Hemet Real
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A Brief History Of Hemet
Hemet is located 35 miles southeast of Riverside in a
valley at the foot of Mount San Jacinto. Long known as a prime agricultural area, Hemet
has developed into a major trading area for western Riverside County and is well
established as a retirement center. The 1997 population is estimated at 52,315 within the
City limits, plus a trading area population over 100,000.
The area in which Hemet is located was first inhabited by
members of the Cahuilla Indian tribe. Then, in the early 1800's, it became a cattle ranch
for Mission San Luis Rey and was called Rancho San Jacinto. When the missions were broken
up by the Mexican government, the land was awarded to Jose Antonio Estudillo in 1842.
The development of Hemet began in 1887 with the formation
of the Lake Hemet Water Company and the Hemet Land Company by W.F. Whittier and E.L.
Mayberry. Work on a masonry dam in the San Jacinto Mountains commenced in 1891, and the
Hemet Dam was completed in 1895. The subsequent formation of Lake Hemet behind the dam and
the completion of a water distribution system to and through the valley made future
development possible.
The City of Hemet was incorporated in January, 1910 and
served primarily as a trading center for the surrounding agricultural district. Important
crops included citrus, apricots, peaches, olives and walnuts.
Since 1923, one of the valley's chief claims to fame has
been the annual Ramona Pageant. The incident which inspired Helen Hunt Jackson to write
Ramona occurred in the valley, and the production of a pageant based on the story was
discussed for a number of years as a method of promoting the valley. From 1923 onward,
with only brief interruptions during the Depression and during World War II, the people of
Hemet and San Jacinto have joined to stage this outdoor pageant each spring.
Hemet was also noted for the 46th Agricultural District
Farmer's Fair of Riverside County, which had its beginning in 1936 as the Hemet Turkey
Show, and for the Ryan School of Aeronautics, which trained about 6,000 fliers for the
Army Air Force between 1940 and 1944. Hemet Ryan Airport exists today at the site of the
original Ryan Flight School.
The character of Hemet began to change dramatically in
the early 1960's with the development of Sierra Dawn, the country's first "mobile
home subdivision" in which individual lots were sold. Other mobile home parks and
retirement housing developments followed, and Hemet became well known as a retirement
community.
Hemet today retains much of its retirement orientation
but is also becoming home to significant numbers of younger families who provide services
to the senior population or who are simply fleeing the more urbanized areas of Southern
California. The economy is based primarily on service to the senior community and
ancillary services such as financial institutions and the health care professions.
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May 23, 2006 05:35:05 PM