104-Year-Old Isabel Parra Grijalva, Descendant of County Pioneer, Dies

Services were held Monday for Isabel Parra Grijalva, a lifelong resident of the county and a descendant of one of its pioneers. She was 104.

A third-generation Californian born in San Juan Capistrano, Grijalva died July 22 in Santa Ana of natural causes.

Grijalva was the great-great-granddaughter of Miguel Parra, for whom the Parra Adobe in San Juan Capistrano is named. The building, built in the 1840s as a stagecoach stop, is now a museum but is closed for repairs.

She was also a member of the Acagchemem tribe, the only American Indian group indigenous to the county. Grijalva’s family tree includes members of the Rios and Yorba families, both pioneer landowners in the area.

Her husband, Severiano Grijalva, who died in 1939, was a descendant of Juan Pablo Grijalva, the second rancho owner in Orange County and builder of the first building outside the San Juan Capistrano Mission in 1800.

A deeply religious woman who lived in Santa Ana for more than 80 years, Grijalva was active in the Catholic church and raised a large and extended family.

“She was a wonderful woman,” said Sonia Johnston, her niece. “She was well loved by all the family.”

The family has scheduled a dedication mass Aug. 8 at 10:30 a.m. at the Parra Adobe at 27832 Ortega Highway in San Juan Capistrano. The public is invited to attend.

Grijalva is survived by two daughters, Virginia Esparza, of Orange, and Vera Mendez, of Tustin; 11 grandchildren; 29 great-grandchildren; and 11 great-great grandchildren.