Pantoja Park is a public park located in the Marina District of
Downtown San Diego
Downtown San Diego is the city center of San Diego, California, the eighth largest city in the United States. In 2010, the Centre City area had a population of more than 28,000. Downtown San Diego serves as the cultural and financial center and ...
, California. Originally built in 1850, it is the oldest park in the city of San Diego. The park is named for Don Juan Pantoja y Arriola, a Spanish navigator who drew the first map of
San Diego Bay
San Diego Bay is a natural harbor and deepwater port located in San Diego County, California near the U.S.–Mexico border. The bay, which is long and wide, is the third largest of the three large, protected natural bays on California's of c ...
in 1782. In the park stands a
statue
A statue is a free-standing sculpture in which the realistic, full-length figures of persons or animals are carved or cast in a durable material such as wood, metal or stone. Typical statues are life-sized or close to life-size; a sculpture t ...
of
Benito Juarez Benito may refer to:
Places
* Benito, Kentucky, United States
* Benito, Manitoba, Canada
* Benito River, a river in Equatorial Guinea
Other uses
* Benito (name)
* ''Benito'' (1993), an Italian film
See also
* '' Benito Cereno'', a novella by ...
, a gift from the Mexican government in 1981. Located on G Street near Columbia Street, Pantoja Park is a small oasis of open greenery in quickly redeveloping Downtown San Diego.
Pantoja Park features a large grassy area and multiple large mature trees. The park has several towering old fig trees, shrubs and flowers, benches, walking paths, and a historic Natal Plum planted in the middle of the park. Two years after the formation of San Diego's Historical Resources Board, Pantoja Park was registered as the seventh San Diego Historic Landmark in 1969.http://www.sandiego.gov/planning/programs/historical/pdf/landmarklist.pdf
List of San Diego Historic Landmarks
This is a List of San Diego Historic Landmarks. In 1967, the City of San Diego established a Historical Resources Board with the authority to designate and protect landmarks from inappropriate alterations. In total, the city has designated more t ...