Mary Hillier Haggland

MARY HILLIER HAGGLAND, CALIFORNIA HISTORIAN, DIES AT 87 Mary Hillier Haggland, California historian, died on Monday, November 22, 2010 in Turlock, California. She was 87. Ms. Haggland grew up in Seattle, moved to Santa Barbara in 1947 and lived in Riverside from 1968 until 2009. Fascinated with California's early history, Mary embarked on a career as a self-taught historian. Her dedication to regional history produced varied important volumes, such as "José Antonio Bernardino Pico, 1794-1871" and "Early History of San Bernardino, Riverside and San Salvador de Jurupa, California." Her passion for uncovering original archival material was fueled in 1980 when she met Ruth Margaret Pico, a fifth-generation descendant of California's pioneer Pico and Aguirre families. Ms. Pico's stories of her family's life in San Diego, numerous documents and photographs became the foundation for Ms. Haggland's account of California's Spanish, Mexican and early American periods. Her manuscript, titled "Spanish Pioneers of California: 1769-1866, The True Story of a Land and Its People," occupied the next and final thirty years of Mary's life. Throughout these decades, Ms. Haggland wrote many scholarly articles and was invited to give lectures about early California. Amid her research and writing, Mary served as a historian for the Jurupa Mountains Cultural Center in Rubidoux, a member of the Riverside County Historical Commission and a volunteer at Riverside's Jensen-Alvarado Historic Ranch and Museum. Over the years, she shared her research with numerous historians and genealogists. Mary is remembered and deeply respected by her peers, family and friends for her generous spirit. Mary Haggland, daughter of Jean Alison Campbell Goggio and Charles Goggio, was born on July 21, 1923 in Seattle, Washington. Ms. Haggland is survived by her husband, James, and three sons, Martin, of New York City, Ernest, of Buellton, California, and David, of Turlock, California; a brother, Charles Goggio, Jr., of Seattle; and nine grandchildren. A fourth son, Eric, preceded her in death.