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With summer approaching and plans for summer vaca tion being made, we offer some suggestions courtesy of the State of California Depart ment of Parks and Recrea tion. We will be running a different California attraction each week in order to help you plan your vacation or just a weekend away. By Ken McKowen State of California Dept. of Parks Recreation At the foot of historic Presidio Hill where Father Junipero Serra founded California's first mission in 1769, today stands restored Old Town San Diego. More than four million people each year visit Old Town's six blocks and stroll through the 160-year-old plaza, dozens of shops, restaurants, and restored buildings of an earlier era The best place to begin your tour of Old Town is at the visitors’ center. Here you may purchase an of ficial guidebook for $1 which describes the nine buildings that comprise the park's historic core. The plaza is the central feature of Old Town and is still the scene of many fiestas and other special events. The colorful annual Mexican Christmas pa geant, “Las Posadas,” takes place in December, re-enacting Mary and Joseph's search for shelter in Bethlehem. It was here in Old Town that the American flag was raised in 1846, marking the end of Mexican rule. But the Spanish and Mexican flers. At La Casa de Machado y Silbas, an adobe ae 1830s, volunteer will sell you a package of herbs and spices for a quarter. The money helps with their pro jects, which include sewing period costumes Next door, you are met by the aroma of tobacco com ing from the Racine and Laramie Store. The store is a re-creation of the frame building that burned in the disastrous 1872 fire and led to the demise of Old Town as the city’s center. Off the plaza you'll find La Casa De Machado y Stewart, where adobe making is fully described. The home was occupied un til 1966 by descendents of Jack Stewart, a boat pilot. Two years later, Old Town became a state park, open ing the way for state-funded restoration projects. Two smaller buildings nearby mirror the town’s growth following statehood in 1850. The first schoolhouse, built in 1865, is preserved, an wce ae constructed to house the San Diego Union newspaper. The materials ’ building were shipped around Cape Horn in 1851. Next door to the Union is La Casa Pedrorena, once a residence and now a Mex ican bakery. A nonhistoric building near the Union office is a must to see. It contains a painstakingly crafted model of the town as it may have appeared in 1870, when 400 people called it home. At that time a new town near the harbor was being built, which would eclipse Old Town. The three largest struc tures in Old Town may take more of your time to tour, depending on your interests. A landmark in Old Town, and a place you should not miss, is La Casa de Estudillo. Built in 1827 and restored as early as 1910, the one-story tile-roofed home contains a chapel and 13 rooms exquisite in period furnishings, which enclose a patio and garden. Here you can see the luxuries that were possible on Amerca’s western frontier. The Seeley Stable has an excellent display of wagons, stagecoaches, and western memorabilia, including In dian artifacts. It was from here that entrepreneur Albert Seeley launched his San Diego-Los Angeles stageline in 1867, making his fortune. A So-cent fee gains you entry into both La Casa Estudillo and Seeley Stable. In Seeley Stable, a 20-minute multi-image slide show will help further your understanding of Califor nia’s colorful history. La Casa Bandini, ori ginally built in 1829, was purchased in 1869 by Seeley and converted from a home into a hotel with a second floor addition. Today, the restaurant and garden con tinue the home's tradition as a social center of Old Town. All buildings and the visitor center are open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily dur ing winter and until 6 p.m. during summer. Except for excavated foundations, more remains of Old ‘s original department of parks and recreation, which operates the park, is planning eight more reconstructed hotels will be used for historic interpretation and concessions. Their ap pearance will be made as historically accurate as possible. The park is also making an effort to preserve understanding of the older ways of life. On Saturdays you may find school children at the Stewart adobe making bricks, dip ping candles, and cooking in The aromas of Mexican food cooking in the many Old Town restaurants will whet your ap is a great way to experience the flavor of Old Town San Diego. San Diego offers a varie ty of accommodations, from fashionable hotels to recreational vehicle cam pgrounds. The city boasts 184 hotels with 17,000 rooms, many in the Mission Bay area near Old Town. There are currently three state beaches in the vicini ty offering RV camping, an outdoor oven. South Carlsbad State Beach, 25 miles north of the city, has 222 sites for trailers up to 28 feet and campers up to 30 feet, and a sanitation station. San Eliso State Beach, about 20 miles north, has 171 campsites and addi tional room for hikers and bicyclists. Silver Strand State Beach, south of Coronado, offers unreserved RV camping for those en route along the coast. In addition, the state has six other beaches for swim ming and fishing, Torrey Pines State Reserve with Stands of one of the world’s rarest’ pine trees, and Border Field State Park. Tools of the 19th century at La Casa de Machado y Stewart in Old Town Topacc? 900g WINE O The Racine and Laramie Store in Old Town San Diego State Historic Park.
Newspaper Details
Shafter Press
Shafter, California, US
Wed, May 15, 1985
Page 14
Full Page
Clipped by
Alijandra A.
USA 10 Jun 2026
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