![]() Yellow-tiled markers set into the sidewalk help visitors follow this path. The “ Monterey Walking Path of History” is a historic two-mile path that includes 55 historic buildings and sites throughout the historic district and the park. The best way to experience the architectural styles of the Monterey Old Town Historic District is through a walking tour. As Monterey evolved from a Spanish to a Mexican capital, and then to an American city, its diverse citizens found ways to adapt and blend architectural techniques to suit their needs and aesthetic preferences. The architectural styles found throughout the Monterey Old Historic District and the Monterey State Historic Park represent the city’s political, social, and cultural history. Introduced by American Gallant Duncan Dickenson in 1848, kiln-fired bricks became a part of Monterey’s architectural mix. ![]() As the American presence in California continued to grow and California officially became part of the United States in 1848, American settlers introduced further refinements to the area’s architectural techniques. This became known as the “Monterey Colonial” style. Larkin introduced a new building style to Monterey by combining Spanish building methods with New England architectural features. By the mid 1830s, a New England entrepreneur named Thomas O. As Monterey’s economy expanded, so did the city itself.īeginning in the 1820s, Monterey grew beyond the old Spanish presidio walls becoming a tangle of irregularly laid streets lined with pristine, whitewashed adobe buildings. Californio is a term used to describe Spanish-speaking people, regardless of their race, born in California before 1848. The economy boomed and Monterey became a cosmopolitan town.ĭrawn to Monterey for its economic possibilities, foreign tradesmen, settlers, and businessmen settled in the area and often married into leading local Mexican or Californio families. British, American, and South American trading vessels flocked to this coastal port. During this time, Mexico lifted the strict trading regulations the Spanish had enforced, and Monterey became California’s main port of entry. For the next 25 years, Monterey served as the capital of Mexican California. ![]() Roughly 50 years after the establishment of Monterey, Mexico won its independence from Spain in 1821 and California pledged its allegiance to the Mexican government. LarkinĬourtesy of the California Department of Parks and Recreation The Larkin House is the prototype for Monterey Colonial Architecture that was introduced by Thomas O. The presidio remained in Monterey and flourished as the seat of government. ![]() The second in what would become a 21 mission chain in California, Mission de San Carolos Borromeo de Monterey moved to nearby Carmel in 1771, because it offered a better agricultural and political environment for the growing mission. As the second of the four presidios the Spanish established in California, the Presidio of Monterey provided settlers and the mission with protection, and served as the military and government headquarters. On June 3, 1770, Captain Gaspar de Portola and Franciscan Father Junipero Serra founded the Presidio of Monterey and the Mission de San Carolos Borromeo de Monterey at Monterey Bay. The Spanish created permanent settlements in Alta California by constructing presidios (forts) and establishing missions throughout the region. Self-guided and guided walking tours throughout the Monterey Old Historic District and the Monterey State Historic Park transport visitors back to early California and remind them of the historic Spanish and Mexican heritage that permeates the area.īy the late 1700s and early 1800s, Spain had extended its New World empire by colonizing the west coast of North America. As a thriving port, Monterey became a bustling city as the social, economic, and political center of California. The district brings to life the Spanish Colonial, Mexican Colonial, and early American periods of California through its 19th century historic buildings. A National Historic Landmark, the Monterey Old Town Historic District includes within its boundaries the Monterey State Historic Park. Monterey served as the Spanish, then Mexican, capital of California between 17. ![]()
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