Old Town State Historic Park

Old Town is a neighborhood of San Diego, California. It contains 230 acres (93 ha) and is bounded by Interstate 8 on the north, Interstate 5 on the west, Mission Hills on the east and Bankers Hill on the south. It is the oldest settled area in San Diego and is the site of the first European settlement in present-day California. It contains Old Town San Diego State Historic Park and Presidio Park, both of which are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

History

The San Diego Presidio and Mission San Diego de Alcala were founded in 1769 by Gaspar de Portola and Junipero Serra on a bluff at the western end of the San Diego River valley. The Presidio and Mission constituted the first Spanish settlement in Alta California, the present day state of California. After five years the Mission moved to a location several miles upriver, while the Presidio on its hill remained the primary settlement. In the 1820s the town of San Diego grew up at the base of the bluff, at the site commemorated by Old Town San Diego State Historic Park, while the Presidio fell into disrepair.

In 1834 the Mexican government granted San Diego the status of a pueblo, or chartered town. However, the population of the town declined so much that in 1838 its pueblo status was revoked. One problem was the town’s location far from navigable water. All imports and exports had to be brought ashore in Point Loma and carried several miles over the La Playa Trail to the town.

The Casa de Machado y Stewart, an 1830s adobe house in Old Town San Diego State Historic Park.

When California was admitted to the United States in 1850, San Diego (still largely limited to the Old Town area) was made the county seat of San Diego County, even though the town’s population was only 650.

The Old Town area remained the heart of the city of San Diego until the 1860s, when a newcomer to San Diego named Alonzo Horton began to promote development at the site of present-dayDowntown San Diego. Residents and businesses quickly abandoned “Old Town” for Horton’s “New Town” because of New Town’s proximity to shipping. In 1871, government records were moved from Old Town to a new county courthouse in New Town, and Downtown permanently eclipsed Old Town as the focal point of San Diego.

Economy

Church of the Immaculate Conception (built 1917).

The Old Town neighborhood has nine hotels, 32 restaurants and more than 100 specialty shops. There are 12 art galleries and 27 historic buildings and sites, including Old Town San Diego State Historic Park, Presidio Park, Heritage Park (a collection of Victorian homes), and the Mormon Battalion Visitor Center. A major government building is the District 11 headquarters of Caltrans, the California Department of Transportation.

Annual events

San Diego’s Cinco de Mayo celebration is held in Old Town every year.

The Old Town Art Festival takes place in October of each year.

Fiesta Navidad is a two-day Christmas festival in December, highlighted by the Mexican tradition of Las Posadas, which re-enacts the story of Mary and Joseph’s journey to Bethlehem for the first Christmas.

Community organizations

The Old Town Community Planning Committee advises the city on land use and other issues. The Old Town San Diego Chamber of Commerce promotes business interests and tourism. Local service organizations include a Kiwanis club.

Infrastructure

Old Town Transit Center

The Old Town Transit Center is a major intermodal transportation station where travelers can transfer between city buses, the San Diego Trolley, and the San Diego Coaster, the regional rail system of Amtrak.