Street area of Benicia, where he built 184 ships between 1883 and 1904. Turner designed and sailed many different types of ships, including schooners, barkentines, steamers, and brigantines to suit the various types of cargo such as passengers, mail, California lumber, Tahitian fresh fruit, Hawaiian sugar, and Northern Pacific cod. His designs were often innovative and set speed records. He was also a founding member of the San Francisco Yacht Club and designed and built many successful racing yachts. After his business partner and dear friend Richard Rundle died, Turner married his widow Ashbeline. They were married for 28 years and he became a devoted family man to the two daughters and, later, a granddaughter. Thank you to the Benicia Public Library for collaborating with the Society on this fantastic event!

In cooperation with the Benicia Capitol State Historical Park, we hosted a free event for the community last Sunday. We had an impressive turnout of approximately 30 attendees, including some social media representatives from the Chamber of Commerce who captured video footage that we hope to share with you soon. We are most grateful to Senior Park Aide, Reese Brooks, for his theatrical, entertaining, and well-researched presentation. We hope to have more talks hosted by Reese in the future. 

On December 9, 2024 a merry and festive time was had by all who attended the Society's annual Holiday and General Membership Party. There were 30-35 who came to celebrate the season and participate in the Annual Membership Meeting. The food and beverages were delicious and plentiful. Several of our 2025 calendars were sold. Belinda Smith, the Benicia Historical Society President, presided over the announcements, approval of new bylaws, and voting in of the next board. Welcome to our new Board Member Rebecca Sullivan and thank you to Leann Taagepera for all the research and knowledge of Historic Preservation information you shared as a Board Member. The evening ended with our annual Benicia History Quiz created by our amazing Historian, Jerry Hayes. Thank you, Jerry, for another annual challenging, fun and informative quiz.

On Friday, October 18th, the Benicia Historical Society and the Benicia Capitol Speakers Toastmasters Ghost Walk hosted a ghost walk on First St. that was a smashing success! We sold out all 50 tickets! The event started at the Historic Train Depot at the end of First St. The first group was led by Toastmaster Frank Borges and the second group was led by Toastmaster Jeff Wood. The first stop was with the ghost of Jack London where Toastmaster Larry J. Miller told different stories about Jack London. The next stop was the Sailor Jack’s (now Captain Blyther's) restaurant where Toastmaster Saeed Hamzavi told everyone about the ghosts of the restaurant. The next stop was the Union Hotel where Toastmaster Jay Ligda told everyone about a love story/ghost story. The next stop was the Fischer-Hanlon House where Toastmaster Stacey Duckett talked about the many ghost stories of the house. The last stop was The Company of Wolves café (where Computer 1 and the State Farm Insurance company are now). Toastmasters Pat Purvis and Alison Harris-Abbott told the story of a ghost that is still hanging around because he was shot in the back there. Everyone had a great time and we had a lot of great feedback!

On Sunday Oct 6th the Benicia Historical Society hosted a wonderful talk at the State Capitol Building. Dr. Kerry Carney presented a very informative presentation about why our Benicia Capitol Building is such a “big deal!" She spoke about the history of each of the buildings were State Capitols, before the final location of our current Capitol in Sacramento. There were buildings in Monterey, San Jose, San Francisco, Oakland, Berkeley, Vallejo, Benicia and Sacramento that were used as Legislative State Capitols starting from 1774. The reason our beautiful building here in Benicia is a big deal is that along with the current Capitol Building that was completed in 1869, this is the only remaining structure. All the other buildings were either burnt or demolished. Many are represented with plaques but no physical buildings. So yes, we are a big deal and it is so significant to continue to preserve Benicia’s important history.

In July, the Society engaged the Phil Joy Housemoving and Leveling Company to move our Southern Pacific (S.P.) caboose to their storage yard on Goodyear Road. Restoration will include pressure washing and exterior painting in original S.P. colors. Phil Joy has generously provided his services for the initial move, pressure washing, and paint supplies gratis, but fundraising will be necessary to cover the costs of painting, site preparation, and the final move. It is the Society's intention to place the restored caboose on a section of track adjacent to the S.P. Depot. Former Planning Director, John Bunch, is providing liaison support. Anyone interested in supporting or donating to this project is encouraged to get in touch with the Society.

On August 24th, the Society held a bottle digging display and discussion event lead by local bottle digger Tom Quinn. BHS Board Member, Terence Bennett, and his wife, Brenda Crabtree, hosted the event in the lovely backyard of their historic home where Tom had done a privy dig last year. Tom has been exploring privies and digging for bottles in Benicia's historic backyards for 46 years. Tom displayed and shared stories about bottles  and other artifacts from the period of 1847 to about 1880. He researches where the bottles were made, what they contained, and how they might have made their way to Benicia. The Society looks forward to hosting more events like this for members.

Twenty five members of the Society traveled by Amtrak to the California State Railroad Museum in Old Sacramento on July 20th. We were welcomed warmly as delegates from Benicia to learn about the new exhibit and model of the Solano Train Ferry. We were treated to a free, private museum tour and a short lecture on the history of railroading in the western U.S. Benicia played a key role in that history as the Solano Train Ferry home port. The ferry was the largest train ferry in the world and ran for fifty years. Members enjoyed lunch together afterward. A huge thank you to the Museum staff!