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Pioneer Park (San Diego)

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Pioneer Park
Mission Hills Park
Map
LocationMission Hills, San Diego, California, United States
Nearest citySan Diego, California
Coordinates32°44′57″N 117°10′39″W / 32.7492°N 117.1776°W / 32.7492; -117.1776
Established1876 (as Calvary Cemetery); 1968 (as public park)
Operated byCity of San Diego
Open6 a.m. to dusk
CitySan Diego
WebsiteOfficial website

Pioneer Park, also known as Mission Hills Park, is a public park in the Mission Hills neighborhood of San Diego, California. Originally established in 1876 as Calvary Cemetery, it served as a Catholic burial ground before being repurposed as a public park in 1968. The bodies remain buried beneath the park.

History

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Calvary Cemetery

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Calvary Cemetery was the second Catholic cemetery in San Diego, dating back to when the city had a population of only 250.[1] The first was El Campo Santo cemetery in Old Town. When it began to fill up, the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Diego purchased the land, atop Pringle Hill in the Mission Hills neighborhood, from the city in October 1873. The cemetery was formally established in 1876.[2] For the years when it was in operation, it provided burial grounds primarily for Catholic residents of San Diego.[1][2]

Following the opening of Holy Cross Cemetery opened in 1919, Calvary Cemetery began to fall into disrepair. In 1939, the caretaker's building, containing many of the burial records, caught on fire. The records were lost.[3] The cemetery remained active until the mid-20th century.[4][5][6][7]

Conversion to a park

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A state law passed in 1957 stated that cemeteries that endangered "the health, safety, comfort, or welfare of the public" and had less than 10 burials in the previous 5 years could be officially abandoned.[1] As the cemetery had not been well-maintained and was frequently visited by vandals and motorcyclists, the city began the process of converting the cemetery into a park in 1961.[2][1] By 1968, it was fully converted.[1] The City of San Diego removed most of the headstones to Mt. Hope Cemetery.[1] Despite the removal of most headstones, the remains of the cadavers are still beneath the grounds.[8][4]

In December 2024, a vandal drove into the grassy area of the park and performed donuts, leaving behind deep ruts and mud.[9]

Features

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Features of the park include:

  • A memorial row of preserved headstones commemorating the history of the once was a cemetery.[3]
  • A children’s playground for recreational use.
  • Tennis courts are located across the street from the main park area.[10]

Paranormal claims

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Pioneer Park is reputed to be haunted, with reports of spectral apparitions and unexplained phenomena. These stories have made the park a point of interest for paranormal enthusiasts.[11][12]

Notable burials

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Several prominent individuals and families are interred at the site from its time as Calvary Cemetery. Among them are members of the Bandini family, known for their ownership of the Cosmopolitan Hotel and Restaurant.

Name Birth Date Death Date Notable Achievements
Don Juan Bandini 1800 Lima, Viceroyalty of Peru November 4, 1859 (aged 58-59) Married to Maria de los Dolores Estudillo;
Father Antonio Ubach September 1835 Barcelona, Spain May 27, 1907 Also buried at the site is Father Antonio Ubach, a Roman Catholic priest who served as the parish priest in Old Town San Diego for 23 years beginning in 1860.[13]
Charles Francis Walsh 1877 1912 American pioneer aviator, who built one of California's first airplanes, died in a crash in 1912.[14]
Peter C. Shannon 1821 1899 Peter C. Shannon (1821–1899) was an American judge and politician who served as Chief Justice of the Dakota Territory Supreme Court. He presided over the trial of Jack McCall, leading to the territory's first legal hanging. Shannon died after a carriage accident.
Jesse Wilbur Ames 1807 1866 Jesse Wilbur Ames (1807–1866), a San Diego pioneer, arrived in 1820 as a sailor and later became a Catholic, allowing him to own property. Ames played a role in the Mexican-American War, served as Mayor of San Diego, presidents of the Board of Trustees, and later owned Rancho Cañada de los Coches.
John (Jack) Stewart, 1892 Participated in the Battle of San Pasqual, shipmate to Richard Henry Dana.
Rosa Maria MACHADO de STEWART 1825 1898 Wife of John (Jack) Stewart.
Richard Kerren[15] January 17, 1814 November 5, 1856, at the age of 42 Sergeant Richard Kerren, stationed at Mission San Diego de Alcalá, amassed substantial wealth through property acquisitions, livestock trading, and possible dealings in government supplies. At his death in 1856, his estate included $8,289 in assets.[16]
Sir Albert Vincent Mayrhofer 1889 1948
Ysidora Bandini de Couts[17] 23 Sep 1829 San Diego County, California, USA 24 May 1897 (aged 67) Los Angeles County, California, USA Married Cave J. Couts; daughter of Don Juan Bandini.
George Patrick Brennan[18]
Marco Bruschi[19][20] 1840 1915
Andrew Cassidy[21] 1817 November 25, 1907
James Waterman Connors[22] 1830 1913 served in Company I of the 3rd U.S. Artillery.
Lieutenant Cave J. Couts Springfield, Tennessee, November 11, 1821 1874 The Couts family, who owned Rancho Guajome Adobe. Cave J. Couts arrived in San Diego following the Mexican–American War to assist with mapping the border between the United States and Mexico. He was originally buried in the Old Town Cemetery in 1874.[23] He married Ysidora Bandini
William Blount Couts[24]
Dr. David Bancroft Hoffman[25] 1824 1888
George Alonzo Johnson August 16. 1824 November 27, 1903 George Alonzo Johnson was an American entrepreneur and politician known for pioneering steamboat navigation on the Colorado River and serving in the California State Assembly. He co-founded George A. Johnson & Company, which played a role in supplying Fort Yuma.
George Lyons George Lyons, a native of Donegal, Ireland, arrived in San Diego in 1847, having worked as a carpenter aboard a whaler on the Northwest coast. He operated a store in Old Town from 1851 to 1858 and served as San Diego's sheriff for two terms from 1858 to 1862. Additionally, Lyons held various local offices, including city trustee and postmaster, and was a director of the San Diego & Gila Railroad.[26]
Juana de Dios Machado de Wrightington 8 March 1814 24 December 1901 Age 87 Juana de Dios Machado Alipás de Wrightington, was a pioneering nurse, midwife, and quilter in Old Town San Diego, known for her service during the Mexican-American War. Despite being illiterate, she became an expert in nursing, translating, and assisting as a midwife. During the Battle of San Pasqual in 1846, she cared for the wounded, earning the title of "Florence Nightingale of San Diego."
Henry C. Magee
Charles E. May[27]
Maria Amparo Maytorena de Burton 1836 13 Aug 1895 (aged 58–59)
James McCoy[28]
Maria Victoria de Pedrorena de Magee[29]
Miguel de Pedrorena 8 March 1814 24 December 1901
Anton Sonka[30]
Maria Serafina de la Luz Valdez de Machado 1788 1861
Dr. Charles Carpentier Valle[31]
Hans Hugo Herman Heink 1887 1916 Mother Ernestine Schumann-Heink

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f Weingartner, Nancy (April 23, 1987). "Gravestones returned home". Ramona Sentinel. pp. 1, A10.
  2. ^ a b c The Canyoneers (August 29, 2018). "An unassuming cemetery in Mission Hills". San Diego Reader. Retrieved January 24, 2025.
  3. ^ a b Page, Eric S. (October 27, 2022). "Corpse Pride: We Know Where the Bodies Are Buried This Halloween, San Diego". NBC 7 San Diego. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
  4. ^ a b Dotinga, Randy (November 24, 2010). "Fact Check: The Bodies Beneath a San Diego Park". Voice of San Diego. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
  5. ^ "Pioneer Park - From Sacred Space to Soccer Field". July 24, 2011. Archived from the original on July 24, 2011. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
  6. ^ Speciale, Gina (March 15, 2007). "SDSU Professor Unearths the Buried Tales". www.sdsu.edu. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
  7. ^ Dotinga, Randy (October 31, 2018). "Spooky San Diego: Bodies Lie Beneath as We Walk, Play and Shop". Voice of San Diego. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
  8. ^ "1940 Aerial View of Pioneer Park Cemetery". City of San Diego. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
  9. ^ NBC 7 Staff (December 27, 2024). "Driver doing donuts in Mission Hills leaves muddy mess behind at Pioneer Park". NBC 7 San Diego. Retrieved January 24, 2025.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  10. ^ Jeannie (October 21, 2020). "Pioneer Park". Parks in San Diego. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
  11. ^ "Pioneer Park May Haunt You – at Least with its Stories". SDNews.com. October 19, 2009. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
  12. ^ "Pioneer Park may haunt you – at least with its stories". November 21, 2010. Archived from the original on November 21, 2010. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
  13. ^ "The Glory Years, 1865-1899". San Diego History Center | San Diego, CA | Our City, Our Story. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
  14. ^ "Charles F. Walsh". www.earlyaviators.com. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
  15. ^ "Richard Kerren". San Diego History Center | San Diego, CA | Our City, Our Story. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
  16. ^ "Richard Kerren". San Diego History Center | San Diego, CA | Our City, Our Story. Retrieved January 5, 2025.
  17. ^ "Cave Johnson Couts (1821-1874)". San Diego History Center | San Diego, CA | Our City, Our Story. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
  18. ^ "When "The Lower Light" Was New | San Diego History Center". sandiegohistory.org. Archived from the original on April 3, 2016. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
  19. ^ "India Street and Beyond: A history of the Italian Community of San Diego, 1850-1980 | San Diego Reader". www.sandiegoreader.com. Retrieved January 5, 2025.
  20. ^ "HISTORY OF SAN DIEGO" (PDF). San Diego the History Company 1908: 525.
  21. ^ "Andrew Cassidy". San Diego History Center | San Diego, CA | Our City, Our Story. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
  22. ^ "Part Two: Chapter XII: AMERICAN FAMILIES OF THE EARLY TIME | San Diego History Center". sandiegohistory.org. Archived from the original on April 1, 2016. Retrieved April 21, 2025.
  23. ^ "Pages From the Diary of Cave Johnson Couts". San Diego History Center | San Diego, CA | Our City, Our Story. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
  24. ^ "Part Six: Chapter IV: GROWTH OF THE MEDICAL PROFESSION | San Diego History Center". www.sandiegohistory.org. Archived from the original on April 1, 2016. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
  25. ^ "Dr. David Bancroft Hoffman (1824-1888)". San Diego History Center | San Diego, CA | Our City, Our Story. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
  26. ^ "George Lyons". San Diego History Center | San Diego, CA | Our City, Our Story. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
  27. ^ May, Charles. Benezit Dictionary of Artists. Oxford University Press. October 31, 2011. doi:10.1093/benz/9780199773787.article.b00119343.
  28. ^ "James McCoy (1821- )". San Diego History Center | San Diego, CA | Our City, Our Story. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
  29. ^ "Victoria Pedrorena An 1879 Teacher in the Fall Brook District – Fallbrook Historical Society". Retrieved January 4, 2025.
  30. ^ "Lemon Grove Historical Society – Your story begins at home…". Lemon Grove Historical Society. December 8, 2024. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
  31. ^ "Part Six: Chapter IV: GROWTH OF THE MEDICAL PROFESSION | San Diego History Center". sandiegohistory.org. Archived from the original on April 1, 2016. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
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