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El Cajon, CA

Frequently asked questions

El Cajon, CA

El Cajon is a city in San Diego County, California, United States, 17 mi (27 km) east of downtown San Diego. The city takes its name from Rancho El Cajón, which was named for the box-like shape of the valley that surrounds the city, and the origin of the city's common nickname "the Box".

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 14.4 square miles (37 km2), all land. It is bordered by San Diego and La Mesa on the west, Spring Valley on the south, Santee on the north, and unincorporated San Diego County on the east. It includes the neighborhoods of Fletcher Hills, Bostonia, and Rancho San Diego.

During Spanish rule (1769–1821), the government encouraged the settlement of territory now known as California by the establishment of large land grants called ranchos, from which the English word "ranch" is derived. Land grants were made to the Roman Catholic Church, which set up numerous missions throughout the region. In the early 19th century, mission padres' search for pastureland led them to the El Cajon Valley. Surrounding foothills served as a barrier to straying cattle and a watershed to gather the sparse rainfall. For years, the pasturelands of El Cajon supported the cattle herds of the mission and its native Indian converts.

Titles to plots of land were not granted to individuals until the Mexican era (1821–1846). The original intent of the 1834 secularization legislation was to have church property divided among the former mission Indians, but most of the grants were made to rich "Californios" of Spanish background who had long been casting envious eyes on the vast holdings of the Roman Catholic missions. In 1845, California Governor Pio Pico confiscated the lands of Mission San Diego de Alcala. He granted 11 square leagues (about 48,800 acres or 19,700 ha) of the El Cajon Valley to Dona Maria Antonio Estudillo, daughter of José Antonio Estudillo, alcalde of San Diego, to repay a $500 government obligation. The grant was originally called Rancho Santa Monica and encompassed present-day El Cajon, Bostonia, Santee, Lakeside, Flinn Springs, and the eastern part of La Mesa. It also contained the 28-acre (11 ha) Rancho Cañada de los Coches grant. Maria Estudillo was the wife of Don Miguel Pedrorena (1808–1850), a native of Madrid, Spain, who had come to California from Peru in 1838 to operate a trading business.

With the cession of California to the United States following the Mexican–American War, the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo provided that the land grants would be honored. As required by the Land Act of 1851, a claim for Rancho El Cajon was filed by Thomas W. Sutherland, guardian of Pedrorena's heirs (his son, Miguel, and his three daughters, Victoria, Ysabel, and Elenain) with the Public Land Commission in 1852, confirmed by the U.S. Supreme Court, and the grant was patented in 1876. In 1868, Los Angeles land developer Isaac Lankershim bought the bulk of the Pedrorena's Rancho El Cajon holdings and employed Major Levi Chase, a former Union Army officer, as his agent. Chase received from Lankershim 7,624 acres (3,090 ha) known as the Chase Ranch. Lankershim hired Amaziah Lord Knox (1833–1918), a New Englander whom he had met in San Francisco, to manage Rancho El Cajon. In 1876, Knox established a hotel there to serve the growing number of people traveling between San Diego and Julian, where gold had been discovered in 1869. Room and board for a guest and horse cost $1 a night. The area became known as Knox's Corners and was later renamed. By 1878 25 families were living in the valley and a portion of the hotel lobby became the valley post office with Knox as the first postmaster.

El Cajon focuses on health and wellness. Explore the parks, facilities, and programs offered by El Cajon’s Recreation and Community Services Department. These spaces provide opportunities for outdoor activities such as walking, jogging, sports, and picnicking. Join local fitness centers and gyms to participate in exercise programs, fitness classes, and strength training. Some popular options include Anytime Fitness, Crunch Fitness, and Jazzercise. Discover the walking and biking trails in and around El Cajon, such as the Valley View Truck Trail and the El Cajon Mountain. These trails offer opportunities for outdoor exercise and enjoyment of nature.

Top sites in El Cajon, CA are Olaf Wieghorst Museum & Western Heritage Center, Shadow Mountain Community Church, and San Diego Air & Space Museum Gillespie Field Annex.

Population: 102,991 (2023). ZIP codes: 92019–92022, 92090. Area code: 619. Elevation: 433 ft (132 m). Area: 14.51 sq mi (37.58 km2).

FAQs

Is El Cajon, CA a good place to live?

Living in El Cajon offers residents an urban suburban mix feel and most residents rent their homes. In El Cajon, there are a lot of coffee shops and parks. Many families live in El Cajon and residents tend to be liberal. 

Is El Cajon, CA expensive to live in?

El Cajon is 28% more expensive than the national average. Housing costs in El Cajon are particularly high, with prices around 78% higher than the national average. Transportation costs are also above average, about 29% higher, and groceries are roughly 13% more expensive compared to the national average.

What does El Cajon mean in English?

In the early part of the nineteenth century, Spanish Mission Padres, who had founded San Diego Mission de Alcala in east Mission Valley, discovered the rich pasture land in the El Cajon Valley. Surrounded by foothills in every direction, the "Big Box Valley" became the namesake for the City ("El Cajon" translates to "the box" in Spanish). For years, these foothills served as a barrier for straying cattle of the San Diego Mission, as well as ideal terrain to capture sparse rainfall for the grasslands and fertile land for agriculture on the valley floor.

Sources

Wikipedia

City of El Cajon

El Cajon’s Recreation and Community Services Department

Anytime Fitness

Crunch Fitness 

Jazzercise

Valley View Truck Trail 

El Cajon Mountain

Olaf Wieghorst Museum & Western Heritage Center

Shadow Mountain Community Church

San Diego Air & Space Museum Gillespie Field Annex

Niche

Mccarthytransfer

Elcajon.gov

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