Old Town San Diego is considered the "Birthplace" of California. San Diego is the site of the first permanent Spanish settlement in California. San Diego was founded in July 16, 1769 & Incorporated March 27, 1850. San Diego is the Second largest city in California & the Eighth largest city in the United States. Nickname "America's Finest City" - Known to have the Best Climate in the US There are 70 miles of Beaches - 4200 Square Miles - Over 2.5 million residents.

The Earliest indications of people living in San Diego date back 9,000 years. They called themselves Kumeyaay. When the Spaniards arrived, they used the word Diegueno to identify the Indians associated with the mission. In 1542 explorer, Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo reported that the native Indians "were good natured and attractive people".  With the arrival of the Spanish settlements in 1769, many Kumeyaay retreated to the hills.

In 1769, Gasper de Portola established the Fort Presidio of San Diego overlooking Old Town. Also in 1769, Franciscan Friar Father Junipero Serra established the very first mission Mission San Diego Alcala. It was the first of five Missions to be established in San Diego. The five Missions are San Diego de Alcala, San Luis Rey, Pala, Santa Ysabel & Las Flores. In 1821, Mexico won it's independence from Spain and San Diego came under Mexican rule. In 1846, the United States declared war on Mexico, invading Mexico from the East. US Troops reached San Diego by December. In 1848, the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidaglo was signed which ended the war between Mexico and the US.

Opened in 1888 the Hotel Del Coronado is the Largest wooden structure in the US and has been featured in many movies & books. In 1850, San Diego County was created as one of California's original counties. Significant U.S. Navy presence began in 1907 with the establishment of the Navy Coaling Station, which gave further impetus to the development of the town. Military bases in San Diego include U.S. Navy ports, Marine Corps bases, and Coast Guard stations. One of the Marine Corps' two Recruit Depots is located in San Diego. San Diego is also known as the "birthplace of naval aviation". San Diego is the site of one of the largest naval fleets in the world, and San Diego has become the largest concentration of Naval facilities in the world.

Two of the U.S. Navy's Nimitz class super carriers, (the USS Nimitz and the USS Ronald Reagan), five amphibious assault ships, several Los Angeles-class "fast attack" submarines, the Hospital Ship USNS Mercy, carrier and submarine tenders, destroyers, cruisers, frigates, and many smaller ships are home-ported here. Four Navy vessels have been named USS San Diego in honor of the city.

San Diego hosted two World's Fairs, the Panama-California Exposition in 1915, and the California Pacific International Exposition in 1935. Many of the Spanish/Baroque-style buildings in the city's Balboa Park were built for these expositions, particularly the one in 1915. Downtown San Diego is located on San Diego Bay, Balboa Park lies on a mesa to the Northeast. Coronado and Point Loma peninsulas separate San Diego Bay from the Pacific Ocean.  Ocean Beach is on the west side of Point Loma, Mission Beach and Pacific Beach lie between the Pacific Ocean and Mission Bay and La Jolla lies to the North. The Mountains rise to the East of the city, and beyond the mountains are desert areas.