Escondido History Center

Early Escondido

  The name, “Escondido” is roughly translated to “hidden place” and the city ‘s fascinating history began on land that formerly comprised the Rancho Rincon del Diablo, an old rancho predating California’s entrance into the United States. In 1886, the ranch was purchased by the Escondido Land & Town Company (EL&T Co.), headed by the Thomas Brothers; Richard, Charles, John and William, as well as Jacob Gruendike, Daniel Hale, Thomas Metcalf and several others. Numerous attempts had been made to utilize the land before, but the actions taken by the Escondido Land & Town Co. were the first to attempt to turn the area into a full-fledged city.

  Escondido was just one of many Southern California towns that was established during the 1880s land boom. The EL&T Co. immediately opened a San Diego office and began building a 100-room hotel in Escondido. Proceeds from their first land sales were used to entice the Santa Fe Railroad to build a branch line to Escondido, thus ensuring their community would grow and prosper.

  Offering free land to anyone who would build a church or school, the young community soon had an elementary school (the Lime Street School), a large seminary built by the University of Southern California (USC) for $75,000, and several churches. The EL&T Co. also sponsored the creation of a local newspaper, The Escondido Times. The newspaper was used initially as an advertising tool targeting mid-western farmers, luring them to Escondido’s perfect year-round growing season.

Escondido was described as one of the most prosperous and rapidly growing colonies in southern California. Two years after the EL&T Co. was formed, the city of Escondido was incorporated on October 8, 1888. Local voters approved incorporation 64-19. The population was approximately 500.

  The city grew slowly but steadily, as an agricultural center ideal for grapes, citrus and later for avocados. Eventually, Escondido became the commercial center serving North San Diego County and encouraged banks and financial institutions to locate here. Both World Wars contributed to an influx of people and a labor force, light industries began moving in, and the groves and vineyards gave way to housing.

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Community

  Escondido has a rich history of people of diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds, coming together as a community and that diversity continues to be one of its strongest features today. From the beginning, when pioneering families settled in this hidden valley, it grew steadily with a boom in the 1950s and it continued growing with a population that exceeds 145,000 today.  Housing for the expanding population has brought a variety of building methods and styles that has created a great diversity of neighborhoods and often among individual homes within those neighborhoods.

  We are also a community of faith.  The Escondido Land & Town Company donated land to churches in Escondido’s early days and, since then, churches of many faiths have continued to multiply here.  Several significant faith-based events have occurred over the years, including the observance of the National Day of Prayer. 

  Schools and the way education is delivered have transitioned over the years.  From the first elementary school and then the USC seminary, a strong school system has grown. Public schools and, more recently, charter schools and options for home schooling give families a wider variety of choices.

  We care about our past, as well.  A strong historic preservation program, instituted in 1992, created the Old Escondido Neighborhood Historic District and is protecting and preserving our built history throughout the city, while the Escondido History Center and the Library’s Pioneer Room maintain vast collections of photographs, documents, and artifacts.

From the earliest times, community members came together to form clubs and organizations, offering social, networking, and community support opportunities. Community volunteers organized a variety of events over the years and sporting events, most often featuring school teams, have long been popular in Escondido.

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Commerce

While the area had been farmed for many years, the Escondido Land & Town Company was Escondido’s earliest commercial enterprise, a group of developers looking toward a future of other businesses, homes, schools, churches, and ranches in this Hidden Valley. They developed a clever marketing plan and it worked; a lumber company and brickyard were soon started to handle the building surge. Blacksmiths and wheelwrights like Thomas Bandy and Alexander Stewart set up businesses to repair wagons and forge hardware and tools. 

The hospitality industry began with the 100-room Escondido Hotel, built to accommodate the many early visitors.  Later, as horse drawn wagons were replaced by automobiles, surfaced streets began to crisscross the County and by the 1940s, motor courts and motels became economical “homes away from home” for families seeing the country.

  Agriculture, started on early ranchos, continued to grow along with the city. Census reports from the early 20th century reflect an influx of farmers, especially from the East, Midwest, and Europe. Families like the Hillebrechts and the Henrys ran large farms on the outskirts of town, still operating today.  Grapes were Escondido’s largest crop in the early days, later to be replaced by citrus fruit and avocados, but the fertile soil and mild weather meant that nearly everything could grow here.  Edward Paul Grangetto, Sr., first arrived in Escondido in 1913 and, in 1952, he started Grangetto’s Farm and Garden Supply, which now has four locations in North San Diego County, still run by the Grangetto family.

  Before the prohibition era, there were at least a dozen wineries in Escondido, but only the Ferrara Winery survived beyond that time and it continued to operate until 2011. The historic site was taken over about six years later by new owners joining multiple new wineries in and around Escondido.  Also becoming popular are local craft breweries, the most successful and now thriving internationally, Stone Brewing Company. 

  In time, other businesses needed by the growing township lined Grand Avenue in the new Downtown.  Pharmacies, general stores, restaurants, and markets featuring locally grown produce brought commerce to Escondido. Services, like those provided by barbers and photographers, came to the downtown area, as well.

  As the town spread outward, strip malls became common as in other cities around the country.  The Escondido Village Mall, the Auto Park, and North County Fair brought numerous businesses into single shopping sites to make it easier for shoppers to spend their money.

  Diverse companies have made Escondido their home over the years since it was founded. Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soaps was founded by Emanuel Bronner following his escape from a mental institution in 1945, and it became a company respected world-wide; the headquarters/ manufacturing plant operated here on West Mission from the 1960s until 2014 when it moved to Vista.  The Ken Blanchard Company, Escondido Disposal, and Alhiser-Comer Mortuary have all served the community for many years while relatively newer ventures like Trapeze High, a unique school for teaching the art, have become well established, too.

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Culture

  Escondido’s relationship to the arts and its endeavor for cultural development began almost at the city’s incorporation in 1888. The first city band was formed by 12 local musicians. In 1889, a band stand was built on the southeast corner of Grand Avenue and Maple Street.  Band concerts often made Sundays and holidays merry occasions. These early days also boasted local celebrations, eventually including the Grape Day Festival, which always had a musical component. Early theatrical productions were also quite common in the schools, churches and clubs.

  In the 1920s and 30s, the Community Arts Association was organized to give attention to arts and drama. About the same time, local optometrist, Benjamin Sherman, who had studied drama at leading Southern schools, gathered local young people together and presented several plays at the Kinema Theatre. Audiences of 500 to 700 attended. Later, he became the author of the outdoor play “Felicita.” In more recent history, the Patio Playhouse Community Theatre has been providing local, live theatre since 1967.

  In 1946, the Philharmonic Arts Association was formed and launched its first concert series, held in the Escondido High School auditorium. Through the Association’s efforts, Escondido was host to world-renowned artists such as Risë Stevens, Jose Greco, Artur Rubenstein and the Los Angeles Philharmonic.

  In the 1970s, the Escondido Regional Arts Council was created to bring visual arts to North County. The first gallery was in the Vineyard Shopping Center on East Valley Parkway. Today, the Municipal Gallery and the Escondido Arts Partnership both provide venues for local artists to exhibit their work.   The City established a Public Art Program in 1988 and more than 22 public art projects have been installed by the City of Escondido and private developers under the guidance of the Public Art Commission.

  Also in the 1970s, the cultural history of the community came into focus with the establishment of Heritage Walk in Grape Day Park. The City’s first library was identified and moved to the Walk, opening in 1976 as the first local history museum.  Since that time, other historic buildings have been added to Heritage Walk to help keep the history of Escondido alive. Additional museums and galleries have been established in the City, over time, to provide the people of Escondido with well-rounded cultural opportunities.

  With the success of the Regional Arts Council, a stronger, more comprehensive Felicita Foundation was formed, which successfully lobbied to use the city’s old library space upon completion of the new library in the early 80s. With the support of the National Endowment for the Arts, the Felicita foundation was able to use the newly acquired space to present both visual and performing arts in a limited scope.

Sparked by this civic vision that recognized how vital the arts are to a community, Escondido voters, in 1985, approved the building of a $73 million arts center that would bring music, dance, theater, education and the visual arts together on one dynamic campus as part of an overall redevelopment project. Since its opening in 1994, the California Center for the Arts, Escondido has been dedicated to promoting the arts along with their power for community building and enhancement, and to enrich the lives of Escondido citizens.

  Literature has always played a key role for Escondido residents, as well.  First librarian Mina Ward authored a book that included her own stories as well as articles from technical magazines to assist in gauging shorthand speed.  Several other notable authors have made Escondido their home, including, more recently, Martha C. Lawrence and former Escondido Police Officer, Neal Griffin; as well as childrens book illustrator Debbie Tilley.

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Government Sites & Services

  Escondido was incorporated in 1888 as a result of a 64-19 vote by city residents, who also elected the first members of the Board of Trustees.  The Board met monthly, upstairs at 110 W. Grand.  In 1930, the Board of Trustees became the City Council and the chairman became the mayor. In 1955, an ordinance was adopted, setting up the current Council-Manager form of government. 

  A Public Library was Escondido’s first city service.  In the early 1900s, the city also began paving roads.  The Parks and Recreation Dept. was formed in 1956, later to become part of the Community Services Department.   Escondido has always offered a wide variety of outdoor recreational opportunities, including camping, fishing, picnicking, hiking, and boating. Currently, the City maintains Dixon Lake, Lake Wohlford, Daley Ranch, and nine urban parks.

  The scope of city services has steadily increased over the years, particularly as the city limits extended outward and the population grew. Eleven different departments, in addition to the City Manager’s, City Attorney’s, City Treasurer’s, and City Clerk’s offices, now provide residents with a wide range of services.

  Escondido has experienced very few major crimes that have attracted national attention.  Sadly, a post office shooting in 1989 became the second postal shooting in the country, followed by others in different cities that led to the term “going postal.”  Also receiving national attention was the murder in 1998 of Stephanie Crowe, who was stabbed multiple times in her bedroom. Another tragic murder occurred in 2009, when Amber DuBois was abducted on her way to school.  Her murder and Chelsea King’s of Rancho Bernardo, by the same man, led to the passing of Chelsea’s Law, which, among other provisions, increased penalties, parole provisions, and oversight for violent sexual predators who attack children.

  Fires have taken lives as well as damaging and destroyed property and throughout Escondido’s history. Thankfully, however; the number of fires has steadily decreased, thanks to stricter fire codes, including mandated fire sprinklers in new construction, as well as more advanced firefighting equipment and strategies.  The Fire Department also began offering medical aid and transport in 1977 with those calls now making up 80% of fire department calls while fire-related calls constitute only 1.7% of their nearly 16,000 annual calls.