San Diego

Landing in San Diego in 1542, Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo stepped onto shores already inhabited for millennia. San Diego, the “birthplace of California,” held a rich Kumeyaay history long before European arrival. Cabrillo, exploring for Spain, found a “very good port” and described the Kumeyaay as “good-natured and attractive people.” Sixty years later, Sebastián Vizcaíno arrived, mapping the coastline and conducting the first Catholic service on Californian soil. He renamed the bay San Diego, after the patron saint of his flagship. Despite Vizcaíno’s enthusiasm for San Diego’s potential, colonization didn’t begin for another 167 years. In 1769, Gaspar de Portolá established the Presidio of San Diego, a military post overlooking the Kumeyaay village of Cosoy. Soon after, Father Junípero Serra founded Mission San Diego de Alcalá, the first mission in Alta California. This marked the official start of European settlement in San Diego. The mission thrived, becoming the largest in California by 1797. It housed over 1,400 Native Americans. The original mission church, built with adobe and a tile roof, was unfortunately destroyed by an earthquake in 1803. A new church was built in 1813. Mexico gained independence in 1821. San Diego transitioned from Spanish to Mexican rule. The Mission San Diego was secularized in 1834. The town itself, Pueblo de San Diego, was established at the foot of Presidio Hill, in present-day Old Town. Its location, miles from navigable water, presented challenges for trade. Goods had to be transported via the La Playa Trail. By 1838, the town’s population had dwindled, and it lost its pueblo status. It became a sub-prefecture of Los Angeles. Relations between the Mexican government and the Kumeyaay deteriorated. Raids by the Kumeyaay led to the abandonment of ranchos. The Kumeyaay briefly besieged San Diego in 1842, cutting off land routes to the rest of Mexico. San Diego’s fate hung in the balance during the Mexican-American War. In 1846, the city changed hands multiple times. American forces, led by Commodore Stockton, ultimately secured control by the end of the year. Following the American victory, San Diego became part of the United States in 1848. In 1850, San Diego, though small, was officially incorporated as a city. It also became the county seat of the newly formed San Diego County.