California's First Theater Image courtesy of USGenWeb Penny Postcard Archives

Established in 1826, Monterey was the Mexican capital of California until the American occupation in 1847. The Monterey Old Town Historic District, a National Historic Landmark, includes buildings from the 18th-19th centuries that illustrate the Spanish colonial era of the town, including the Old Customhouse (the only customhouse north of Mexico from 1828-1845), the Thomas Larkin House, 1835, one of the first two story adobes in California, and Casa Alvarado, the home of Juan Bautista Alvarado, the governor of California from 1836 to 1842.

The Monterey Old Town Historic District consists of two areas: the southern section is bounded roughly by the four blocks surrounding the intersection of Madison and Pacific sts.; the northern section borders on the bay and includes the blocks surrounding the intersections of Scott, Pacific, Olivier, Calle Principal, and Alvarado sts. The district is included in the Monterey State Historical Park which conducts free guided tours. Morning tours begin daily at 10:30am at the Pacific House Museum on Custom House Plaza. Afternoon tours (Saturday and Sunday only) begin at 2:00pm at the Cooper-Molera Adobe, corner of Polk, Alvarado and Munras sts. For more information visit the website or call 831-649-7118.