Save Our Heritage Organisation

10/14/2026

Help Defend Section 106 and America’s Cultural Heritage! If you belong to an organization involved in historic preservation, history, archaeology, Tribal heritage, museums, architecture, conservation, or related fields, this message is for you.

Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act helps ensure that federal projects consider their effects on historic properties and cultural resources. That protection is under threat, and organizations across the country are coming together to defend it.

Tomorrow, on October 15, the 60th anniversary of the National Historic Preservation Act, the Campaign for Section 106 will launch a three-year effort to protect this vital law. More than 800 organizations have already joined the call, with a goal of reaching 1,000.

Here’s how your organization can help:

Here are three ways your organization can help:

SIGN THE OPEN LETTER TO CONGRESS. Add your organization’s name in opposition to efforts that would weaken Section 106. Sign the letter here.https://culturalheritagepartners.com/open-letter-to-congress-from-national-coalition/

GET OTHER ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED. Share this appeal with your partners, colleagues, and allied organizations and encourage them to sign the letter, too.

JOIN THE CAMPAIGN. Sign up for advocacy alerts and formally endorse the Campaign for Section 106 to help strengthen this nationwide effort.: https://mailchi.mp/14260981b7ed/defend-section-106

ENDORSE THE CAMPAIGN FOR SECTION 106 (by indicating your support here) https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfBQOS9yrci2odreJ5cS_dqO1GojuWILEY78vKn9-xcyXew3Q/viewform

SOHO encourages organizations throughout San Diego and beyond to stand together in protecting our nation's historic places and cultural heritage. Your organization’s voice matters. Join the effort to defend Section 106!

https://www.106strong.com/
https://mailchi.mp/14260981b7ed/defend-section-106

Sign up for advocacy alerts to help defend the National Historic Preservation Act.

10/12/2026

Today is Indigenous Peoples Day. In San Diego County and the surrounding borderlands, Indigenous cultural heritage is inseparable from the land itself.

What does historic preservation mean when the place at risk is not a building, but a mountain? Kuchamaa Mountain also known as Tecate Peak, is sacred to the Kumeyaay people. Its significance is part of a living cultural and spiritual heritage.

SOHO’s work to protect and raise awareness to endangered historic and cultural resources reflects how preservation extends to the landscapes and places that hold meaning for generations of people, archaeological sites, cultural landscapes, and the places that hold evidence of human life, history, and enduring connections to the land.

Learn more about the work of our binational partners to protect Kuuchamaa Mountain at the image link.

Kuchamaa Mountain, also known as Tecate Peak or Cerro Cuchuma, has been named to the 2026 Endangered Latinx Landmarks List, unveiled August 20, 2026 at the Latinos in Heritage Conservation Congreso Leadership Summit in Chicago. The annual program recognizes at-risk places of significance to Latinx c...

10/11/2026

Do you know the story about a little house that helped show San Diego what preservation of cultural heritage means? In a city filled with grand Victorian houses and landmark buildings, the Senlis Cottage might be easy to overlook.

Built in 1896, this modest four-room Queen Anne cottage was home to Eugene Senlis and his wife, Lena. Eugene worked for renowned San Diego horticulturist and nurserywoman Kate Sessions, whose influence on the city's landscape is legendary.

The Senlises' little home stood at 1536 Second Avenue, in what was then the growing New Town neighborhood, now part of downtown San Diego.

The cottage was not a mansion. It was not designed by a famous architect. It had a kitchen, a parlor and two bedrooms, and like many working-class homes of the era, it originally had none of the conveniences we take for granted today, no indoor plumbing, electricity, gas or running water. But it was home.

When SOHO saved the Senlis Cottage, it was among the first preservation organizations in the nation to recognize that the history of a community cannot be told only through the houses of its wealthiest or most prominent citizens.

The small homes of working families are equally important pieces of the story. They show us how people actually lived, worked and built their lives in San Diego.

Look closely at the Senlis Cottage and you will see that modest does not mean without character! Its Queen Anne details echo those found on much larger and more elaborate Victorian houses of the same period. It demonstrates the remarkable range of late-19th-century residential architecture and reminds us that good design was not reserved exclusively for the wealthy.

In 1981, the cottage was moved to Heritage County Park, where it could be preserved and shared with the public rather than lost to development.

Today, the Senlis Cottage stands as an important reminder that historic preservation is about more than saving big or famous buildings. It is about saving the places that allow us to understand the full story of a community including the homes of the people whose names may never have appeared in history books.

For SOHO, that has been part of the mission from the beginning: recognizing that San Diegos stories, its places are worth preserving.

SOHO | This Place Has a Story
SUPPORT SOHO: https://www.sohosandiego.org/giving/index.htm

10/07/2026

THIS SATURDAY: October 10, just in time for the Halloween and Día de los Mu***os seasons, join Dr. Seth Mallios as he unburies how San Diego’s cemeteries reveal changing attitudes toward death and remembrance, the customs of different communities, and the effects of urban development on places once set aside for the dead.

Based on research conducted through the San Diego Gravestone Project, this illustrated lecture explores how San Diego’s historic cemeteries, resting places, and long-standing memorials tell the story of our growing city. Mallios will explain how archaeological investigation and historical research help preserve these vital records of the past, and show how our local burial grounds continue to inform our understanding of the living.

Mallios is Professor of Anthropology and Director of the South Coastal Information Center at San Diego State University. He also serves as director of the San Diego Gravestone Project and is the author, with David M. Caterino, of Cemeteries of San Diego.

Register here or the Online Zoom lecture: https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/ticketing/penning-the-past-2026-insights-into-san-diegos-historic-neighborhoods-and-architecture

10/05/2026

Grand Onion Historic Preservation: Gaslamp Quarter

"The one and only Onion in this year’s awards, a Grand Onion at that, goes to the Gaslamp Quarter. Nominees complained of the city’s poor management of the historic district. In particular, they took issue with the modern signs and Comic-Con wraps on historic facades.

“Everything that makes Gaslamp unique and special is being obliterated,” wrote architect David Marshall. “The historic quality of the Gaslamp Quarter is diminishing week-by-week from ill-designed storefronts, dominated by garish, modern signage and advertising.”

Marshall noted that the city is not enforcing the design guidelines and rules enacted under the rules of it being a historic district, with outdoor TVs, backlit signs and blocked windows. ..."

READ MORE at the TIMES OF SAN DIEGO HERE: https://timesofsandiego.com/arts/2026/10/03/orchids-onions-this-years-fragrant-or-smelly-architecture/?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Morning+newsletter+10.05&utm_source=887242e78e&npnl=NDAzNjAwfDQ0NzY1YzM4MTIwOTAyOWY1Yzg1ODI0MjI3OGU0OWMyZDY3YzU0ODFkMTZhODU0NGU0NjRlZTdkZjhiY2Y1YWY&mc_cid=50d52b637f&mc_eid=5500089d53

10/04/2026

Our friends and preservation partners at La Mesa History Center are looking for a few more volunteers for the upcoming home tour!
Sign up information below in original post.

We are still looking for some volunteer docents for the Home Tour. You get to do the tour for half a day then volunteer the other half at one of the amazing homes on tour. Sign up here: https://www.lamesahistory.com/volunteers/

10/01/2026

PLEASE NOTE DUE TO EXTEME HEAT- THIS EVENT HAS BEEN CANCELED!

If you love San Diego history, adobe, and the places that tell our region’s story, this is one to put on your calendar! This Saturday, October 3, 2026

On Saturday, October 3, at 4 p.m., join our friends at the Bancroft Ranch House Museum in Spring Valley for an Adobe Brick Demonstration with Chris Hagan. You’ll get a fascinating look at the traditional process of making adobe bricks and how these time-tested techniques are still being used today to repair and care for the Ranch House.

We all love seeing San Diego's historic places cared for, used, and passed along to the next generation and Bancroft Ranch House is doing exactly that. It’s a special place, and one that deserves our community’s attention and support!

Go visit. Learn something. Support a local historic treasure.

Spring Valley Historical Society
Bancroft Ranch House, Spring Valley
Saturday, October 3, 2026
4 p.m.
All are welcome!

10/01/2026

Kids Free at SOHO Museums this October!

Make October a month for exploring San Diego history with the whole family.

Throughout the month, kids 12 and under receive FREE admission with a paid adult at both of SOHO’s historic museums as part of the San Diego Museum Council’s annual Kids Free in October celebration.

Visit the Marston House Museum & Gardens in Balboa Park, an beautifully preserved 1905 Arts and Crafts home that tells the story of George W. and Anna Marston, their family, and their influence on San Diego.

Or head to Warner-Carrillo Ranch House in Warner Springs, where an 1857 adobe recalls the era of stagecoaches, overland travel, ranching, and life along the historic Butterfield Overland Mail route.

Offer: Up to 2 kids free with each paid adult admission

Coupon: Download your Kids Free coupon here (coupon must be presented for admission):
https://sandiegomuseumcouncil.org/kids-free-museum-pass/

More information:
https://sandiegomuseumcouncil.org/specials/kidsfree/

The offer is valid October 1–31, 2026.

Two very different places. Two fascinating chapters of San Diego history. One great reason to explore them with your family this October!

09/27/2026

Do you know the story behind the three historic buildings at Cosmopolitan Square downtown? Sometimes preservation means finding a way to keep the old while building the new.

When downtown San Diego's East Village was undergoing major redevelopment, SOHO faced a familiar challenge: how could new development move forward without erasing the historic character of the neighborhood?

One answer came through a negotiated agreement with Simplon Corporation that incorporated three historic buildings into a new development called Cosmopolitan Square.

The buildings represented very different pieces of San Diego's history:

*Fire Station #4, built in 1937 as a WPA project, stood at Eighth and J streets. Its Art Deco design reflected an important chapter in San Diego's civic architecture.

*The Bledsoe Company Furniture Warehouse, later known as Pack Lofts, was retained and continued as housing.

*The Western Wholesale Drug Company Building, known for many years as the Unicorn Antiques building, retained its historic street presence while accommodating new retail and residential uses.

For SOHO, the goal wasn't only to save three individual buildings. Their relationship to one another mattered.

SOHO argued that Fire Station #4 and the Unicorn building formed an important stretch of historic fabric along the J Street corridor. Keeping them together helped preserve a sense of the neighborhood's history even as everything around them changed.

The agreement was part of SOHO's larger seminal work in the Ballpark and East Village areas, where we negotiated design guidelines and protections for nine blocks of historic resources as downtown transformed.

The old fire station found a new life as a restaurant, retaining one of its original fire poles. Pack Lofts continued as housing, while the former drug company building accommodated new uses.

Another example of what can be achieved by working together to preserve our historic character and our sense of place while accommodating growth, assuring that the past will be an important part of the future - making sure that growth made room for history.

SOHO | This Place Has a Story
SUPPORT SOHO: https://www.sohosandiego.org/giving/index.htm

09/25/2026

Before the Storm: Protecting Your Historic Home from El Niño! Is your historic home ready for the winter storms?

With a potentially very strong El Niño ahead, now is a good time to take a closer look at your house before the heavy rain arrives.

Historic homes have weathered generations of San Diego storms, but they need regular care to keep doing so. Maintenance is one of the most important forms of historic preservation. Gutters, roofs, windows, porches, chimneys and drainage systems all play an important role in protecting a historic building from water damage.

Here are nine things historic homeowners can check now, before El Niño arrives.

1. Start at the top: Check the roof.

Look for missing or damaged shingles or tiles, deteriorated flashing, loose areas around chimneys and signs of previous leaks. Don't wait for the first storm to discover a problem.

2. Clean and inspect the gutters and downspouts.

Historic houses may have wood gutters, built-in gutters or other drainage details that need particular attention. Make sure water is being carried away from the building rather than dumped against the foundation.

Functioning gutters, downspouts and roof drainage are essential to protecting historic wood and other building materials.

3. Look closely at windows and doors.

Check historic wood windows for cracked glazing, deteriorated putty, gaps, damaged sills and peeling paint. Make sure windows close properly and that weatherstripping is intact.

Don't replace historic windows simply because you're worried about the weather. Repair and appropriate weatherization can do the job while retaining the original historic fabric.

4. Check where the house meets the ground.

Make sure soil, mulch or landscaping isn't trapping moisture against wood siding, porch posts or the foundation. Look for areas where water pools after rain.

Good drainage is one of the best forms of preservation.

5. Pay special attention to porches.

Historic porches take a lot of weather. Check porch roofs, columns, railings, flooring and the places where porch roofs connect to the house.

Look for soft wood, deteriorated areas or places that stay damp.

6. Don't forget the chimney.

Check for loose or cracked masonry, deteriorated mortar, damaged chimney caps and problems with flashing.

Water entering around a chimney can travel surprisingly far before you see evidence of a leak inside the house.

7. Photograph your house before the storms.

Take photographs of the roof, windows, exterior walls, porches and other vulnerable areas before the rainy season.

If something is damaged later, you'll have a record of the property's previous condition that may be useful for insurance and for documenting historic features.

8. Make an emergency kit.

Keep tarps, buckets, towels, plastic sheeting, a flashlight, batteries and basic tools readily available.

Know where your water shutoff and electrical panel are. And if you have historic furnishings, photographs, documents or other collections, know what you would move first if water gets inside.

9. Don't let an emergency repair create a preservation problem.

In the rush to protect a house from water, it's easy to cause permanent damage to historic materials.

Avoid drilling into historic woodwork to attach a temporary covering, removing original windows because they're drafty, or applying an incompatible sealant as a quick fix.

Preservation Starts with Maintenance.

You don't have to wait for a major restoration project to protect your historic home. Sometimes preservation means cleaning a gutter. Repairing a window. Fixing a leak. Making sure water drains away from the house.

Small maintenance today can prevent big damage tomorrow and help keep our historic homes standing for generations to come.

For more information about caring for historic properties, visit SOHO's preservation resources:
https://www.sohosandiego.org/resources/resourcedirectory.htm