San Diego County California

This book was not written to clothe this history of San Diego in fancy words. The task was begun in the conviction that the best history was a well-marshaled array of facts and that the collection of many essential and interesting facts was much more important than long chapters regarding a lesser number of such facts. San Diego's history is crowded with such facts, and a sincere attempt has been made in the following pages to present them truthfully, simply and clearly. The book covers the period of the city and county's greatest growth and achievement and gives an excellent overview over the prosperous years from the foundation to the boom.

Lifeguards of San Diego County traces the origins of the nine professional lifeguard agencies that serve the public swimming, diving, and boating along the shorelines of San Diego County. Sporadic lifeguard service existed as early as 1906, but on a single day in 1918, thirteen people drowned at Ocean Beach. The drownings focused community and government attention on the need for consistent lifeguard services along San Diego County's beaches. Today there are more than 600 lifeguards from city and state agencies that serve San Diegans throughout the county. Here for the first time, the origins, experiences, and stories of these dedicated and most often heroic people are woven together into one volume.