Ynes (Inez) M Redondo was born November 1891 in Altar, Mexico to Nabor Redondo (1848-1927) and Margarita Mendez (1851-1920). Nabor and Margarita had 8 children: Guadalupe, Luis, Antonio, Nabor, Maragrita, Ynes, Carmen and Delfina. Her Redondo lineage is filled with celebrated figures and events, more below.

Ynes moved to the U.S. by 1912 and met her future husband thru a cousin (Elias) on the Sopori ranch. She married Charles R Proctor in 1914 in Tubac, AZ. They lived at the Box Canyon Ranch then moved to a new ranch near Madera Canyon. Ynes traveled to Tucson for each of her 8 children, a bumpy, dusty 30 or so miles.

She was an amazing cook and would often use native plants in her recipes. Her daughter Margaret describes,

My mother supplemented our meals with wild edible plants. She cooked the wild amaranth and goosefoot as spinach. Purslane (Portulaca oleracea) can either be cooked or eaten raw (it is very good mixed in salads). Green mesquite beans can also be cooked, but only when the pod is very tender. The pads of the prickly pear cactus (nopalitos) can be boiled and canned and prepared in different ways. The fruit is very good, eaten raw or prepared in jelly.
Mesquite beans are very nutritious and can be eaten raw or made into puddings. They can also be ground up, without the seeds, and used in cereals. The seeds are ground separately and used as flour. We also gathered chucata, the amber-colored mesquite sap. Some chucata is very sweet. We ate it raw, or my mother would make it into candy. She also made candy from the barrel or com pas cactus. [1]

Her husband, Charles R Proctor, decided to change the livestock brand because a similar brand had been newly registered and he was losing cattle. Ynes drew two circles saying, to her husband, “this is you and this is me.” Then she drew the U saying, “and we are united in marriage.” So it was a love story.  – RPC

Ynes Redondo Proctor died October 1960.

YNES REDONDO LINEAGE

The Redondo surname is well known throughout northern Mexico and the southwest United States. Here is a brief breakdown of her family ties.

Ynes’ father, Nabor Redondo (1848-1927) worked as a teamster at Helvetia Mine, then as a wood cutter near Elephant Butte. His parents were Luis Marcelo Redondo (1815-1865) and Rosa Bustamante (1821-1898).

Her uncle was Antonio Redondo (1842-1882) who married Serafina Ortiz (1841-1874) then Margarita Ronstadt (1848-1905).

Her great grandfather, Santiago Redondo was appointed to account the assets of the missions of the Pimeria Alta when Mexico took over from Spain.

Ynes’ great uncle was Jose Maria Redondo (1830-1878). Entrepreneur, Prefect of Altar, Mexico, father of Yuma and Arizona Territorial Legislature. His daughter Margarita Redondo married Fred A Ronstadt in 1867.

– – – – – – – –

In 1821 Tomas and Ignacio Ortiz received a land grant from the Mexican government named San Ignacio de la Canoa. “Ignacio was a member of a convention in Tucson in 1856 held to promote territorial status for this new area of the United States. The following year he was killed by Papago Indians as he returned from a trip to California with C. D. Poston.” [2] After 1857, the land grant was left to Tomas Ortiz and family to manage. In 1876, the Canoa ranch heirs were accessed $8888 by Pima County and given notice to appear before the board. [3] In apparent ill health a land deal was said to be finalized by Ortiz’ granddaughter, Rosa Redondo (1860-1949). Maish & Driscoll took control of the Canoa ranch in April 1877. Tomas Ortiz died July 31, 1877. It was a highly disputed land grant for many decades.

Redondo family members stayed in the Canoa area for many years. During an interview with local, Gus Amado talks about the later homes built on the ranch, “I knew the guy that built them. He was Gilbert’s uncle, Chico Redondo. He built the homes. I remember when that was going on. Maybe that was the early forties. They used to mention Chico Redondo. He built all those houses. They’re beautiful homes.” [4]

– – – – – – – –

Ynes’ grandmother had taken refuge at the church in Caborca, Mexico during the Henry A Crabb Filibuster Expedition (1857). More can be found on the historical account at San Diego History Center.  The legend goes: After a multi-day conflict, two members of Crabb’s party placed a barrel of gun powder at the church door.  They lit the fuse a couple times yet it was extinguished by A Lady in Blue.  More on the family story written by Margaret Proctor Redondo. [5]

– – – – – – – –

[1] Margaret Proctor Redondo and James S. Griffith, The Journal of Arizona History. Vol. 34, No. 3 (Autumn, 1993), pp. 267-268. Arizona Historical Society

[2] Richard R. Willey. The Smoke Signal, La Canoa: A Spanish Land Grant Lost and Found. Fall 1979. Page 154.

[3] “Local Matters.” Arizona Citizen. July 29, 1876. p 3.

[4] Amado, Gus. Voices in the Valley – Interview with Gus Amado. By Betty Lane. March 3, 1989 and March 15, 1989. Interview Link

[5] Margaret Proctor Redondo and James S. Griffith, The Journal of Arizona History. Vol. 34, No. 3 (Autumn, 1993), pp. 258-260. Arizona Historical Society