Oceanside is a city upon the South Coast of California, located in San Diego County. The city had a population of 167,086 at the 2010 census. The city is a popular tourist destination, owing to its historic landmarks, beaches, and architecture.

Oceanside’s origins date to 1798, when the Spanish founded the village of San Luis Rey like the opening of Mission San Luis Rey de Francia by Fermín de Lasuén. During the Spanish period, Mission San Luis Rey grew to be the largest of everything the Californian missions, but later than the Mexican secularization stroke of 1833 the mission and its community declined. Following the U.S. conquest of California, the former mission lands were developed into an oceanfront resort and the community’s say gradually changed to Oceanside.

Originally inhabited by Native Americans, Oceanside was first established by the Luiseño peoples, or the Payomkawichum. The city of Oceanside sits on the locality upon the San Luis Rey River that the Luiseno called Tacayme, which contained the villages of Qée’ish (Keish) and ‘ikáymay (Ikamal), in the San Luis Rey Mission area, Wiyóoya (Wiawio) at the mouth of the river, and Wi’áasamay (Wiasamai) and Waxáwmay (Wahaumai) at Guajome.

The first European explorers arrived in 1769. Spanish missionaries below Father Junípero Serra founded Mission San Luis Rey de Francia on a former site of a Luiseño Indian village upon the banks of the San Luis Rey River called Keish according to the Portolà expedition who visited in the 1769.