Escondido
Escondido is located on the I-15 corridor in North San Diego County. The name is subject to some dispute, but it seems to have been first seen in connection with a gold mining operation started in 1860. Gold mining continued in the area until the 1920s, but the area's claim to fame is agribusiness.
The city is famous for its Grape Day festival and parade, first held in 1908. The festival lapsed in 1947, but was revived and is now hosted annually again by the Escondido Historical Society. Orfila Vineyards and Winery is located near San Pasqual. The winery's fields of grapes offer a look back at the industry.
Grapes gave way to citrus and avocados in the 20s, and the groves in turn gave way to houses and shopping when I-15 was completed in the 1980s. The city recently built the California Center for the Arts. It contains a theatre and an art museum as well as meeting rooms for community events. The theatre puts on a full schedule of performances by name artists each year.
The town has built a new City Hall and is busy reinventing its downtown as a destination for antiquing and fine dining. The location of the Wild Animal Park in the San Pasqual area has been a boon to attracting visitors and publicity to the area.
*From San Diego Source, The Daily Transcript
