Description

Established in 1959, SDSU Imperial Valley (SDSU IV) campus was originally meant to train and accredit teachers amid a shortage. However, 63 years later, the campus offers a wide variety of programs and credentials beyond teaching. Yet, we know very little about the community this campus has historically served. Just like Imperial County, the history of the SDSU IV campus remains underexplored in academic research. To fill this gap in the literature, and using Ancestry.com to access the 1940 U.S. Federal Census Population Schedules, I recreated three residential blocks surrounding the SDSU IV campus in Calexico, California to understand the social and economic community history. A total of 22 homes and 79 individuals were examined for this archival historical research. My findings reveal drastic changes in socioeconomic status, migration trends, and social shifts of families living in Calexico, California during the 1940s.