The San Marcos CA homes for sale area is very rich in history. Like Oceanside, its neighbor to the west, San Marcos history starts with the San Luis Rey Mission located along the San Luis Rey River valley northwest of what is now the city of San Marcos. As you drive around the San Marcos CA homes for sale area today, you will recognize many of the names from the following account of San Marcos history.
A band of outlaw Indians stole sheep from one of the mission’s ranches. The Spanish troops searched the hills for the sheep and the offenders. They came upon a beautiful valley surrounded by emerald hills and named the valley the “Valley of Discovery.” They also called it Los Vallecitos de San Marcos, little valley of Saint Mark. The land in the valley and surrounding area changed hands many times over the next 90 years.
In 1883 John Barham founded the first town and promptly named it “Barham.” This first town had a blacksmith, a post office, feed store, and a weekly newspaper. In 1887 the San Marcos Land Company bought much of the land in the valley and started dividing it into large tracts for development and homes.
By 1896, the new area just became know as San Marcos. It then had its’ own black smith shop, a post office, general store, and a railroad depot. The first school in
the valley, Barham school, moved to the new San Marcos city and was soon joined by a second school, Richland School. Most of the earlier settlers to the area were farmers and ranchers. After the 1900s, dairies and chicken ranches moved into the valley. In the 1950s, the completion of the Colorado River project brought more water to the area resulting in more growth. The city has continued to grow rapidly up through present day.
For more information San Marcos CA homes for Sale, contact Gary Harmon your San Marcos Realtor. |