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First Mexican Empire and First Mexican Republic (1821–1835): Pueblo de San Diego

In 1821, Mexico ousted the Spanish in the Mexican War of Independence and created the Province of Alta California. The San Diego Mission was secularized and shut down in 1834 and the land was sold off. 432 residents petitioned the governor to form a pueblo, and Juan María Osuna was elected the first alcalde ("municipal magistrate"), defeating Pío Pico in the vote. Beyond town Mexican land grants expanded the number of California ranchosthat modestly added to the local economy. The original to...

Centralist Republic of Mexico (1835–1846): Decline of San Diego

In 1836, the Alta California and Baja California territories merged as the Department of Las Californias as part of the reforms made under Las Siete Leyes formalized under then President Antonio López de Santa Anna.

Alta California became part of the United States in 1848 following the U.S. victory in the Mexican–American War and the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, with the US-Mexican border established just south of the town. The resident "Californios" became American citizens with full voting rights. California was admitted to the Union as a state in 1850. San ...

The city grew in bursts, especially in the 1880s and again from 1900 to 1930, when it reached 148,000.

Since World War I, the military has played a leading role in the local economy. World War II brought prosperity and gave millions of soldiers, sailors and airmen en route to the Pacific a view of the opportunities in California. The aircraft factories grew from small handcraft shops to gigantic factories. The city's population soared from 200,000 t...

Californios and Chicano/Hispanic

After 1848 the Californios comprised a numerical majority and owned most of the property; they secured cultural and social recognition, but they failed to control the political system. By 1860, most had left the area and the remainder were on the decline economically. In World War II Hispanics made major breakthroughs in employment San Diego and in nearby farm districts. They profited from the new skills, contacts, and experiences provided by the military, filled many newly opened unskilled l...

African Americans

The African American population was small before the great naval expansion of World War II. Starting in 1953, the Urban League brought together black and white professionals and businessmen and encouraged white business owners to hire blacks. Unlike other Urban League chapters, it built coalitions with San Diego's Mexican American community. According to the 2010 United States Census, African Americans are only 6.6% of San Diego's total population. For over 100 years San Diego's second oldest...

Middle Eastern

The region had an early Middle Eastern presence prior to contemporary US wars in the Middle East. Chaldeans, in particular, built a community in El Cajon in the mid 20th century, with the parish of the St. Peter Chaldean Catholic Cathedralestablished in 1973. The first wave of migration from the Middle East to the San Diego region began during the Iraq War, as many Iraqis sought refuge from war-torn Iraq. Many found refuge in El Cajon, where the city has become the center of the region's Midd...