RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of California >> San Diego County >> DescansoIndex...

Welcome to Descanso ...

Descanso is located in San Diego County<1>.

While we don't have a date for the founding of Descanso, you might consider that their post office opened in 1877.

Descanso is 3,390 feet [1,033 m] above sea level.<2> In other words, the altitude of Descanso is about ¾ mile [or ~1 km] above sea level.

Time Zone: Descanso lies in the Pacific Time Zone (PST/PDT) and observes daylight saving time

Area Codes for Descanso: 619 & 858<3>

The ZIP code for Descanso: 91916<4>

Communities near Descanso ...

We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Descanso.

To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.

We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Descanso. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Descanso.

Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Descanso. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Descanso.

We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Descanso. See our Newspapers Page for Descanso.

TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Descanso ...

Looking for more information about Descanso? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.

In addition to the Tourism page for Descanso, there are neighboring communities that also have Tourism pages. More information about those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Descanso.

Adding Descanso to Our Gazetteer ...

We originally found mention of Descanso in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.

From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found (so far) for Descanso was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<6>

From that list, the Descanso post office opened in 1877.

For more details, see References and Mentions for Descanso.

Footnotes ...

<1>If you're interested in how the shape of California's counties, including San Diego, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
<2>The elevation is an estimate for the area around Descanso - it will be higher in some places and lower in others.
<3>When there's a risk of an area code running out of phone numbers, an 'Overlay Area Code' is created that has the same geographic boundaries as the existing area code. In this case, the 619 code has been Overlayed with the 858 area code. New phone numbers in the Descanso area will be assigned with one of these codes: 619 or 858. As a result, placing a call in the Descanso area will require 10-digit dialing (where you enter both the area code and then the phone number).
<4>ZIP Codes have been created by the United States Postal Service (USPS) as a way of grouping addresses to make delivery more efficient. The boundaries of the ZIP Code can be changed, re-assigned, eliminated or overlapped with other ZIP Codes. So keep in mind that any given ZIP Code is only 'loosely' associated with a community (such as Descanso). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether Descanso or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS).
<5>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<6>A copy of the Blevins & Helbock Post Office list with background information can be found at:

      https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/