Gale, William Alden (? –1841)

William Alden Gale was born to William Gale and Hannah Pim Bean Gale in Boston, Massachusetts. W. A. Gale had two sisters named Elizabeth and Lydia Symmes, but little else is known about his family life. Gale was the first American to pioneer the hide and tallow trade between California and New England in the early 19th century, which subsequently opened the commercial gates of the previously isolated Spanish province.

American interest in California began during the late-18th-century sea otter trade with China. In 1810, Gale sailed to California as a clerk on the Albatross to the Farallon Islands. As the Russians sailed down to California from the north, British and American companies from New England ventured toward California via the Horn. Whalers began to visit California more frequently, but the predominant American trading interest in the long-isolated region shifted to cowhides and tallow.

Gale and other traders continued to barter their cargo for California's natural products, which provided the essential materials for New England factories. Because money was not used as an exchange medium, the Californians exchanged hides, or “California bank notes,” which ranged in value from one to three pesos. The Spanish padres (priests) were the chief customers, acquiring clothing, farming implements, and other necessities. Despite this mutually beneficial relationship, the Mexican authorities passed stringent regulations prohibiting trade with merchants. However, Governor José Darío Argüello's statement, “Necessity makes licit what is not licit by law,” explains the emergence of an extremely successful contraband business.

The hide and tallow business gained momentum with Mexico's independence in 1822, when the ports of Monterey and San Diego opened to foreign trade. That year, the frigate John Begg arrived. Agents aboard the ship from the British trading firm John Begg and Company included Hugh McCulloch and William E. P. Hartnell, who became known as “Macala and Arnel.” They secured an exclusive three-year contract with Governor Pablo Vicente Solá and prefect Payéras to pay one peso per hide and buy at least 25,000 arrobas of tallow at two pesos an arroba (25 pounds).

Because of Gale's reports of the region's vast resources, the Boston mercantile house of Bryant, Sturgis & Co. outfitted a vessel to trade with California. Less than a month after the British arrival, shipmaster Henry Gyzelaar and supercargo W. A. Gale arrived in [Page 269]the Sachem. Their arrival initiated trade between the two coasts, as well as a long and prosperous exportation of hides and tallow that became the primary economic business of the region. Because of the British contract, Gale only exported two cargoes until its expiration in 1826. However, his counteroffer of double the British rate caused discontent among the padres and helped the Boston firm weaken the British hold on California trade. With Bryant, Sturgis & Co. and other New England firms' subsequent successes, the United States was commonly known in California as “Boston.”

Despite a thriving market, restricted access to ports and high duties obstructed business. Merchants were only permitted to discharge cargoes at the ports of Monterey and San Diego. In 1829, Gale wrote to Governor Echeandía in San Diego, threatening to abandon trade unless the government offered more favorable terms. Dissatisfied with the response, he sailed to San Diego to negotiate in person. As a result, Governor Echeandía reinstated Gale's access to all ports, including San Francisco, Monterey, Santa Barbara, San Pedro, and San Diego. Along with this success, Gale also established the first American mercantile house in California.

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