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El Capitan, California

40 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1893 and the latest in 1997. It stands in the Laguna-Pine Valley census division. It stands on Sand Creek. The Survey maps it on the El Cajon Mountain quadrangle. The federal gazetteer marks this settlement historical: it is no longer a populated place, though the surveys that recorded it still are.

El Capitan within San Diego County

Then and now

1893 to 1997

The same ground, surveyed 104 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.

Topographic sheet of El Capitan (historical), surveyed 1997
Topographic sheet of El Capitan (historical), surveyed 1893

Compare 1893 against another survey:

Topographic sheets covering this place

18 surveys from 40 printed sheets

Matched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.

Fires near this place

172 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 172 fires within 5 miles of El Capitan (historical) between 1992 and 2020, burning about 301,492 acres in total. 6 started naturally. 18 were recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause Fires
Missing data/not specified/undetermined51
Equipment and vehicle use35
Recreation and ceremony33
Arson/incendiarism18
Debris and open burning8
Misuse of fire by a minor7
Natural6
Smoking5
Fireworks4
Firearms and explosives use2
Power generation/transmission/distribution2
Other causes1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
8 September 1995Arson/incendiarismunder an acreCleveland National ForestEL_MONTE_#2
8 September 1995Equipment and vehicle useunder an acreSan Diego UnitDAM
8 September 1995Equipment and vehicle use3.0 acresCleveland National ForestEL_MONTE
8 September 1994Missing data/not specified/undetermined10 acresCleveland National ForestCAPITAN
7 September 2008Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreSan Diego Unitnot named
28 September 2005Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresCleveland National ForestMONTE
27 September 1994Equipment and vehicle useunder an acreSan Diego UnitGRIFFIN
25 September 1994Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreCleveland National ForestCOTTON

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in San Diego County

Mines and quarries near this place

10 of 11 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 11 workings within 5 miles of El Capitan (historical): 5 occurrences, 4 past producers, 2 prospects. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Iron, Stone, Crushed/Broken, Gold, Clay. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Allanite ProspectUranium, ThoriumProspect
El Cajon Kaolin DepositClayPast Producer
El Capitan QuarryStone, Crushed/BrokenPast Producer
Featherstone DepositSilicaOccurrence
Klondike ClaimGoldOccurrence
Mcfall MineGarnetPast Producer
Merrick Kaolin DepositKaolinPast Producer
JuchIronOccurrence
JuchIronOccurrence
LakeviewIronOccurrenceVein

Every working recorded in San Diego County

Nearest settlements

The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.

Map PlaceDistance Sheets
Four Corners3.0 miles40
Pine Grove3.3 miles33
San Diego Country Estates5.0 miles32
Barona5.0 miles40
Blossom Valley6.7 miles38
Glen Oaks6.8 miles38
Alpine6.9 miles38
Flinn Springs6.9 miles38

Provenance

This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 1666237. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.

Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.