Old Town San Diego State Historic Park

Old Town San Diego State Historic Park is a historic state park in central San Diego that contains a collection of restored 19th-century buildings, museums, and period-style shops spread over several city blocks. The adobe structures cluster around a central plaza, where courtyards with arcades, wrought-iron fencing, and cobbled pathways recreate the early California townscape.

The area served as the first Spanish-Mexican village on California soil from the 1820s onward and later grew into the first civilian settlement under American rule. The site was designated a state park in 1968 to preserve the early building stock and the legacy of the Mexican era for future generations.

The name recalls the first European-American settlement in this area, which now serves as a living museum. Visitors see craftspeople in period costume making candles, forging metalwork, or preparing tortillas using old methods, while musicians play Mexican folk songs in the plazas.

Admission to the grounds and most museums is free, and exhibition hours typically run from 10 AM to 5 PM. Guided walking tours led by costumed interpreters take place several times a day and offer insights into the daily life of early residents.

Five of the adobe buildings are original structures from the early settlement and have never been demolished or replaced, including the Casa de Estudillo, which is a National Historic Landmark. One of the buildings houses an old brick oven that still works and has been in use since the 1830s, occasionally fired up for demonstrations.

Location: San Diego

Inception: 1968

Operator: California Department of Parks and Recreation

Address: Telegraph Way

Website: https://parks.ca.gov/?page_id=663

GPS coordinates: 32.75466,-117.19734

Latest update: December 12, 2025 03:11