El Presidio Real de San Diego (Royal Presidio of San Diego) is a historic fort in

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. It was established on May 14, 1769, by

Gaspar de Portolá Gaspar de Portolá y Rovira (January 1, 1716 – October 10, 1786) was a Spanish military officer, best known for leading the Portolá expedition into California and for serving as the first Governor of the Californias. His expedition laid t ...

, leader of the first European land exploration of

Alta California Alta California ('Upper California'), also known as ('New California') among other names, was a province of New Spain, formally established in 1804. Along with the Baja California peninsula, it had previously comprised the province of , but ...

—at that time an unexplored northwestern frontier area of

New Spain New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( es, Virreinato de Nueva España, ), or Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain during the Spanish colonization of the A ...

. The presidio was the first permanent European settlement on the Pacific Coast of the present-day

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

. As the first of the presidios and

Spanish missions in California The Spanish missions in California ( es, Misiones españolas en California) comprise a series of 21 religious outposts or missions established between 1769 and 1833 in what is now the U.S. state of California. Founded by Catholic priests of ...

, it was the base of operations for the Spanish colonization of California. The associated

Mission San Diego de Alcalá Mission Basilica San Diego de Alcalá ( es, Misión San Diego de Alcalá) was the second Franciscan founded mission in The Californias (after San Fernando de Velicata), a province of New Spain. Located in present-day San Diego, California, ...

later moved a few miles away. Essentially abandoned by 1835, the site of the original Presidio lies on a hill within present-day Presidio Park, although no historic structures remain above ground. The San Diego Presidio was registered as a

California Historical Landmark A California Historical Landmark (CHL) is a building, structure, site, or place in California that has been determined to have statewide historical landmark significance. Criteria Historical significance is determined by meeting at least one of ...

in 1932, then declared a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places liste ...

in 1960.

History

Prior to occupation by the Spanish, the site of the Presidio was home to the

Kumeyaay The Kumeyaay, also known as Tipai-Ipai or by their historical Spanish name Diegueño, is a tribe of Indigenous peoples of the Americas who live at the northern border of Baja California in Mexico and the southern border of California in the Unit ...

people (called the ''Diegueños'' by the Spaniards). The first Europeans to explore San Diego Bay and its environs were members of the maritime expedition led by

Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo ( pt, João Rodrigues Cabrilho; c. 1499 – January 3, 1543) was an Iberian maritime explorer best known for investigations of the West Coast of North America, undertaken on behalf of the Spanish Empire. He was the firs ...

in 1542. Sebastián Vizcaíno visited again in 1602, but no settlement was made until the fort was begun in May 1769. On July 16, 1769,

was established by Junípero Serra on Presidio Hill. The presidio had a commanding view of San Diego Bay and the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the conti ...

, allowing the Spanish to see potential intruders. Less than a month after the mission was established, a Kumeyaay uprising occurred; four Spaniards were wounded and a boy was killed. After the attack, the Spaniards built a stockade which was finished in March 1770. It included two bronze cannons: one pointed to the bay, the other to the nearby Indian village. One of the cannons, ''El Jupiter'', is now in the Serra Museum. In 1773 and 1774,

adobe Adobe ( ; ) is a building material made from earth and organic materials. is Spanish for '' mudbrick''. In some English-speaking regions of Spanish heritage, such as the Southwestern United States, the term is used to refer to any kind of ...

structures were built to replace the temporary wood and brush huts. Later in 1774, the mission was moved a few miles up Mission Valley to separate the Kumeyaay from the influence of the presidial garrison. By 1783, there were 54 troops stationed at the presidio. Presidio of San Diego ruins

With Mexican independence in 1821, the presidio came under Mexican control, and was officially relinquished by the Spanish on April 20, 1822. From 1825–1829, it served as the Mexican governor's residence. The presidio was abandoned by 1835 and fell to ruins, because settlers preferred to live in the more accessible town—present-day Old Town San Diego State Historic Park—which developed at the foot of Presidio Hill.

Preservation

In 1907 George Marston, a wealthy department store owner, bought Presidio Hill with an interest to preserve the site. Unable to attract public funding, Marston built a private park in 1925 with the help of architect John Nolen. He also funded the

Junípero Serra Museum Presidio Park is a city historic park in San Diego, California. It is the site where the San Diego Presidio and the San Diego Mission, the first European settlements in what is now the Western United States, were founded in 1769. In 1773 the ...

, designed by

William Templeton Johnson William Templeton Johnson (1877 – 1957) was a notable San Diego architect. He was a fellow to the American Institute of Architects (AIA) in 1939. Johnson is known for his Spanish Revival buildings, all in San Diego unless otherwise noted: * L ...

and built in 1928–1929 in Spanish Revival style architecture, to house and showcase the collection of the San Diego Historical Society (now the San Diego History Center). Serra Museum is sometimes incorrectly referred to as the Presidio, but in fact nothing remains of the original Presidio. Marston donated the park and museum to the city in 1929. Presidio Park is still owned by the city of San Diego; the Serra Museum is managed by the San Diego History Center. No historical structures remain in Presidio Park today. The Presidio site is occasionally used for archaeological excavations. There are additional photographs available.

References

External links

"Use of Presidio Hill", ''Journal of San Diego History'' 45:3 (Summer 1999)
by Jennifer Luksic and Nik Kendziorski

* ttp://www.sandiego.gov/park-and-recreation/parks/regional/presidio/index.shtml Presidio Park- City of San Diego website
Serra Museum
- San Diego History Center website
Early History of the California Coast, a National Park Service ''Discover Our Shared Heritage'' Travel Itinerary
{{Registered Historic Places

1769 in Alta California Parks in San Diego History of San Diego History of San Diego County, California Forts on the National Register of Historic Places in California National Register of Historic Places in San Diego National Historic Landmarks in California 1769 establishments in Alta California Spanish Colonial architecture in California

History

Preservation

See also

References

Further reading

External links