The Gaslamp Quarter is a 16½-block neighborhood in the downtown area of San Diego, California. It extends from Broadway to Harbor Drive, and from 4th to 6th Avenue. Listed as a historic district on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

as Gaslamp Quarter Historic District, it includes 94 historic buildings, most of which were constructed in the

Victorian Era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardia ...

; many are in use as restaurants, shops, entertainment venues, and nightclubs. It is the site of various events and festivals, including Mardi Gras in the Gaslamp, Street Scene Music Festival, Taste of Gaslamp, and ShamROCK, a St. Patrick's Day event. Petco Park, home of the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penn ...

, is one block away in the East Village neighborhood. San Diegans generally refer to the area as "the Gaslamp", rarely "Gaslamp Quarter", as on the entryway arch and official city signage and banners.

History

In the 1860s, the area was known as New Town, in contrast to Old Town, the original Spanish colonial settlement of San Diego. Intensive development began in 1867, when Alonzo Horton bought the land in hopes of creating a new city center closer to the bay, and chose 5th Avenue as its main street. After a period of

urban decay Urban decay (also known as urban rot, urban death or urban blight) is the sociological process by which a previously functioning city, or part of a city, falls into disrepair and decrepitude. There is no single process that leads to urban deca ...

, the neighborhood underwent

urban renewal Urban renewal (also called urban regeneration in the United Kingdom and urban redevelopment in the United States) is a program of land redevelopment often used to address urban decay in cities. Urban renewal involves the clearing out of blighte ...

in the 1980s and 1990s. It was rebranded the "Gaslamp Quarter" during the redevelopment and preservation efforts that occurred during the 1980s, though the streets were generally lit by arc lights, not gaslamps. Four new gaslamps have been installed at the intersection of Market Street and 5th Avenue.

Timeline

*1850:

William Heath Davis William Heath "Kanaka" Davis, Jr. (1822 – 1909) was a merchant and trader in Alta California who helped to establish "New Town" (now Downtown San Diego) in San Diego, California. Life Davis was born in 1822 in Honolulu in the Kingdom of Hawaii ...

bought in what would eventually become the Gaslamp Quarter. Despite heavy investment from Davis, little development happened in this period. *1867: Real estate developer Alonzo Horton arrived in San Diego and purchased of land in New Town for $265. Major development began in the Gaslamp Quarter. *1880s to 1916: Known as the Stingaree, the area was a working class area, home to San Diego's first Chinatown, "Soapbox Row" and many saloons, gambling halls, and bordellos. *1912: Stingaree was the site of a

free speech fight Free speech fights are struggles over free speech, and especially those struggles which involved the Industrial Workers of the World and their attempts to gain awareness for labor issues by organizing workers and urging them to use their collective ...

between socialists and city politicians which led to riots and the abduction by vigilantes of Emma Goldman's husband. *1916: the entire neighborhood of Stingaree was demolished and renamed by anti-

vice A vice is a practice, behaviour, or habit generally considered immoral, sinful, criminal, rude, taboo, depraved, degrading, deviant or perverted in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character t ...

campaigners. *1950s-1970s: The decaying Gaslamp Quarter became known as a "Sailor's Entertainment" district, with a high concentration of pornographic theaters, bookshops and

massage parlor A massage parlor (American English) or massage parlour (Canadian/British English) is a place where massage services are provided for a fee. In the 19th century, the term began to be used in English as a euphemism for a brothel. Context In 189 ...

s. *1970: Public interest in preserving buildings downtown started, especially in Gaslamp Quarter. *1976: The city adopted the Gaslamp Quarter Urban Design and Development Manual, aimed at preserving buildings in the area, and the redevelopment of Gaslamp Quarter as a national historic district. *1982: Gaslamp Quarter became the major focus of the redevelopments in downtown by the city of San Diego. *1992: Gaslamp Quarter Archway is installed and dedicated.

References

External links

Gaslamp Quarter AssociationGaslamp Quarter Historical FoundationCentre City Development CorporationInformation about Gaslamp Quarter Happenings
{{Authority control Entertainment districts in California Historic districts in San Diego Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in California National Register of Historic Places in San Diego Gaslamp Quarter Urban communities in San Diego

History

Timeline

See also

References

External links