Known for being the first settlement in California, the Old Town San Diego is an old neighborhood of San Diego, covering over 200-acre of land. Old Town San Diego is best known for the first European Settlement in California with a magnificent flourishment in culture. However, San Diego has been one of the most diverse towns in the state with a majority of Mexican pueblos and conquistadors. Old Town San Diego is also recognized for the 21 California Missions which were established in the region by local Christian communities. Thus, this place contains a very significant importance in history, it houses the two well-known Historic Parks – the Presidio Park and Old Town San Diego State Historic Park.
The creation of a mission and a fort in 1769 was set up for the whole town of Old Town. After the revolution in the 1820s, the town was then registered as a chartered town in 1834 which was still mainly restricted to Old Town, and San Diego County was made the county seat after the registration of California in the United States in the year 1850. In the year 1838, the Mexican government revoked the town’s status as a chartered town because of its decline in population along with other reasons like the long distance from a water source, the trade routes were relatively long and laborious so import export was also limited. Also because of the rapid decline in the population. In the 1860s, the growth of Alonzo Horton and promotion of business in Downtown San Diego, most of the business deserted the Old Town and government records moved from Old Town to a new county. The Old Town was left behind merely as a focal spot, yet it is bounded by the interstates on the north and west along with hills on the south and east.
The Old Town nowadays is an exemplary place to experience the genuine era of San Diego and the birth and growth of California throughout the 18th century and more firsthand. It is basically a “going back in time” experience with museums, artifacts, restaurants and atmosphere that makes it more believable and authentic. But as the Old Town is the center to San Diego, it connects to other towns in the San Diego neighborhood.
Overview:
In the 1910s the Old Town became one of the neighborhoods of San Diego that consisted of a large-scale public transit. As for the composition of Old Town, it is closely associated with the public transit settled in the town in an early 19th century. It is a station of switching between divergent transportation systems such as the San Diego Trolley and San Diego Metropolitan Transit System. The economical settlement of Old Town is a hand full of professions. 32 restaurants, 12 Art galleries, 27 historic sites and some primary governmental institutes. The historical spots are perhaps the principle reasoning for the lively tourism in the area; among these areas are places like the county park, Mormon Battalion Visitor Centre and similar.
The institutes, galleries, parks, historic sites are mostly run in Old Town are organized by contrary organizations. Such as the tourism and business subjects are handled by the Old Town San Diego Chamber of Commerce, the BOOT organizations provide funds and facilities for events and programs and the SOHO is accountable to oversee some prominent museums in the town. The culture of Old Town is celebrated through some events occurring annually. These events include Cinco de Mayo, The Art festival, Christmas festivals, Las Posadas, and the Dia de Los Muertos.
Tourism & Attractions:
With the enthralling history of Old Town and appropriate efforts made to accommodate suitable facilities for visitors, the tourist’s charms are ranging from shopping centers to museums, cafes, eateries, historic mansions. Among the compelling attractions, the most intriguing one is the Old Town State Historic Park which is a perfect representation of colonial life back in the day in San Diego with luxury mansions and businesses. The Presidio Park is also an enthralling place with several trails and shares the original site of the Presidio. The Whaley House is regarded as a highlighted historic spot, which is essentially a restored house that dates back to 160 years and still has its original bedroom conditions on showcase. The interests on these specific mansions increased as some specified them as haunted buildings due to the location which was previously a graveyard. For these reasons, this place offers night guided tours other than the normal day tours. There distinctive museums that are supposed to represent and showcase different eras that were experienced through time by this place such as Wells Fargo History Museum; which is not a proper museum building but a small-scale building that exhibits artifacts depicting the gold rush era in Old Town. The Junipero Serra Museum also sets an example of diverse past events on display as it is recognized for being a rendition of Victorian Era, with around 6 houses restored. Other than just the museums, Old Town offers, in terms of history – restored houses, schoolhouses, graveyards, etc. The tourists have an exciting chance for shopping with large-scale shopping centers, that are, entirely Mexican themed. Supplementary facilities include trolleys which are a stress-free way to travel throughout the Old Town. There is hop on trolleys that mark their stops at almost every major station and place in Old Town. Local entertainment is no less in Old Town, like the live mariachi performers and diverse events apart from the ones that occur annually. Perhaps the most perplexing feature of Old Town is the cuisine, which is closely related to its astonishing past. The old town was originally established by the Mexicans; their culture left its effect all over the place especially in the restaurants. There is a massive variety of Mexican food in Old Town with an authentic Mexican atmosphere and Mexican aesthetics. Beyond the Mexican cuisine, there are distinctive eateries that offer Japanese, and American foods, and much more.