San Diego: Views of Past and Present

San Diego, America's sixth largest city, was a strictly small-town place a century ago. Farming was fundamental to the country's economy and the environment had barely felt man's imprint. To appreciate the vast changes that have occurred over time is the purpose of this book.

The seventy pairs of color and black and white photographs-historic and contemporary-show what once was and is now. From downtown's grimy waterfront to rural quaint villages to suburban population centers. San Diego has seen all this and more. And yet, some things, like the coastline, forests and sunny clime have hardly changes at all. Enticing text describes each picture then and now with the names of each place, the date it was taken, and where it is located.

George R. Jezek, is a native San Diegan and a professional photographer with a B.A. from the Brooks Institute of Photography in Santa Barbara. He developed the idea for San Diego Then & Now after attending a lecture on western ghost towns and began researching and identifying interesting historical photos from the San Diego Historical Society archives. He then sought out the locations where the images were taken decades ago in order to capture in beautiful full color a record of the sites as they are today.

Roger M. Showley, fellow native San Diegan and staff writer for the San Diego Union-Tribune and author of two histories of San Diego, collaborated on the project, providing introductory text and picture captions.