An American town (1848–1900)

The full story

After California entered the United States, San Diego remained a modest settlement around Old Town. Its commercial center shifted only when Alonzo Horton promoted New Town closer to the bay in the late 1860s. The move improved access to shipping and established the street grid that still structures Downtown. Government offices and businesses followed, while Old Town lost its central civic role. A visit can make this urban change visible: compare the low adobe scale around Old Town’s plaza with Downtown blocks facing the waterfront. The contrast explains why two places can both claim to be historic San Diego. Old Town preserves the earlier settlement pattern; Horton’s New Town became the basis of the modern center, tied to rail, harbor development and later real-estate growth.