El Cajon

El Cajon, known as “The Big Box” for its valley setting, sees regular accidents along I-8. Traffic incidents here often disrupt local travel and access to nearby recreational areas in the foothills.

El Cajon city was originally established under Spanish rule as pasture land to support the cattle herds of the Catholic missions, El Cajon was incorporated as a city in 1912. Once an active trading post, the boxed-in nature of the valley and limited access to main transportation routes has left El Cajon and the surrounding area with few economic opportunities. In fact, the city has the highest poverty rate among both adults and children in San Diego County. There have, however, been a few notable people who come from the area, including Olympic gold-medal diver Greg Louganis. The Boones of Major League Baseball fame – Bret, Bobby and Aaron – all hail from El Cajon as well.