20,000 B.C.
Hunting peoples of northeast Asia follow herds of Caribou, bison, and mammoth across the present day Bering Strait, which at several points in this period is a grassy plain a thousand miles broad. They then move south along ice-free corridors into the American continents. Anthropologists believe that humans first settled in the San Diego area as early as 20,000 years ago along the coast and 12,000 years ago in the desert.
7000 BC to 1000 BC
La Jollan people assimilate the original San Dieguito people (or evolve from them). Today’s La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club is neighbor to a major archeological site from this period.
November 12, 1602
First Christian religious service of record in California is conducted by Fray Antonio de la Ascensión, a member of Vizcaíno’s expedition, celebrating the feast day of San Diego. A meeting follows the Mass, and later Indians appear with bows and arrows, but the Spanish offer gifts and communicate with sign language. The encounter ends peacefully.
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