Poway, California

The name Poway (Pau-wi) is derived from the language of the Kumeyaay (Diegueño) and Luiseno Indians, the peoples who roamed the area before the coming of the Spaniards. During the Spanish rule of the area, the Poway valley was used for pasturing of mission stock. During the 1880s, families were settling into homes as well as building vineyards and orchards. Dairying and beekeeping were profitable for the approximately 800 people who now inhabited the valley, and buildings sprang up throughout the community. The settlers fully expected one, or perhaps even two, railroad lines to pass through the town. The possibility of the railroad caused a boom in real estate, and an English firm, Baird and Chapin, set out a subdivision plan for the community. In 1959, the first subdivision homes were built, and the population steadily rose. On December 1, 1980, the City of Poway was incorporated. Since then, the city has steadily grown, with many new housing developments over the years. Poway is located in San Diego County 460 miles from Sacramento, California. It has a population of 43,516 residents and covers over 101 square kilometers of land.