Old Poway Park
The Poway Valley can trace its roots back to the Rancho Paguay land grant. There was no development of the area, however, until the first homesteader, Philip Crosthwaite, built an adobe home in the valley in 1855. Niles Nelson established his homestead in 1883 to start a farm. The prospect of a railroad coming through created a boom in the 1890s, but the railroad never arrived and those who remained made agriculture the mainstay occupation. When retired Army Colonel John S. Porter settled in Poway in 1948, he had a dream: revitalize Old Poway. Through the years, Colonel Porter acquired and built the beginnings of a historic village. Historic buildings, like Poway’s first assembly hall and Niles Nelson’s 2nd house, were brought to the site and restored. After Colonel Porter died in 1979, the city undertook the completion of his dream and built Old Poway Park.
Poway, San Diego County
Photographer: Kurt Bayless