The history of the Gaslamp Quarter and Downtown San Diego in 1981

this is what the city of San Diego looked like in 1867 at Old Town in that year on April 15th Alonzo Horton arrived by ship from San Francisco he was carried ashore on the back of an Indian near what is now Market Street as horton would later recall we had to wait there an hour for a wagon to take us up to San Diego while he was waiting Horton took a stroll for a quick survey of the area there was nothing but sagebrush then I thought San Diego must be heaven on earth it seemed to me the best spot for building a city I ever saw Horton was a man of vision and action by parting with a ten dollar gold piece he arranged an election for a Board of Trustees which in turn passed a resolution for the sale of certain farm lands on May 10th Horton bought 960 acres of waterfront land for $265 or 27 and a half cents an acre at that time the residents of Old Town were convinced he had more money than brains Hortons first construction was a wharf at the foot of fifth Street which costs forty five thousand dollars new town had a Main Street at first Horton gave away free Lots but not corner ones on the condition that the owners put up buildings of a certain size that was the beginning of a new San Diego for the next few years it was a boomtown building sprouted on barren land like weeds in spring by 1870 the population of new town was a staggering 2,300 one [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] the harbor was alive with activity over for building arrived daily and there was word of a railroad in 1872 News San Diego would become the Western terminus of the Texas and Pacific brought a wild fire of speculation and two months Orton sold 83,000 dollars worth of plots the days of free land were over and the early skeptics at Old Town were of little influence now as the business district moved north toward Broadway or 5th Street near the waterfront fell into disrepute if the market became one of the boundaries of the Stingaree red-light district parlors and cribs where men could turn their attention to women of questionable character gambling halls and saloons soon outnumbered grocery stores in 1887 the listing wyatt earp capitalist appeared in San Diego City Directory herb had come from tombstone and now owned three gambling halls in the area he also entertained himself as a referee for boxing matches these were the colorful and glory years of San Diego's past [Music] by the early 1900's San Diego is beginning to look more and more like a city cable cars carried shoppers and merchants back and forth along Fifth Avenue some of the city's first high-rises were being built without standing examples of period architecture lining the street the future of San Diego's downtown looked bright today 5th Avenue is the center of the Gaslamp Quarter the area became San Diego's first historical district in 1977 it's a 16 block 38 acre area that has the largest collection of surviving turn-of-the-century buildings in San Diego the quarter includes 4th 5th and 6th Avenue South Broadway to L Street the Gaslamp is in the process of a big facelift everywhere restoration is taking place sidewalks are being widened and new bricks being laid old buildings being made new again both inside and out our investment will appreciate 3 or 4 times within the next three or four years by virtue of the fact that it's a beautiful building to start with we have tried to rehabilitate it by maintaining the integrity of the original design in recent years this area of downtown has become a haven for porno movie houses adult bookstores and massage parlors Darrell X drunks and prostitutes walked the streets breathing new life into the Gaslamp began as an idea and a dream I drew both sides of the block researching the types of businesses and so forth that had originally been in the spaces and with a lot of inclusion of my own fantasy and it showed them what it could be that basically seems to be the little initial seed that from when it when it sprang that was 13 years ago these days the Gaslamp is beginning to attract new business investors designers and artists it may be the best and worst a modern city has to offer [Music] [Music] and what's it like for the people who live and work in the Gaslamp Quarter being in the middle of a of a beautiful historic district has a great deal of charm and draw of its own I don't know I just the energy and the people and the sense of community and the sense of vitality down here just making it possible to leave here it makes it irresistible well I from the gasps sounds like a life everywhere else it's hard there's a lot of trouble down here the police are around all the time but they don't bother us work goes on daily the old city hall at the corner v & G was a two-story Commercial Bank in 1878 two stories were added later today it's getting a facelift so we have different designs here that are manufactured just to get close to the one that originally was here because originally this was all brick there's new energy and pride in the Gaslamp Quarter and in much the same way people flocked to Hortons Newtown over a hundred years ago they're returning to those same streets today tomorrow we'll take a look at the nightlife in the Gaslamp Quarter for those who are daring enough to venture south of Broadway after dark Jane cubberson news 8 downtown [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] we are trying to combat now a myth in the minds of people San Diego this is a menacing area to be and we are in the process of re-educating people to the joys of coming into the heart of the city people cannot expect to every area the city to be as sterile as a mall

Channel: CBS 8 San Diego

Views: 7,996

Rating: 4.8734179 out of 5

Keywords: san diego, gaslamp quarter, news 8, history, gene cubbison

Id: zXFQFWsgkXQ

Length: 9min 1sec (541 seconds)

Published: Wed Jun 10 2020