Juan López Olguín Villasaña

  General Notes:

I've found conflicting information concerning Juan López Olguín. In David Snow's New Mexico's First Colonists, Snow has included a note saying that Catalina de Villanueva was Juan's mother and Ana and María Ortiz was his sisters. He also listed López Olguin's father, Juan López de Villasna as a member of Oñate party. He states that Angélico Chávez made a mistake in ONMF.

José Antonio Esquibel's Beyond Origins website includes discussion that contradicts Snow. The baptismal records for López Olguin clearly shows that Isabel Ruiz was his mother. Esquibel also says that there is clear proof that López Olguin and Catalina de Villanueva had two daughters, Ana and María Ortiz. ^250,274

  Noted events in his life were:

• Dates & Events. ^250,253,274
Ensign, on Capt. Villagra's List, native of Fuente Obejuna, and came to New Mexico 1600.

Juan López Holguín enlisted in 1599-1600 as member of the expedition to reinforce the colony in New Mexico established under the leadership of don Juan de Oñate. He described himself as age forty, a native of Fuente Ovejuna and a son of Juan López Villasana.

• Baptism, 9 Feb 1559. ²⁵⁰
9 February 1559 Bpt. , Church of Nuestra Castillo, Fuente Ovejuna, Spain, Juan, hijo de Juan Lopez de Villa Sana y de Isabel Ruiz. Padrinos: Gregorio Belena y Francisco Cavallero

Madrinas: Elvira [Belena] y Maria Fernandez, esposa de Bartolomé Gómez

Source: Iglesia de Nuestra Senora del Castillo, Fuente Ovejuna, Spain Bautismos, Libro 2, f. 85v, 9 Feb 1559

• Physical Description. ²⁷⁴
As of good stature, black bearded, a scar over his left eye, 40 years old in the Muster Rolls of Oñate.

Listed along with his father, Juan López Villasana, as an officer in a group of soldiers and civilians that went to New Mexico in 1600, on Captain Villagra's list. Juan Lopez Holguin was an Ensign. He was 40 yrs in 1600. A native of Fuente Obejuna, Extremadura Spain.

• Name. ³¹⁴
This family was the progenitor of the Olguin family of New México.

• Background Information. ²⁵²
Juan López Holguín was an Alférez when he came to New México in 1600. His wife, who came with him, was Catalina de Villanueva. In 1626, he gave his age as sixty-four, saying that he was a "founder of the Kingdom," of New México.

His children were: Cristóbal, who married Melchora de Carvajal, Isabel, wife of Juan de Vitoria Carvajal, and, María Ortiz Baca who married Simón de Abendaño. (Origins has the names of Simón & María reversed).

~The Origins of New México Families, p. 81

Juan married Catalina de Villanueva. (Catalina de Villanueva was born about 1560 in Tepeacu, Nueva España ²³⁹.)