History

Hear the waves? Feel the sunshine? Oceanside is a little slice of heaven along the California coast. Just 35 miles north of San Diego and 83 miles south of Los Angeles, Oceanside’s history goes back to 1769 when Father Juan Crespi arrived and reported the area as perfect for a mission site.

In 1798, the Mission San Luis Rey de Francia was founded just three and a half miles from the present site of Oceanside. A small town sprang up around the mission, fueled by the California Southern Railway that linked the beach area to San Bernardino. Rancho families living inland enjoyed their excursions to the “ocean side” and the town’s name was born.

Though the area suffered during the depression of 1929, Oceanside took off following the construction of the nation’s largest Marine Corps Base, Camp Pendleton, on the city’s border. Today, Oceanside is a quaint, laid-back town that revels in its idyllic location.