The name is a Spanish corruption of the Kumeyaay phrase "'Ekwiiyemak", which means, according to Margaret Langdon's translation, "Behind the clouds".[2] It has also been translated as "the place where it rains", a reference to the region's higher average precipitation than San Diego County's low coastal areas. Cuyamaca is a popular toponym lending its name to streets, businesses and a community college in the San Diego area.
History
During the Julian Gold Rush, a quartz gold mine; the Stonewall Mine, was found on the south side of what is now Lake Cuyamaca. First a mining camp called Stonewall (1873–1876), then the mining company town of Stratton (1887–1888), renamed Cuyamaca City (1888–1906),[3] at its peak had a population of 500 and served the Stonewall Mine.
The modern community of Cuyamaca later developed on the north side of the lake. Before the Cedar Fire of 2003, the community of Cuyamaca consisted of approximately 145 homes on a mountain (North Peak) north of the reservoir.
In October 2003, most of the Cuyamaca region was consumed by the Cedar Fire. Nearly 25,000 acres (100 km2) in the state park and 120 homes in the community of Cuyamaca were incinerated. The historic Dyer Ranch house in the center of the state park, which functioned as a museum and the park headquarters, was also destroyed.[6]
Climate
Climate data for Lake Cuyamaca, CA, 1991-2020 normals
^Ted Couro and Christina Hutcheson (1973), Dictionary of Mesa Grande Diegueño, Malki Museum Press, Morongo Indian Reservation, Banning, California
^Erwin G. Gudde (author) and William Bright (Revised by) (1998) [1949], California Place Names: The Origin and Etymology of Current Geographical Names (4 ed.), University of California Press ((citation)): |author= has generic name (help).
^Frickstad, Walter N., A Century of California Post Offices 1848-1954, Philatelic Research Society, Oakland, CA. 1955, pp. 147–158
