SAN CLEMENTE CA
Date: 09/27/2015
San Clemente is a city in Orange County, California. The population was 63,522 at the 2010 census. Located on the California Coast, midway between Los Angeles and San Diego at the southern tip of the county, it is known for its ocean, hill, and mountain views, a pleasant climate and its Spanish Colonial style architecture. San Clemente's city slogan is "Spanish Village by the Sea". The official city flower is the Bougainvillea; the official city tree, the Coral.
History
Early colonization
Prior to colonization by Spaniards, the area was inhabited by the Juane%uFFFDo native people. Long admired by explorers and passing settlers, it remained virtually uninhabited until 1776, when Mission San Juan Capistrano was established by Father Junipero Serra, which led both Indian and Spanish settlers to establish villages nearby. After the founding of Mission San Juan Capistrano, the local natives were conscripted to work for the mission.
Becoming a city
Property rights to the land exchanged hands several times, but few ventured to build on it until 1925, when former Mayor of Seattle, Ole Hanson, an out of town, major land developer, with the financial help of a syndicate headed by Hamilton Cotton, purchased and designed a 2,000-acre (8.1 km2) community. Hanson believed that the area's pleasant climate, beautiful beaches and fertile soil would serve as a haven to Californians who were tired of "the big city". He was a man of strong convictions, that all hired help and nonwhites should live on the outskirts of town and unions workers should not be hired. He named the city after San Clemente Island, which in turn was named by the explorer Vizcaino in 1602 after Saint Clement, whose feast day occurs on November 23, the day of Vizcaino's arrival on the island. His "San Clemente by the Sea" and so it was known as for all his life and many years after.
Hanson envisioned it as a Mediterranean-style coastal resort town, his "San Clemente by the Sea". He had a clause added to the deeds requiring all building plans to be submitted to an architectural review board in an effort to ensure that future development would retain some Mediterranean-style influence. But this proved to be short lived, and in the oldest parts of town you find a very eclectic mix of building styles.
Hanson succeeded in promoting the new area and selling property to interested buyers. The city was to consist of buildings built in the classic Mediterranean style with red tile roofs. He built public structures such as the Beach Club, the Community Center, the pier and San Clemente Plaza, now known as Max Berg Plaza Park, which were later donated to the city. The area was officially incorporated as a City on February 27, 1928 with a council-manager government.
Referring to the way he would develop the city, Hanson proclaimed, "I have a clean canvas and I am determined to paint a clean picture. Think of it %uFFFD a canvas five miles (8 km) long and one and one-half miles wide!" My San Clemente by the Sea
Largest Historic Landmark in San Clemente: Soon after San Clemente was incorporated, the need for a "Fire House" was realized. The headlines in San Clemente%uFFFDs first newspaper, "El Heraldo de San Clemente" June, 1928 read: "Building to house local fire department will be constructed by popular subscription and turned over to the city when completed!" Individual subscriptions were received in the amounts from $6.00 to $1500.00 from the local citizenry.
Nixon's "Western White House"
In 1969, an event occurred which accelerated the growth and reputation of San Clemente. President Richard Nixon bought part of the H. H. Cotton estate, one of the original homes built by one of Hanson's partners. Nixon called it "La Casa Pacifica", but it was nicknamed the "Western White House", a term now commonly used for a President's vacation home. It sits above one of the West Coast's premier surfing spots, Trestles, and just north of historic surfing beach San Onofre. During Nixon's tenure it was visited by many world leaders, including Soviet Premier Leonid Brezhnev, Mexican President Gustavo D-az Ordaz, Prime Minister of Japan Eisaku Sato, and Henry Kissinger, as well as businessman Bebe Rebozo. Following his resignation, Nixon retired to San Clemente to write his memoirs. He sold the home in 1980 and moved to New York City, later to Saddle River, New Jersey, and then eventually to Park Ridge, New Jersey. The property also has historical ties to the Democratic side of the aisle; prior to Nixon's tenure at the estate, H.H. Cotton was known to host Franklin D. Roosevelt, who would visit to play cards in a small outbuilding overlooking the Pacific Ocean. The Old City Plaza also at one time had a small Nixon museum inside when the city occupied the premises.
Geography
San Clemente is located at 33%uFFFD26'16?N 117%uFFFD37'13?W? / ?33.43778%uFFFDN 117.62028%uFFFDW (33.437828, -117.620397).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 19.5 square miles (51 km2). 18.7 square miles (48 km2) of it is land and 0.8 square miles (2.1 km2) of it (3.89%) is water.
Climate
San Clemente enjoys a Mediterranean climate where temperatures tend to average around the 70's. The warmest month of the year is August with an average temperature of 79 %uFFFDF (26 %uFFFDC). The coldest month is December with an average temperature of 64 %uFFFDF (18 %uFFFDC). The annual rainfall in 2010 was 10.5 inches (270 mm) and the annual days of sunshine was 310.
