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American Expansion The Mexican War took place between the United States and Mexico during 1846 and 1847. This war decided if California would become a state. San Diego did not see any of the action, but felt its effects. Great change was ahead for California, San Diego, and Mission Hills. The Americans were coming to stay. The Mormon Battalion, from Greenwood, Mississippi, had approximately 500 soldiers, women, and children. They came to the Old Town San Diego area to try to help in the Mexican American War on the American side. The battalion marched for six months and 2,000 miles. In an ironic twist of events, the war was finished before they arrived. They stayed for six months and helped make Old Town, San Diego a better place to live. The Gold Rush In 1848, one of the greatest events in California’s history occurred. This was the discovery of gold that led to the Gold Rush. This brought many immigrants from other countries and also many people from the Eastern United States in search of gold. After the war and the Gold Rush, California became the 31st state in 1850. The earliest Americans who came to live in Old Town, San Diego brought different customs and architecture, but the quiet nature of the town remained. Americans Bring New Ideas Mr. Thomas Whaley built the Whaley house, which is known today as the most authentic haunted house in the United States, in 1856, for his family. It was a showpiece in its day. It cost around $10,000, and was one of the first houses to be made of brick and have carpeting. A Whaley family member lived in the house for almost 100 years. During 1865 the Mason Street School house was built. It was a one-room schoolhouse, and discipline was very strict. If you did something wrong, they would give you a certain amount of hand lashings. Alfred Seeley later came along and started a stagecoach business, which was very successful, mostly because it was one of the first ones ever to be established! There was not a single stagecoach line until 1869. There were way stations about every 20 miles where passengers rested and fresh horses were exchanged for tired ones. Mr. Seeley was a savvy businessman, and he later bought the Casa de Bandini, which was a former Mexican Rancho. He turned it into the Cosmopolitan Hotel, probably because the city needed one, due to the city’s growth. Mason Street School, the Whaley House, and Seeley Stables remain today in the historic park in Old Town. by Jimmy and Stephen
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The original Whaley House
The family of Mr. Whaley.
The Seeley Stables in Old Town Historic Park. |
| © 2005 Grant Elementary School |
