José Vicente Féliz
José Vicente Féliz | |
|---|---|
| Comisionado of Los Ángeles | |
| In office 1781–1786 | |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | Guillermo Soto |
| Personal details | |
| Born | José Vicente Tomás Féliz y Esquer c. 1741 Álamos, New Navarre, New Spain (now Sonora, Mexico) |
| Died | 1822 (aged 80–81) Santa Barbara, Alta California, First Mexican Empire (now California, U.S.) |
| Nationality | Spanish |
| Spouse | María Ignacia Manuela López Piñuelas y Murrieta |
| Occupation | Soldier, settler |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Spain |
José Vicente Tomás Féliz y Esquer (c. 1741 – 1822) was a Spanish soldier and settler who was a member of the 1775–76 Anza expedition that brought the first settlers to California. In 1781, he was one of four soldiers which guarded the settlers which founded the settlement of El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de los Ángeles (the Town of Our Lady the Queen of the Angels), which would become Los Angeles. He took on a leadership role in the founding and governance of that pueblo, in essence becoming the city's first mayor, and was rewarded for his efforts with a Spanish land grant in the hills above Los Angeles, in the area of what today still bears his name: Los Feliz.