Lakeside Historical Society

05/11/2026

05/06/2026

We've seen a few posts go out about a LHS shirt being offered online. These are FAKE! This is not a shirt we offer. These people are not LHS members and are NOT AUTHORIZED to sell any merchandise on our behalf. Our LHS shirts are on sale only in our Gift Shop at our History Center (the Olde Community Church) - we do not sell our merchandise online. This appears to be for private gain and will not benefit LHS in any way. We have no way of knowing where your money might go if you try to purchase one. They have been reported. Be careful.

04/26/2026

It's been a number of years since LHS had a float in our Western Days Parade, but it seemed like a good time to get back in it. Not only is our great country celebrating its 250th anniversary this year, but Lakeside turned 140 in March! Also, our historic Olde Community Church - the first church in Lakeside - is now 130 years old! We had a great time with our own Dusty Rhodes piloting the truck (loaned to us by Ironman Enterprises) and Billy "Outlaw" Ortiz riding shotgun. On the trailer (furnished by River Oaks Ranch) we had the Old Timey Old Timers (Carl Constentino, Chuck Preble, and the other Chuck - "Doc" Francis) playing some good old fashioned banjo music along the way, as well as LHS Co-VP Connor Hall, Gary Mitrovich, and his sister, Karen Mitrovich-Dotson on board for the ride. I think the crowd liked the air horn the best!

04/07/2026

02/23/2026

Sandra Bonura presented on this at our May meeting last year - a fascinating story about John Spreckels and his impact on San Diego.

02/19/2026

Lakeside's Auto Speedway was headline news on the front page of The Evening Tribune on February 25, 1907 (and we now have an original copy in the LHS Archives!).

02/09/2026

Our historic Olde Community Church is exactly 130 years old today! On February 9, 1896, the very first services were held in the newly constructed First Presbyterian Church of Lakeside (a formal dedication was held the following month). Church services actually began three years prior with 13 members on the porch of the great Lakeside Inn. Plans for the church were formulated in late 1895, with construction beginning about the first of the new year. The property was purchased from the El Cajon Valley Company. As the congregation grew, so did the church. When the separate manse (or parsonage) was built by W.D. Hall in 1911, the the church finally got its own pastor (they had been borrowing one from El Cajon prior to that!). The Social Hall on the north side of the church was added in 1914. The old WWII barracks arrived after the war (now the Gift Shop). By the 1950s, the need for a bigger facility was realized and the "new" Presbyterian Church was opened in 1963. While the old church was still used for such things as a thrift shop and an art gallery, the building suffered with age. Enter LHS, which leased the building in the mid-1980s (and restored it) until they could save up and purchase the church and grounds in 1993. LHS paid off the mortgage in three short years. Today, it proudly stands as the unofficial town center and one of the oldest buildings in Downtown Lakeside (can you guess which ones are older?).

02/06/2026

1910 - Colorized postcard showing a portion of the 9-hole "golf links" on the grounds of the Lakeside Inn, taken from a photo included in a promotional brochure from the day. This view is looking north across Lindo Lake. From a wider photo in the same brochure, it appears this course was located within the racetrack and in the general area of the VFW.