The Journal of San Diego History - San Diego History Center

Nate Harrison Site
records reveal that Nate Harrison was very mobile. 2 He was listed in the 1875, 1877,
and 1879 volumes of the San Diego County Great Register 3 as residing in Montserate,
an area southeast of Fallbrook. 4 On November 10, 1879, Harrison received a
United States land patent for 112.15 acres in lots 2, 3, and 4 of Section 22 in Township
10, South Range One West of the San Bernardino Meridian. This land is in
Rincon near the base of Palomar Mountain. 5 The 1880 San Diego County census
recorded Nate Harrison twice, once in the San Jacinto Township and once in the
Bear Valley Township. Both townships were in what was San Diego County in the
late nineteenth century, but neither included Palomar Mountain. The San Jacinto
record listed Harrison as a single 48-year-old black male farm laborer from Kentucky;
the Bear Valley inventory labeled him a single 50-year-old black male farm
laborer from Alabama. In addition, both the 1880 and 1882 volumes of the San Diego
County Great Register noted Harrison as a native Kentuckian residing at San
Jacinto. According to the deed of sale, Harrison sold his Rincon property to Andres
Scott on June 19, 1882 for $300.
The San Diego Union published a story on March 21, 1884, incorrectly reporting
that Harrison had died. The newspaper article noted that, “Poor ‘Nate’ Harrison
was drowned in the San Luis Rey River during the recent storm. He was a Southern
slave and has resided here many years.” Unfortunately, the brief account did
not specify where “here” was, or how long “many years” constituted. Less than a
month later, the newspaper recanted the story, asserting that, “Nigger 6 Nate is not
drowned as was reported in the Union; he still lives to vote the Republican ticket
and beat his way through the world.” Although neither of these articles placed
Harrison on the mountain, they did situate him in northern San Diego County,
near the San Luis Rey River. In addition, they intimated that he was widely known
in the local region and had likely lived in San Diego County for an extended period
of time.
Multiple historical records verify Harrison’s presence on or near Palomar
Mountain in the late 1880s and early 1890s. He is listed in the 1888, 1890, 1892,
and 1894 volumes of the San Diego County Great Register as residing at Pala.
The town of Pala is just west of Palomar Mountain, and the Pala Indian Reservation—established
in 1903—includes parts of Palomar Mountain. An 1889-1890 San
Diego County Ownership Map places the name “Harris” near the top of Palomar
Mountain in lot 1 of Section 1 in Township 10, South Range One West of the San
Bernardino Meridian. 7 On May 26, 1892, Harrison filed a water claim for the spring
associated with this same tract of land. Harrison then completed a homestead
certificate on March 27, 1893, for this 45.55-acre Palomar Mountain property. His
October 22, 1894, voter registration listed his residence and post-office address as
Pala. A December 1896 survey map entitled, “Survey No. 94 Map of Road from a
point in the Pauma Townsite to the Summit of Palomar Mtn.,” shows a section of
the west grade demarcated with “N. Harrison.” On February 12, 1897, the County
of San Diego asked for Harrison’s consent to turn the aforementioned road leading
up the mountain past his property into a public highway. The consent form from
the County also specified the township and range coordinates of the Harrison
property. Thus, historical and cartographic evidence confirms that Harrison was
living on Palomar Mountain in the late 1880s. Furthermore, the 1900 San Diego
County Census for the Smith (Palomar) Mountain Township included an entry for
Nathan Harrison. 8
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