Chapter Three: Foundations of Human Activities

The native Kumeyaay and Luiseño/Juaneño peoples were the first to populate San Diego until the first European to step foot on the sunny beaches of San Diego . Spanish explorer Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo in 1542 and later Junípero Serra and Gaspar de Portola would arrive in 1769. Junípero Serra and Gaspar de Portola were the first Europeans to settle into the city and became the first European settlement in California .  

In 1840 the United States obtained California from Mexico and with it San Diego ; however, San Diego did not prosper right away and was nothing more than a small seaside town. Over the next couple of years San Diego prospered with hosting two world fairs, discovery of gold in 1869, and promotions of its promising harbors and climate; however, after the bombing of Pearl Harbor San Diego became the central hub for the U.S. military. The presence of the Pacific fleet in San Diego allowed the city to grow into the second largest city and most industrial city in California .

Population, 1960-2000
	1960	1970	1980	1990	2000
Total	1,033,011	1,357,854	1,861,846	2,498,016	2,813,833
Change		324,843	503,992	636,170	315,817
Percent Change		31.45%	37.12%	34.17%	12.64%

The above graph was taken from censusscope.org and represents the population growth of San Diego from the 1960’s to 2000.

 http://www.censusscope.org/us/m7320/chart_popl.html

http://www.lonelyplanet.com/usa/san-diego/history

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_San_Diego,_California