San
Diego History ...
In
1542, Portuguese sailor Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo landed near the tip of Point Loma
and claimed the Pacific coast for Spain. Some 227 years after explorer Juan Rodríguez
Cabrillo landed, the Portolá expedition built a presidio and Padre Serra founded
California's first mission. On the site of that first settlement in Presidio Park
stands the Junipero Serra Museum (2727 Presidio Dr. 619-297-3258. Closed Mon.;
adm. fee), which focuses on the period before the American conquest. The city
remained isolated until the transcontinental railroad arrived in 1885, then grew
during World War I as a Navy home port.
The
1915 Panama-California Exposition took place at Balboa Park (Laurel St. between
Park and 6th Aves. 619-239-0512), where fine Spanish revival buildings remain.
(Visitor Center, Horton Plaza at 1st Ave. and F St. 619-236-1212) Highlights of
San Diego Mission Basilica San Diego de Alcalá (10818 San Diego Mission Rd. 619-281-8449.
Adm. fee) Dating from 1774, this plain white mission features a wall of bells
and Padre Serra's original quarters. Built in 1769 under the direction of Father
Junâpero Serra, and the Old Town San Diego State Historic Park (4002 Wallace St.
619-220-5422), which dates back to 1821, shortly after Mexico gained independence
from Spain.
Old
Town San Diego State Historic Park (Off I-5 at Old Town Ave. Visitor Center at
Robinson-Rose House. 619-220-5422) Surrounded by adobe-and-wood buildings, this
plaza is an outdoor museum of mid-19th-century San Diego. Highlights include the
1867 Seeley Stable, with its collection of stagecoaches and Western gear, and
the furnished 1827 adobe hacienda of a presidio comandante.
Gaslamp
Quarter (Bounded by 4th and 6th Aves., Broadway, and Harbor Dr.) The 16-block
national historic district known as the Gaslamp Quarter (Between 4th and 6th Aves.
from Broadway to Harbor Dr.), with its many 1880s Victorian commercial buildings,
was once the site of San Diego's notorious red-light district. In its heyday the
Gaslamp Quarter counted more than 70 saloons and 120 bawdy houses, as well as
opium dens, dance halls, and gambling houses. For information on walking tours,
contact the Gaslamp Quarter Association (614 5th St. Suite E. 619-233-5227. Adm.
fee). Saturday walking tours leave the William Heath Davis House Museum (410 Island
Ave. 619-233-4692. Adm. fee), a New England saltbox house shipped around Cape
Horn in 1850.
Cabrillo National Monument (1800 Cabrillo Memorial Dr. 619-557-5450. Adm. fee)
Located on the lofty point where Cabrillo first made landfall are a Visitor Center
focused on Spanish exploration and the 1855 Old Point Loma Lighthouse, which has
been refurbished. Cabrillo National Monument commemorates Cabrillo's discovery;
this is also a favorite spot to view the gray whale migrations in spring and fall.
In 1868,
San Diego set aside 1,400 acres of cactus and chaparral as a public park. Today
Balboa Park (619-239-0512), the city's most elegant public space, provides a lush
setting for serene gardens, striking architecture, picnic grounds, golf courses,
and the world-class San Diego Zoo (619-234-3153. Adm. fee), which showcases pygmy
chimps, sun bears from Malaysia, and 22 new aviaries called the Wings of Australasia.
This most famous Zoo in the World, features over 4,000 rare birds, mammals, reptiles
and amphibians await you, with over 100 acres of award-winning gardens, entertaining
tours and shows. Another star attraction, the Reuben H. Fleet Space Theater and
Science Center (619-238-1233. Adm. fee) houses an Omnimax theater and hands-on
exhibits. Also on the grounds are the Museum of Photographic Arts (619-238-7559.
Adm. fee), the Natural History Museum (619-232-3821. Adm. fee), the Model Railroad
Museum (619-696-0199. Closed Mon.-Tues.; adm. fee), and the San Diego Museum of
Art (619-232-7931. Closed Mon.; adm. fee).
Down on the Embarcadero
waterfront, sailors will delight in the three historic ships moored at the
Maritime Museum 1492 N. Harbor Drive. 619-234-9153. Adm. fee): the 1863 tall
ship Star of India (the oldest iron-hulled vessel afloat), the 1898 San Francisco
Bay ferry Berkeley, and the 1904 steam-powered yacht Medea.
Please
Help. Thank You!
Free
Tuesdays in
Balboa Park
First Tuesday:
Model Railroad Museum
Natural History Museum
Reuben H. Fleet Science Center
Second
Tuesday:
San Diego Historical Society Museum
Museum of Photographic Arts
Third Tuesday:
Museum of Art
Japanese Friendship Garden
San Diego Museum of Art
San Diego Art Institute
Mingei
International Museum
San
Diego Museum
of Man
Fourth
Tuesday:
Aerospace
Museum
Hall
of Champions
Hall of Nations Free Film
Automotive Museum
Fifth
Tuesday:
Museums Charge Regular Admission
