The Escondido History Center got its start in 1956 when a group of concerned citizens formed the non-profit Escondido Historical Society to preserve our community's history. After twenty years of saving artifacts and photographs, Heritage Walk Museum in Grape Day Park was opened in 1976.

For our 50 th anniversary in 2006, we streamlined and changed the name of both our organization and our museum to the Escondido History Center. Our center of operation is the six building museum in Grape Day Park, but we are also active in the community. From preserving structures and operating a museum, to collecting thousands of artifacts and photographs, to reviving the historic Grape Day festival, we have worked for decades to preserve Escondido's heritage in a myriad of ways. We continue to actively collect photographs, artifacts and paper ephemera pertaining to Escondido's past and present.

The Escondido History Center is a private, non-profit organization. We are funded by a variety of sources including the City of Escondido, individual and corporate memberships, donations, grants, museum store sales and special events. We have a 3 member staff, 14 member Board of Directors and over 70 active volunteers.

Our mission is to collect, preserve, interpret and exhibit the history of Escondido.