A selective guide to historical resources pertaining to the history of Palomar Mountain in San Diego County, California. Website started in 2004
BOOKS
Palomar from Teepee to Telescope
Catherine M. Wood and Peter Brueggeman
Mount Helix, Calif. : Peter Brueggeman, 2019. Version 6
Edited, corrected & expanded from Catherine M. Wood's original work, which is in the public domain, and was published in San Diego by Frye & Smith in 1937.
Palomar Mountain : Past and Present
Marion F. Beckler and Peter Brueggeman
Mount Helix, Calif.: Peter Brueggeman, 2019. Version 6
Edited, corrected & expanded from Marion F. Beckler's original work, with permission of Stanworth Beckler, which was published in Palm Desert, California by Desert Magazine in 1958.
Edward H. Davis' Palomar Mountain memoir (including Indians; Joseph Smith; Nate Harrison; George Van Dyche; Enos T. Mendenhall; George Doane; Theodore Bailey; Nellie McQueen; Harry Burch; Ben Lockhart; Clark Cleaver; Alice Hill; Winbert Fink; Frazier sisters; Bill Nelson; Louis and Hodgie Salmons; George Cook; French Valley; Iron Springs camping: Palomar Mountain trees and plants; telescope; Francis G. Pease)
Palomar Mountain Fire Department history
Project Hug-a-tree, Jimmy Beveridge death, February 1981
Grizzly bear on Palomar Mountain
Forest rangering in the old days: Phil Angel, Nellie Angel
Observatory then and now
George Doane beard growing contest
Artists view the Mountain
Luiseno lines
Mountain King snake
Volume 2 (1983)
Palomar Mountain State Park history
Yoga Center, Mother's Kitchen and Store
Elsie R.H. Roberts' Palomar memoir
LeRoy "Roy" Bonham's 1921 Boy Scout trek to Palomar Mountain
Borden Cabin memories, Phoebe Borden. Including Ralph Payne Middlebrook, Camp Comfort rock
Palomar Mountain bear account, Otis Kilgore
Plane down on Palomar Mountain, Cessna 170B, March 21, 1983
Palomar Mountain Volunteer Fire Department, plus 1982 BBQ
Observatory, 1982-1983
Thelma Samsioe
Rodney W. Ballie
Pearl Schrader
Roy Tillinghast
Vic and Kay Butler
Mildred Koenig and Skyline Lodge (now known as Palomar Mountain Lodge at the end of Crestline), including Art Koenig
George Doane beard growing contest
Palomar photo album at Baileys, 1916
Mountain arts, crafts, and prose
Available for purchase at the Palomar Mountain Store
The Culture of the Luiseno Indians
Philip Stedman Sparkman
Berkeley, Calif.: University of California Press, 1908
University of California publications in American archaeology and ethnology volume 8, number 4
Has considerable information about Native Americans on Palomar.
Luiseno Social Organization
Raymond C. White
Berkeley, Calif. : University of California Press, 1963
University of California Publications in American Archeology and Ethnology 48(2):91-194, 1963
Has considerable information about Native Americans on Palomar.
The Hidden Cabin, a Pathetic Story in Condensed Form
David W. Edwards
Los Angeles : Commercial Printing House, 1909
Not a history; this is a long poem set at Palomar Mountain.
Scientific Excavations at Palomar Mountain's Nate Harrison Site: The Historical Archaeology of
a Legendary African-American Pioneer
Seth Mallios. Journal of San Diego History 55(3):141-160, Summer 2009
Pedley Valley and Darby's Palomar Mountain Resort
Robin Howell and Peter Brueggeman. Version 2, 30 May 2020
Robin Howell's childhood memories of Pedley Valley, with additional text from Peter Brueggeman
Marion Beckler: Palomar Mountain Memoir
Edited by Peter Brueggeman from Beckler's 1961 handwritten notes. Held by Peter Brueggeman
teaching at Palomar Mountain school, a Palomar Mountain childhood trip, some local history
Common Plants Found in the Territory Exploited by the Villages of Molpa and Cuca
Excerpt from: Archaeological investigations at Molpa, San Diego County, California. D. L. True, C. W. Meighan, and Harvey Crew. University of California publications in anthropology volume 11. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1974.
Field-work among the Mission Indians of California
J. P. Harrington. Explorations and Field-Work of the Smithsonian Institution in 1932. Washington DC: Smithsonian Institution, 1933. pp. 85-88
last Native American teepee on Palomar
Leo Douglass Remembers... Palomar Mountain
Excerpt from a 1979 memoir of Leo Douglass; 2006 interview of Herbert Douglass by Peter Brueggeman
memories of the Smith and Douglass Hotel located at Silvercrest in State Park
Gordon Stuart: Palomar Mountain Memoir
Edited by Peter Brueggeman from 'San Diego Back Country 1901' written/published by Gordon Stuart, 1966. Held by Peter Brueggeman
Stuart visited Palomar Mountain in 1904
Ed Fletcher: Palomar Mountain Memoir
Edited by Peter Brueggeman from "Memoirs of Ed Fletcher" by Colonel Ed Fletcher. San Diego: Pioneer Printers, 1952.
History of Palomar Mountain As Remembered by Hank and Florance Saddler
The First Permanent or Year-Round Park Employees on Palomar Mountain State Park. July 1, 1940 to January 15, 1943; December 1, 1945 to April 24, 1948. Held by Peter Brueggeman
State Building Highway Link to Site of 200-inch Telescope on Palomar Peak
E. E. Wallace. California Highway and Public Works, April 1936. pp. 2-5. Held by Peter Brueggeman
includes map of planned route, and photos of current state of road and contractors' camp
Big Eye on Palomar
The Highway Traveler 21(1):14-15,48, February-March 1949. Held by Peter Brueggeman
Greyhound Lines travel magazine article on Palomar Mountain
San Diego, Escondido, and El Centro Traction Company proposed electric railway
Electrical Review and Western Electrician. July 26, 1913. page 195
proposed a train stop at Nellie, Palomar Mountain
George Doane's cabin in The Virginian
1914 Cecil B. DeMille film had several scenes shot on Palomar Mountain,
including this scene at George Doane's abandoned cabin in Doane Valley, in what is now the State Park.
Palomar Mountain and the Crater Lake Monster
1977 "Crater Lake Monster" film was shot at several Palomar Mountain locations and at San Vicente Reservoir.
Palomar Mountain Hotel
twelve page five fold brochure, 16 x 52 cm. c1914
$2.25 double tent & board per day. Compared to 1928 $4.00 rate for same, an inflation calculator dates it around 1914. Held by Peter Brueggeman
Palomar Lodge
six page two fold brochure, 16 x 26.1 cm. c1918
$2.75 double tent & board per day. Compared to 1928 $4.00 rate for same, an inflation calculator dates it around 1918. Held by Peter Brueggeman
Palomar Mountain Hotel
twelve page five fold brochure, 16 x 52 cm. c1919
$3.50 double tent & board per day. Compared to 1928 $4.00 rate for same, an inflation calculator dates it around 1919. Held by Peter Brueggeman
Palomar Lodge
twelve page five fold brochure, 16 x 52 cm. Undated brochure, with handwritten note dated 17 June 1928.
$4.00 double tent & board per day in 1928. Held by Peter Brueggeman
Palomar Mountain, Camp Site & Club House
eight page three fold brochure, 16 x 35 cm. Undated. Held by Peter Brueggeman
Associated with Reid Wallace's Palomar Mountain Camp Sites development (Crestline/Birch Hill area), which
started around 1921-1923
Palomar Mountain Club
brochure, undated. Held by Peter Brueggeman
Associated with Reid Wallace's Palomar Mountain Camp Sites development (Crestline/Birch Hill area)
Palomar Observatory Tour
1946 Palomar Mountain Stages bus tour brochure. Held by Peter Brueggeman
Note the advertisements for Palomar's Summit Grove Service Station and Skyline View Ranch
1880: U.S. survey map: Township 10S, Range 2E
George Dyche's ranch at far left in middle, with East Grade road below it.
Township 10S, Range 2E, San Bernardino Meridian [map]. U.S. Surveyor General's Office, 1880
1884: U.S. survey map: Township 9S, Range 1E
Doane Valley at lower left. Township 9S, Range 1E, San Bernardino Meridian [map]. U.S. Surveyor General's Office, 1884
1885: U.S. survey map: Township 10S, Range 1E
Southern edge of Palomar Mountain range in middle.
Township 10S, Range 1E, San Bernardino Meridian [map]. U.S. Surveyor General's Office, 1885
1886: U.S. survey map: Township 10S, Range 1E
Southern edge of Palomar Mountain range in middle.
Township 10S, Range 1E, San Bernardino Meridian [map]. U.S. Surveyor General's Office, 1886
1886: U.S. survey map: Township 10S, Range 1W
Pauma Creek flowing out of Palomar Mountain range at upper right.
Township 10S, Range 1W, San Bernardino Meridian [map]. U.S. Surveyor General's Office, 1886
1890: Palomar Mountain area excerpted from: Official map of San Diego County, California: compiled from latest official maps of U.S. surveys, railroad and irrigation surveys, county records, and other reliable sources
Thomas Dykes Beasley, 1890
1892: U.S. survey map: Township 10S, Range 1W
Pauma Creek flowing out of Palomar Mountain range at upper right.
Township 10S, Range 1W, San Bernardino Meridian [map]. U.S. Surveyor General's Office, 1892
1894: Survey map of Sections 10, 11 + 14, Township 10S, Range 1E
Shows locations of Striplin and Willhite sawmill and boarding house, and cabins
Map of partial subdivision of sections 10, 11 + 14, of Township 10 South, Range One East, San Bernardino Meridian, - being the land owned by Davis and Williams, and Striplin and Willhite. As surveyd by me October 24th and 25th 1894. S. L. Ward, licensed Surveyor
1895: U.S. survey map: Township 9S, Range 2E
Oak Grove in middle left.
Township 9S, Range 2E, San Bernardino Meridian [map]. U.S. Surveyor General's Office, 1895
1921: U.S. survey map: Township 9S, Range 1W
Pauma Creek flowing out of Palomar Mountain range at lower right.
Township 9S, Range 1W, San Bernardino Meridian [map]. U.S. Surveyor General's Office, 1921
1925: Palomar Mountain area in: Native sites in part of southern California
Native American placenames from Sparkman, Culture of the Luiseno Indians:
Awa' / Aguanga;
Malamai / Agua Tibia;
Yami / Site of Potrero ranch house (Cuca Ranch) /
Ta'i / Peak of Palomar, near Bougher's;
Wikyo / Highest Peak of Palomar Mountain;
Takwish poshapila / Rocky Peak East of Wikyo;
Paauw / Palomar Mountain;
Kuka / Old Potrero village;
Ahuya / Old village site above Rincon on road to Potrero;
Pashkwo / Monkey Hill, San Jose valley;
Paisvi / Iron Spring on Palomar;
Wavam / Pauma Indian encampment during acorn-gathering season on Palomar;
Shoau / Pala Indian encampment during acorn-gathering season on Palomar;
Shautushma / Yapicha Indian encampment during acorn-gathering season on Palomar;
Pavla / Indians of Kuka or Potrero encamped while gathering acorns on Palomar;
Old village sites on Palomar / Malava, Wiya', Chakuli, Ashachakwo, Pahamuk, Tokamai, Mokwonmai;
Springs on east side of Palomar / Pakuka, Atupa.
1925: Plate 57, Map, Native sites in part of southern California
Handbook of the Indians of California. A. L. Kroeber. Smithsonian Institution Bureau of American Ethnology Bulletin 78.
Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1925
1928: F. G. Pease, His Map, Aug. 15, 1928
Francis G. Pease, California Institute of Technology, 1928.
From: Palomar Mountain Views, Volume 1. Sept. 1982. page 66
1938: U.S. survey map: Township 9S, Range 1E
maps northeastern section of Palomar Mountain range including High Point.
Township No. 9 South, Range No. 1 East, San Bernardino Meridian, California [map]. U.S. Dept of Interior, General Land Office, 1938
1948+: San Diego County
Automobile Club of Southern California, undated. Map Number 1935. Held by Peter Brueggeman.
Map shows Vail Dam, which was built in 1948.
1963: (Indian) Village Locations and Mapped Rancheria Territories in the San Luis Rey Basin
Indian tribal boundaries which extend onto Palomar Mountain
Luiseno Social Organization. White, Raymond C.University of California
Publications in American Archeology and Ethnology 48(2):91-194, 1963, Figure 1
1974: Locations of Major (Indian) Sites in the Middle San Luis Rey River Drainage, Including Both Summer and Winter Villages and the Trails Connecting Them Where These Are Known
location of Indian summer villages and trails on Palomar Mountain. Palomar Mountain archaeological site outside Doane, French and Iron Springs creeks are as follows: 530= Silvercrest Picnic area; 535= low knoll at headwaters of Cedar Creek at 4900 ft; 536= eastern edge of Dyche Valley; 537= point of land overlooking San Luis Rey River canyon at 4400 ft; 538= SE end of Will Valley; 539= SW rim of Palomar Mtn at 4600 ft; 548= SW rim of Palomar Mtn at 5300 ft; 593= Cedar Grove campground; 594= Nate Harrison spring; 1286= Crestline
Archaeological investigations at Molpa, San Diego County, California. D. L. True, C. W. Meighan, and Harvey Crew. University of California publications in anthropology volume 11. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1974, Map 4
LAND PATENTS are deeds from the U.S.government conveying title, and recorded by the government.
The U.S. Public Land Survey System divides land into 24-mile tracts that are
subdivided into 16 townships that are 6 miles by 6 miles, or 36 square miles.
Each township is divided into 36 one-square-mile sections. Each section is 640 acres, and then sections would be halved and quartered, etc.
For example, a Robert Asher land patent dated January 16, 1911, specified Township 9 South, Range 1 East, Section 31.
Some patentees bought their land for cash, others homesteaded a claim, and others came into ownership via a donation act
passed by Congress.
Key to Palomar Mountain land patents: a 1903 map overlaid with Township, Range, Section numbering
More Hours in My Day Soup - Terri Bailey on Big Blend Radio: Audio. Terri Bailey discussing the history of the Bailey family and Bailey's Palomar Resort. Terri shares Hodgie Bailey's "More Hours In My Day Soup" recipe (c.1920). October 20, 2018
PALOMAR