{"nrhp_refnum":"66000226","name":"San Diego Presidio","other_names":[],"category":"site","location":{"address":"Presidio Park","address_restricted":false,"city":"San Diego","county":"San Diego County","state":"CA","lat":32.758301149500056,"lon":-117.19402483564002,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1966-10-15","is_nhl":true,"nhl_designated_date":"1960-10-09","areas_of_significance":["Exploration/Settlement"],"significance_levels":["national"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"The site of the San Diego Presidio, a Spanish fort on Presidio Hill in what is now Presidio Park, San Diego, California, established in 1769. Only archeological remains and grass-covered mounds survive, owned by the City of San Diego Parks department.","why_significant":"It marks the first permanent European settlement on the Pacific coast of the United States and the founding of the first mission in California, Mission San Diego de Alcala. It served as a base for exploration and as the seat of military jurisdiction for southern California from 1776 to 1837, and as the governor's residence under Mexican rule from 1825 to 1829.","narrative":"Presidio Hill in San Diego holds the buried remains of a Spanish fort founded in 1769. Here Father Junipero Serra said mass on July 1, 1769, and Governor Gaspar de Portola took formal possession of California for Spain. Two weeks later Serra founded Mission San Diego de Alcala, the first mission in Upper California. The presidio began as a crude stockade and was later rebuilt with adobe walls. From 1769 to 1776 it served as the base for expeditions seeking new routes and mission sites, and until 1837 it remained the seat of military authority for southern California. It also housed the governor from 1825 to 1829. Decay set in during the 1810s and 1820s, and by 1839 no structure stood. In 1929 George W. Marston donated about 37 acres for a park. Grass-covered mounds now suggest the old ground plan, and only the archeological remains define the landmark.","period_of_significance":"1769","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Largely unexposed and covered by park roads and landscaping; grass-covered mounds outline former walls and buildings; excavations by San Diego State University were underway. Condition marked good and altered.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:31.831587-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/66000226_NHL.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/66000226/0d018a7549-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/66000226/0d018a7549-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"JERRYE AND ROY KLOTZ MD","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:TGILES_FROM_THE_PRESIDIO_AT_THE_JUNIPERO_SERRA_MUSEUM,_SAN_DIEGO.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">JERRYE AND ROY KLOTZ MD</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:TGILES_FROM_THE_PRESIDIO_AT_THE_JUNIPERO_SERRA_MUSEUM,_SAN_DIEGO.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123858038","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Presidio_of_San_Diego","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q605760"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/san-diego-county/san-diego-presidio-66000226/"}