Although the land was originally granted to Charles Beaubien’s 13 year-old son Narciso, and Stephen Luis Lee, Charles (or Carlos) was the driving force behind receiving the grant. Charles Beaubien was a French-Canadian fur trapper who had married into the community. Because his wife was Mexican, he gained the right to ask for a land grant from the Mexican government. He received an extremely large grant in his name, making him ineligible for any more land, but that didn’t stop him from helping to push through a new grant for his son.

When Narciso and Stephen Lee were killed in the 1847 Taos Uprising, Charles inherited the land. Instead of just being the man behind the scenes, he became the Patron of the Sangre de Cristo land grant. It was Charles who brought Hispanic settlers to develop the land; filed with the United States Congress to have the grant confirmed; wrote a document outlining community rights and access to the land; and who, before his death in 1864, sold the entire grant to William Gilpin to cover taxes.