Fallon, Thomas

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Thomas Fallon is notable mainly as an early mayor of San Jose, but is also notable in his brief Santa Cruz history. He arrived in Monterey with the 3rd Fremont expedition in late 1845, where he left that group and made his way to Santa Cruz sometime early in 1846. When Fremont returned after the outbreak of the Mexican-American War (aka Conquest of California) in July, Fallon helped recruit locals to join Fremont's "California Battalion". Fallon returned to Santa Cruz after the war, staying until ~1852. During those years he built a saddlery/hotel/residence on the mission plaza, which he sold to the County in 1852 for the first County-owned courthouse. Also during that time, he married "Carmelita" Castro Lodge, thereby inheriting a one-ninth portion of Rancho Soquel.

Not long after that sale, Fallon left Santa Cruz permanently, later moving to San Jose, where he became the 10th mayor of the town. A statue of him became controversial, was removed and stored, was later reinstalled in a different location, then was removed again in 2023.