Empire Builder: John D. Spreckels and the Making of San Diego
Empire Builder is the previously untold story of a pioneer who almost single-handedly transformed the bankrupt village of San Diego into a thriving city. When he first dropped anchor in San Diego Bay in 1887, John Diedrich Spreckels set into motion a series of events that later defined the city. Within just a few years, he owned and controlled the majority of San Diego’s industry including building construction, water supply management, and energy production, as well as improvements in transportation—particularly by ship, rail, electric streetcar, and automobile.
John Spreckels also shaped much of early University Heights through his ownership and operation of the San Diego Electric Railway, the Southern California Mountain and Water Supply Company, and Mission Cliff Gardens. He was also Vice-President of the Panama-California Exposition Company which hosted the 1915 Exposition at Balboa Park and spurred a building boom in University Heights.
Empire Builder is the previously untold story of a pioneer who almost single-handedly transformed the bankrupt village of San Diego into a thriving city. When he first dropped anchor in San Diego Bay in 1887, John Diedrich Spreckels set into motion a series of events that later defined the city. Within just a few years, he owned and controlled the majority of San Diego’s industry including building construction, water supply management, and energy production, as well as improvements in transportation—particularly by ship, rail, electric streetcar, and automobile.
John Spreckels also shaped much of early University Heights through his ownership and operation of the San Diego Electric Railway, the Southern California Mountain and Water Supply Company, and Mission Cliff Gardens. He was also Vice-President of the Panama-California Exposition Company which hosted the 1915 Exposition at Balboa Park and spurred a building boom in University Heights.
Empire Builder is the previously untold story of a pioneer who almost single-handedly transformed the bankrupt village of San Diego into a thriving city. When he first dropped anchor in San Diego Bay in 1887, John Diedrich Spreckels set into motion a series of events that later defined the city. Within just a few years, he owned and controlled the majority of San Diego’s industry including building construction, water supply management, and energy production, as well as improvements in transportation—particularly by ship, rail, electric streetcar, and automobile.
John Spreckels also shaped much of early University Heights through his ownership and operation of the San Diego Electric Railway, the Southern California Mountain and Water Supply Company, and Mission Cliff Gardens. He was also Vice-President of the Panama-California Exposition Company which hosted the 1915 Exposition at Balboa Park and spurred a building boom in University Heights.