Greetings, I've been looking for info and relationship with the Villaseñor of "Leonor Chávez Corona/Corona de Villaseñor" wife of Diego Ruiz de Cortés and mother of Andrés Ruiz de Chávez (founder of the Ruiz de Chávez lineage), Juan Ortiz Cortés (ancestor of Miguel Hidalgo and Morelos) and many others. Her grandchildren and later descendants regularly used the last name "Villaseñor" and "Corona" without having any other possible descent from those families other than through her. The use of Corona and Villaseñor together was first seen with the marriage of Juan de Villaseñor Cervantes (first male son of Juan de Villaseñor Orozco) and Catalina Corona. They had children in the decade of 1560s/1570s meaning that in order for Leonor to be a descendant of this marriage she'd have to be at best a granddaughter of these two (since she began to have children by c. 1600) but I have no knowledge of any children of theirs marrying someone with the last name "Chávez". If someone knows anything that could be useful for this research feel free to share. Regards.
Hello Pascual,
I've looked at this family for a while. Like you said, I have never seen a Villasenor associated with Leonor de Chavez Corona cc Diego Ruiz Cortez. She's always mentioned as Leonor Corona/Leonor de Chavez Corona/Leonor de Chavez. We only start seeing the Villasenor appear in one branch of the Ruiz Cortez y Chavez Corona, that's of Andres Ruiz de Chavez cc Maria de Villasenor. There's an "informacion matrimonial" where a Maria de Villasenor is mentioned in relation to an Andres Ruiz de Chavez in 1657:
Mexico, Guanajuato, Catholic Church Records, 1519-1984; https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:9392-KLSQ-4W?cc=1860831
In here we see that Floriana Cortez de Villasenor is getting married to Fernando Carrillo Altamirano (Viudo de Tomasina de Lira y Zayas). One of the witnesses in this information is "Domingo Cortez". He mentions in his testimony that he's the brother of Andres Ruiz de Chavez. This Domingo is quite possible the same one who married in Mexico City in 1635: Mexico, Distrito Federal, Catholic Church Records, 1514-1970; https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:939D-DX93-V?cc=1615259&wc=3P8Q-6TL%3A122652201%2C132529401. Domingo was the son of Diego Ruiz and Leonor de Chavez Corona. This implies that the Andres Ruiz de Chavez mentioned here is the son of Diego Ruiz Cortez and Leonor de Chavez Corona.
Now, there's another witness, "Juan de Villasenor" who mentions he's the brother of Floriana. He gives his age of 27 years old. So he was born around 1630. With this Juan de Villasenor, we now know that there's at least two children of Andres Ruiz de Chavez and Maria de Villasenor who carried the "Villasenor" surname.
Going back to Andres Ruiz de Chavez, we see his signature here in the same "informacion matrimonial": Mexico, Guanajuato, Catholic Church Records, 1519-1984; https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:9392-KLS3-LH?cc=1860831. Let's compare that signature to this one from a territorial dispute where there's an Andres Ruiz de Chavez:
Morelia. Voting Registers 1649
In my opinion, the signatures match. Furthermore, in this territorial dispute, it's mentioned that this Andres Ruiz de Chavez was the father of a Nicolas de Chavez Cortez and Maria de Abrego was the mother: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSKV-D91X-F?view=fullText&keywords=Andr%C3%A9s+Ru%C3%ADz&lang=en&groupId=M9Z2-X66
So, given this information... I think that the Corona Villasenor comes from this branch/generation of the Ruiz de Chavez Corona. Andres Ruiz de Chavez married to Maria de Abrego (sometimes, the Castilleja was included as she descended from the family of the great Calzonci). So did Andres marry twice? (once to Maria de Abrego and then to Maria de Villasenor? Or are we dealing with one Maria - sometimes referred to as Abrego and other times as Villasenor?) I think that Maria de Abrego and Maria de Villasenor are the same person. Let me share some clues of why I think this:
- Andres Ruiz de Chavez and Maria de Abrego had a son named Jose Corona who was married to Juana de Sanabria. We happen to have his will where he states that he's the son of Andres Ruiz de Chavez and Maria de Abrego: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSD2-PH3M?i=534&cat=623294
- In an informacion matrimonial for a daughter of Jose Corona and Juana de Sanabria, her given name is: Maria de Villasenor: Mexico, Michoacán, Catholic Church Records, 1555-1996; https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:9392-KG9R-MW?cc=1883388&wc=3NTF-SP8%3A178285301%2C178658501%2C204006203
- In another informacion matrimonial for another daughter of Jose Corona and Juana de Sanabria, her given name is: Leonor Corona de Villasenor: Mexico, Guanajuato, Catholic Church Records, 1519-1984; https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:939L-ZGSL-92?cc=1860831
This makes me think that we're dealing with a one and the same Maria de Abrego Castillieja... y... Villasenor. I don't have any information on her parents other than she was a descendant of the "Senores de Michoacan".
I hope this helps.
Daniel
Hi, indeed, Maria de Villaseñor and Maria de Abrego y Castilleja are the same person. I, some time ago, had contacted via Facebook a genealogist by the name of "José Ayala Solis" who wrote a book on this couple by the name of "Las tierras del Rey", where he explained their origins, who their children were, their connections, lands, etc, etc. Since he in his own words "Checked the entire church archives of San Miguel Tarimbaro".
Unfortunately I wasn't able to get the book but when I was discussing with him about a previously unknown daughter of Leonor de Chávez and Diego Ruiz de Cortés (Leonor Ruiz de Chávez who died in 1680 at the supposed age of 100 who some users had thought was her mother) after explaining me who she was, he sent me an image, where the relationships and places where her and all of her siblings and nephews (children of Andrés) lived, there he textually mentioned that Andrés de Chávez and Maria de Abrego lived in the "Hacienda de Cotzio" in today's town of Téjaro in Tarimbaro from 1623 to 1676 (until Andrés death). He also mentioned in an extended family group i'm in, that Maria de Abrego had passed between 1671 and 1673 meaning that they had been married for 56-58 years giving Andrés no time to have remarried.
Here's the link to the image: https://www.familysearch.org/fr/tree/sources/viewedit/WD4S-TMQ?context&…;
In that image Andrés mother, Leonor de Chávez, is mentioned as Leonor de Chávez Corona meaning that at least the "Corona" did indeed come from her. Other sources do mention her as Corona de Villaseñor, including a wikitree profile by Ruben Hernández who almost always relied exclusively on direct contemporary records but unfortunately I can't access wikitree and thus can't give the link because I had been checking the website without making an account and apparently they thought my ip address was that of a bot and I have been blocked from accessing the platform...
On Maria's origins she was a granddaughter of Beatriz de Castilleja and her second husband Pedro de Garfias, who her parents were is unclear, she is usually confused with her aunt who was also named Maria de Abrego y Castilleja who was born in c.1555 since she reported being 52 in 1607 making it impossible for both to be the same person and it has already been debunked.
Thank you for the additional information and context Pascual. This is very useful and tells me I'm on the right track.
I'd like to share some clues on the ancestry of Leonor de Chavez Corona. There's a mention of a sale for some land that dates from the late 1500s where Diego Ruiz (El mozo) is mentioned in addition to his brother-in-law Andres de Chavez:
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-C9BN-2QL3-D?i=202
The relevant writing says: "...Ytem un instrumento simple de Diego Ruiz el moso en que declara por el que por cuanto Andres de Chavez su cuñado vendio al padre Melchor Hernandes Duarte una estancia de ganado mayor digo menor en el valle de Guaniqueo en terminos de Puruandiro, lindes con estancia del Colegio y Tumbio y estancia que al presente es de Francisco Magdaleno en la rivera del Rio que baja a la puente de Guaniqueo en que aprueba la dicha escritura que hizo Andres de Chavez su cuñado en una foja."
Let's suppose that this Diego Ruiz (el mozo) is Diego Ruiz Cortez (Son of Diego Ruiz Cortez and Elvira Hernandez de Rangel). Diego Ruiz Cortez was married to Leonor de Chavez Corona as we know. If Andres de Chavez was the brother of Leonor de Chavez Corona, there's now two Chavez Corona siblings we know about.
In the mid 1500s Morelia, there was a couple by the names of Andres de Chavez cc Leonor Alvarez. Andres de Chavez' will is available for viewing here:
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSKV-D9K1-K?cat=olib%3…
In it we find that Andres de Chavez was born in Ciudad Rodrigo (En los reinos de Castilla) and he married twice, first with Leonor Alvarez and then with Catalina de Mondragon. (Andres de Chavez and Catalina de Mondragon never had any children) Andres de Chavez and Leonor Alvarez had the following children:
Pedro de Chavez Corona (Born around 1560)
Leonor de Chavez Corona
Andres de Chavez Corona
Mariana Corona y Chavez
There are further clues scattered about in land disputes, grants, notarial documents, dispensas etc. that make me believe that Leonor Alvarez was most likely Leonor Alvarez Corona, daughter of Hernando Gonzalez Corona cc Catalina Gonzalez (Originarios de Guadalacanal) and some of the first Spanish settlers of Michoacan. I believe Leonor Alvarez Corona cc Andres de Chavez to be the source of the "Corona" in the Chavez Corona and thus the Ruiz de Chavez Corona. I don't think that there was ever a direct connection to the Villasenor family in this branch of the Gonzalez/Alvarez Coronas. If anything, there would have been a Villasenor connection via Leonor Alvarez Corona's sister Mayor Gomez Corona who married Gonzalo Gomez y Gomez. They had a daughter named Catalina Gomez Corona who married Juan de Villasenor Cervantes.
Daniel
Andres Ruiz de Chavez cc Maria de Abrego Castilleja