<P> San Diego has been called `` the birthplace of California '' . Historically home to the Kumeyaay people , it was the first site visited by Europeans on what is now the West Coast of the United States . Upon landing in San Diego Bay in 1542 , Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo claimed the area for Spain , forming the basis for the settlement of Alta California 200 years later . The Presidio and Mission San Diego de Alcalá , founded in 1769 , formed the first European settlement in what is now California . In 1821 , San Diego became part of the newly independent Mexico , which reformed as the First Mexican Republic two years later . California became part of the United States in 1848 following the Mexican -- American War and was admitted to the union as a state in 1850 . </P>
<P> San Diego has been called `` the birthplace of California '' . Historically home to the Kumeyaay people , it was the first site visited by Europeans on what is now the West Coast of the United States . Upon landing in San Diego Bay in 1542 , Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo claimed the area for Spain , forming the basis for the settlement of Alta California 200 years later . The Presidio and Mission San Diego de Alcalá , founded in 1769 , formed the first European settlement in what is now California . In 1821 , San Diego became part of the newly independent Mexico , which reformed as the First Mexican Republic two years later . California became part of the United States in 1848 following the Mexican -- American War and was admitted to the union as a state in 1850 . </P>
when was the city of san diego founded
when was the city of san diego founded
1769
1769