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is the third-largest city in San Diego County, California, United States. The city has a population of about 179,681. Together with Vista and Carlsbad, it forms a tri-city area. The city is located just south of Camp Pendleton, the busiest military base in the United States. Oceanside has experienced dramatic growth since 1970, when its population was 45,000. Much of the city's area was developed into single-family home tracts during the 1970s and 1980s. Since the 1990s, increased commercial and industrial development have diversified Oceanside's economic base.
The area was first visited by European explorers in 1769. The Spanish missionaries under Father Junipero Serra founded Mission San Luis Rey de Francia on a former site of a Luiseño Indian village on the banks of the San Luis Rey River. In the early 1800s, introduced farming and grazing changed the landscape of what would become Oceanside. The area like all of California was under Spanish, in 1821 Mexican rule and conquered by the U.S. in 1848.
In the late 1850s, Andrew Jackson Myers lived in San Joaquin County. A native of LaSalle County, Illinois, he returned in the late 1880s and lived in San Luis Rey. In 1882 Myers moved on the land that was the original town site for Oceanside. A patent for the land was issued in 1883 by the federal government. It was incorporated on July 3, 1888. The current city hall now stands on the former homestead of Myers.
In the 20th century, Oceanside was a beach town devoted to activities on a stretch of beaches. Residential areas like Downtown (built in the 1890s), South Oceanside (built in the 1920s and 1930s), and developments east of Interstate 5 (built after World War II) now are preserved and remodeled when these houses are considered to have historical value. Since the establishment of Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton in 1942, Oceanside was proud to have U.S. armed forces personnel, and the wartime industry of WWII and the 1950s had an ammunition manufacturing facility in the city. After 1970, the main focus of Oceanside was suburban development and a choice for newcomers to move in then relatively affordable housing. Today, Oceanside is a top real estate choice with home values over the $500,000 mark for its location by San Diego and the Pacific coast.