History of San Diego

The recorded history of the San Diego, California, region began in the present state of California when San Diego Bay was first discovered by Europeans. San Diego was the first part of California that Europeans settled in, so that San Diego has been described as "the birthplace of California."

Native Americans such as the Kumeyaay people had been living in the area for as long as 12,000 years. Explorer Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo discovered San Diego Bay in 1542, but it was 200 years before Europeans settled the area. A fort and mission were established in 1769, which gradually expanded into a settlement under first Spanish and then Mexican rule.

San Diego became part of the U.S. in 1848, and the town was named the county seat of San Diego County when California was granted statehood in 1850. It remained a very small town for several decades, but grew rapidly after 1880 due to development and the establishment of multiple military facilities. Growth was especially rapid during and immediately after World War II. Entrepreneurs and boosters laid the basis for an economy based today on the military, defense industries, tourism, international trade, and manufacturing. San Diego is now the eighth largest city in the country and forms the heart of the larger San Diego metropolitan area.

The area has long been inhabited by the Kumeyaay Native American people. The first European to visit the region was Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo in 1542. His landing is re-enacted every year at the Cabrillo Festival sponsored by Cabrillo National Monument, but it did not lead to settlement.

The bay and the area of present-day San Diego were given their current name sixty years later by Sebastián Vizcaíno when he was mapping the coastline of Alta California for Spain in 1602. Vizcaino was a merchant who hoped to establish prosperous colonies. After holding the first Catholic service conducted on California soil on the feast day of San Diego de Alcala, (also the patron saint of his flagship), he renamed the bay. He left after 10 days and was enthusiastic about its safe harbor, friendly natives, and promising potential as a successful colony. Despite his enthusiasm, the Spanish were unconvinced; it would be another 167 years before colonization began.

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