Every great city has a story, and San Diego’s is one of the oldest in the American West. Before we gather on the bay this September, here’s a quick look at how a small coastal village became the vibrant global city we’ll be celebrating in.
First peoples
Long before any European ship appeared on the horizon, the Kumeyaay people called this region home. They lived here for as many as 12,000 years, thriving as hunters, gatherers, and skilled stewards of the land from the coast to the mountains. Their villages dotted the area, including one called Kosa’aay near what is now Old Town. The Kumeyaay are still here today, and their influence remains an important part of the region’s identity.
The birthplace of California
In 1542, Spanish explorer Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo sailed into the bay, making San Diego the first place on the West Coast visited by Europeans. Sixty years later, explorer Sebastián Vizcaíno mapped the harbor and gave it the name we know today, honoring the saint San Diego de Alcalá.
Permanent settlement came in 1769, when Father Junípero Serra founded Mission San Diego de Alcalá, the first of California’s 21 missions. That’s why San Diego is often called “the birthplace of California.” The mission still stands in Mission Valley, and the original settlement grew into the neighborhood now preserved as Old Town San Diego State Historic Park.
New Town rising
For its first century, San Diego stayed small. That changed in 1867, when a businessman named Alonzo Horton arrived and bought roughly 800 acres along the bay. He believed a city belonged next to its harbor, so he promoted his “New Town” relentlessly. It worked. New Town became today’s downtown San Diego, including the Gaslamp Quarter, just blocks from where we’ll be staying.
A Navy town takes flight
The 20th century transformed San Diego. The city hosted the Panama-California Exposition in 1915, which gave us the gorgeous Spanish-style buildings of Balboa Park and put San Diego on the national map. The Navy took notice of the deep, protected harbor, and San Diego grew into one of the most important military towns in America. It made aviation history, too. Charles Lindbergh’s Spirit of St. Louis was built right here in 1927 before its famous flight across the Atlantic.
The city today
Modern San Diego is far more than a Navy town. It’s a hub for biotech and health sciences, wireless technology, and world-class research universities. It shares one of the busiest border crossings in the world with Tijuana, giving the region a rich binational culture you’ll taste in the food and feel in the neighborhoods. And with more than 150 craft breweries, it has earned a reputation as one of the beer capitals of the country.
From a Kumeyaay village to a Spanish mission to a global city of 1.4 million people, San Diego has always been a place where people arrive and decide to stay awhile. This September, we’ll understand why.