PACIFICA AND PORTOLÁ PACIFICA AND PORTOLÁ
Pacifica is located to the South of the San Francisco peninsula, outside the city limits, but one of the towns which make up its Metropolitan Area. It covers five small valleys that drop smoothly down from the mountains to the Pacific ocean.
In these valleys and round the stations of the train that formed a part of the first Pacific Coast railway, scattered urban development grew up. After the First World War this increased and building began to climb the valleys, until groupings of owners who had chosen these areas to live in were set up. They were villages at a comfortable distance from the huge city, where the residents could enjoy the advantages of the quiet rural life of these pacific mountains.
In 1957 the settlements of Edgemar, Pacific Manor, Westview(Pacific Highlands), Sharp Park, Fairway Park, Vallemar, Rockaway Beach, Pedro Valley (Linda Mar) and Pedro Point were incorporated into a California city covering an extensive coastal area.
The name of Pacifica was a highly appropriate choice for this new city, in that it clearly defined one of its inhabitants’ basic aspirations.
The new city, formed from the union of these scattered residential areas, chose to symbolize it, the image of one of the statues from the San Francisco 1939 International Exhibition.
Pacifica has struggled with determination from the beginning in defense of its planned wish to live in an area enjoying the advantages of country and mountains. It has managed to have its valleys legally protected as open space with parks and recreation areas despite being only 20 minutes away from San Francisco.
Pacifica belongs to San Mateo County, territory crossed from North to South by a medium-size mountain range, with an eastern slope facing the bay and a western drop to the Pacific coast-line.
Aerial view taken from above the Montara mountains, in which the streets of Linda Mar and San Pedro, part of the city of Pacifica, can be seen.
In the distance San Francisco’s Golden Gate bridge can be made out, and of course the sweep of the bay.
The Portolá expedition, looking from the peak of Montara, could not make out the bay or its entrance, as their view was blocked by the hills.
The crest of these mountains, Sweeney Ridge, is the place from which Portolá and his expedition saw the magnificent bay for the first time. A few years ago this spot "Discovery Point", was recognized as a historic site and all these mountains were later acquired to become part of the protected "Golden Gate Recreation Area Park".
The Portolá expedition, in its fruitless search for the port of Monterrey, reached the peak of the Montara mountains near the shore route they were following.
Portolá wrote in his Diary:
"October 31. Travelled two hours of very poor road uphill over a very high mountain, stoping on the height. Here twenty-five heathens came up to us; and the Sergeant and eight soldiers were despatched to explore, inasmuch as some farallones , a point of land, and a bight had been seen and according to the ‘History’ of Cabrera we were close the San Francisco Harbor. Here we stayed for four days".
And Miguel Costansó completes the story:
"From the summit we descried a large bay lying to the northwest under a point land reaching far out to the sea ... about west-northwest with respect to us, were seen seven white farallones of various sizes and looking back toward the bay there were abrupt white bluffs made out more to the northward ... the mouth of an inlet was discovered witch seemed to make inland.
We went down to the harbor and placed our camp a short way from the shore, close to a stream of running water sinking into the ground and turning into a march of considerable extent that reached nearly to the sea".
They could clearly make out the farallones from Montara and glimpse an entrance that appeared to continue inland. They decided to descend and camped in the valley that would later become Linda Mar. From that base they continued exploring the country.
If you click, you will enlarge the aerial photography. You will see the expedition's trail from the camp (A) (San Pedro Valley-Pacifica), to (X) (Discovery Point), from which they discovered the big inside bay of San Francisco.
"Saturday November 4. ...In the afternoon the march was begun, along the southern shore or beach of San Francisco harbor; we at once went into the mountains steering a course to the northeastward, and from the height of a hill descried a great inlet drawing to the southeast and south-southeastward".
Climbing the mountains, they reached a point on the ridge from where they could see clearly the wonder of San Francisco bay. They were on Sweeney Ridge and on Discovery Point.
Click to read the monolith's text.
It is logical that ties should be established between Pacifica and Balaguer, developing a friendship between the cities’ inhabitants, and that the two Corporations confirmed officially in 1970 their relationship as Twin Cities.
Carl and Grace McCarthy stimulated a large number of activities, which the Portolá Expedition Foundation later continued. This Foundation is a cultural organization that promotes culture and historical research from the Museum of San Mateo.
Pacifica achieved the international recognition of the Association of Twinned Cities, for the connection established with school students of Balaguer through a correspondence of thousands of letters exchanged by those schools.
When the President of Catalonia donated a statue of Portolá to the People of California, the Governor of the State chose Pacifica as the most suitable site for it. There on National road number 1, near Crespi Drive and the Expedition’s campsite, Portolá statue looks towards the mountains from which they discovered the bay.
This photo and its memorial stone shows one of the most interesting Catalonia and California milestones relationships.
Click on the memorial stone
to read the donation's text to
California by the President of
Catalonia Mr. Jordi Pujol.
A public meeting was held on this occasion, at which official delegations from Catalonia and California were present as a record of the donation. The sculptors Subirachs and Carulla made an extrordinary statue. Located in the "Plaça de Catalunya", near the new City Civic Center, it is a remarcable historical spot to honor the Portolá expedition. .
(From left to right) Mrs. McCarthy, Mrs. Mojonnier,
Mr. Calzada, Mr. Dominguez, Mrs. Speier, Dr. Oró,
Mr. Ricarte / Portolá / Mr. Best, Mr. Molins, Mr. de Larios.
Click to enlarge picture.
