Dulzura (

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

for "Gentleness" or "Sweetness") is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

San Diego County, California San Diego County (), officially the County of San Diego, is a county (United States), county in the southwest corner of the U.S. state of California, north to its Mexico-United States border, border with Mexico. As of the 2020 United States Cen ...

Geography

The ZIP Code is 91917 and the community is inside

area code 619 Area codes 619 and 858 are telephone area codes in the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) for most of San Diego County in the U.S. state of California. Area code 619 was created by a split of area code 714 in 1982. In 1999, a part of the 619 n ...

. The community is largely rural and has a population of only about 700 people. It is located 25 miles southeast of the city of

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

, about 10 miles north of the

Mexico–United States border The international border separating Mexico and the United States extends from the Pacific Ocean in the west to the Gulf of Mexico in the east. The border traverses a variety of terrains, ranging from urban areas to deserts. It is the List of ...

, and on the east side of the

San Ysidro Mountains The San Ysidro Mountains are a mountain range in southern San Diego County, California, and Baja California, Mexico. The mountains are a rugged coastal foothill range of the Peninsular Ranges system. Major peaks include the highest summit of the ...

History

The name of Dulzura was derived from the root Spanish word ''dulce'' ('sweet'); ''dulzura'' is another adjective to describe something as sweet, pleasant or having 'gentleness'. One theory suggests that the name was given in relation to the

honey Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several species of bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of pl ...

industry that had once prospered in the area circa 1869, and with the warmer and dry climate with its mild winters, the area was perhaps considered 'sweet' and 'gentle'. Dulzura was the place-of-death for former

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

pitcher

Eric Show Eric Vaughn Show (; May 19, 1956 – March 16, 1994) was an American professional baseball player who was a pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB). He spent most of his career with the San Diego Padres and holds the team record for most career ...

. It was once best-known as the home of a local

candied fruit Candied fruit, also known as glacé fruit, is whole fruit, smaller pieces of fruit, or pieces of peel (fruit), peel, placed in heated sugar syrup, which absorbs the moisture from within the fruit and eventually Food preservation, preserves it. ...

delicacy known as Clark's 'Pickelized' Figs, produced on Clark Ranch by Frank and Lila Clark from 1908 to 1914; the figs were sold in small casks or firkins at grocery stores across the United States. The advent of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

resulted in a sugar shortage, effectively ending the prosperous family business. Today, the Clark Ranch remains in the family name, with the original "Pickle House" now being the tasting room fo
Dulzura Vineyard & Winery
The Dulzura Schoolhouse was a one-room educational landmark in the community, from the 1900s until it was closed in the 1950s.

Climate

According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

system, Dulzura has a

hot-summer Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate ( ), also called a dry summer climate, described by Köppen and Trewartha as ''Cs'', is a temperate climate type that occurs in the lower mid-latitudes (normally 30 to 44 north and south latitude). Such climates typic ...

, abbreviated "Csa" on climate maps.Climate Summary for Dulzura, California
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References

{{authority control Unincorporated communities in San Diego County, California Mountain Empire (San Diego County) San Ysidro Mountains Unincorporated communities in California