Somewhere along the line he joined the Mormon church and became an elder. The church selected him to lead an expedition to San Francisco, California, to establish a colony there. Upon arrival at San Francisco, he left his flock in the care of his aides, while he headed into town. He especially enjoyed gambling and was soon known as "one of the boys." But he did tend to his duties, as he performed the first wedding under the American flag. He also preached the first sermon. Ironically, he was also the first defendant to be brought before a jury. The charge was that he had misappropriated church funds. Somehow he convinced the jury he was innocent. The incident was enough to ensure that Mormons would not have a large say in the local government.
The incident didn’t stop Brannan from furthering his ambition, however. He established the first flour mills in the area, which turned a profit from the start. He also printed the first newspaper, called the California Star. He formed the male members of his flock into a Mormon Battalion. A humorous incident tested the battalion. A man named Watson was on night watch, looking out for Mexicans. Watson usually spent most of his time drinking. Occasionally he would show up to the bartender for refills. His password was "The Mexicans are in the brush." One night the bartender was in such a stupor that Watson had to yell the password and fire his pistol to get the man’s attention. Unfortunately, the whole battalion was alerted and they began firing at random in the dark. Fortunately, it was a false alarm, and only a few trees were damaged.
Brannan began promoting the San Francisco area in earnest, because he had a large amount of property there. When an army contingent arrived, it ensured success for Brannan. The soldiers were there to make sure there was no further uprising by Indians or Mexicans, that the property would remain in American hands. Their presence allowed more organized erection of mills and other businesses and plowing and tilling of garden plots. Brannan began calling California the promised land of the Mormons. He even marched his battalion to Utah, to convince Brigham Young that he had found the place. Young held out for the Salt Lake Valley, however.
