Reviving Adobe: Foundations, Fire & Layered Histories in San Diego

Step out of the classroom and into the mud. This fast-paced field session will showcase adobe architecture—from handmade bricks to seismic retrofits and layered restorations—across three landmark San Diego sites:

Los Peñasquitos: Discover how water tables, rodents, and improvised diaphragms test the limits of historic earthen walls.

Sikes Adobe: Learn about restoring a building with no foundation, responding to catastrophic fire, and using historic structure reports to plan for the next disaster.

Old Town San Diego State Historic Park: Discover how past restoration eras, building archaeology, and selective "unpeeling" of layers shape what visitors see and remember.

Learning Objectives

1. Examine adobe brickmaking and construction practices, and see how earthen building systems respond to the regional climate, seismic forces, and sustainability goals.
2. Analyze techniques for stabilizing deteriorated adobe structures, including retrofitting rubble or absent foundations, addressing fire-damaged adobe, and integrating seismic diaphragms and anchors while retaining historic material.
3. Learn how to apply historic structure reports and archaeological methods to document layers of change and guide reconstruction and treatment decisions for adobe buildings.
4. Review interpretive approaches for adobe sites with multiple periods of significance, and consider how to present earlier restoration choices and layered Mexican, American, and tourist-era narratives to contemporary audiences.

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