History of Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States
In 1821, Mexico gained independence from Spain, annexing the southwest of the present United States, including Arizona. As missions began to wither, Mexico began auctioning off more land, causing the Pimería Alta and the Apachería to shrink as territory expanded. In the meantime, American mountain men began to enter the region, looking to trap beavers for their pelts. In 1836, Texas declared independence from Mexico and claimed much of the territory in the northern lands of Mexico. When the United States annexed Texas in 1846 over the strong objections of the Mexican government, U.S. troops moved into disputed territory. The hostilities erupted in the Mexican–American War (1846–1848). The U.S. occupied Mexico City and forced the newly founded Mexican Republic to give up its northern half, including the later Arizona.
American-Mexican Claims Commission
Since Mexico's independence in 1821, the US and Mexico on a number of occasions had disputes over territory, taxation, and claims by US private citizens. Claims between 1825 and 1839 were arbitrated by a claims convention, on the suggestion of the Mexican government. The convention was established on April 11, 1839. Subsequent commissions were constituted in 1839, following the Texas Revolt and claims following the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (1848), the Gadsden Treaty (1854), and the McLane-Ocampo Treaty (1859). A commission was set up following the expulsion of the French in 1867, which was constituted on July 4, 1868.
The Commission was constituted under the terms of the General Claims Convention, signed September 8, 1923, in Washington D.C. by the United States and the Mexico, during the administration of Mexican President Alvaro Obregón and U.S. President Calvin Coolidge (succeeding Warren G. Harding who died just a month earlier.) Obregón had sought U.S. diplomatic recognition for his government and engaged in bi-lateral talks with the U.S. over constitutional issues regarding oil, resulting in the Bucareli Treaty. The Mexican-U.S. General Claims Commission was another formal effort to renegotiate the relationship between the Mexico and the U.S. The convention, which took effect on March 1, 1924, was intended to improve relations between the countries by forming a commission to settle claims arising after July 4, 1868,“against one government by nationals of the other for losses or damages suffered by such nationals or their properties” and “for losses or damages originating from acts of officials or others acting for either government and resulting in injustice.” Excluded from the jurisdiction of the General Claims Commission were cases stemming from events related to revolutions or disturbed conditions in Mexico.