On July 7, 1846, just a few short weeks before celebrating his 65th birthday, U.S. Navy Commodore John Drake Sloat of Sloatsburg, New York, altered map lines forever. After safely landing his fleet at Monterey, he raised the American flag over the custom house and boldly announced to the territory that California was now officially a part of the United States.
Sloat was plagued by intense paranoia that he was going to be beaten to the punch by the British Royal Navy. He had spent weeks playing a high-stakes game of naval chess, tailing British Admiral Sir George Seymour up the Pacific coast, completely terrified that England would annex California first if the United States didn’t seize the ports immediately.
Image of John Drake Sloat via Library of Congress, no known restrictions
