CityOfMenifee--Menifee

Quick History: This Menifee Valley, which was once called Paloma valley, consists of Sun City, Quail Valley and Menifee. Now known at the City Of Menifee. The area is located in Southwest Riverside county, about 30 miles from Downtown Riverside. The new Menifee City extends from Scott Road on the West to Ethanac Rd., along the 215 corridor. Menifee size is about 50 square miles and has a population of over 60,000 people.

The area was originally inhabited and used by the Luiseno Indians and Pechanga Indians who would come out to this area to hunt and to look for food. In the 1700's, the Spanish empire controlled this area and Pio Pico, the last governor of Alta California, Mexico had this area in his jurisdiction. On September 9th 1850, the USA annexed California as its 31st state.

30 years later, Luther Menifee Wilson arrived to look for gold with little success. The Kirkpatrick and Newport families followed shortly thereafter. The Kirkpatricks owned the land where Menifee Lakes now sits. Near the corner of Newport road and Menifee Rd. is Callie Kirkpatrick elementary, named after the matriarch of the family.

Farming activity beginning in the mid-1800s was concentrated on the valley plane. Menifee Valley’s name came from a mining development began in 1880 with the discovery of the Menifee quartz load by miner Luther Menifee Wilson.

The valley’s floor provided access to minerals such as gold, silica, pink quartz and feldspar. Menifee Wilson worked the quartz load that extended eastward from the area near Menifee Valley’s current intersection of Gary / Holland Road, including a number of other mines. This led to formation of the Menifee Gold Mining District.

The area began to grow in 1989 with the master-planned community of Menifee Lakes and continues to be one of the fastest growing communities in California.

Menifee Residents voted for Cityhood on June 3rd. 2008 with official cityhood beginning October 1, 2008. Menifee's first 5 City Council members are WALLACE WAYNE EDGERTON, DARCY KUENZI, FREDERICK ALLEN TWYMAN, III, SCOTT A. MANN, JOHN DENVER.

Menifee's first official newsite was the Menifee 24/7 Blog, started by Blogger and Online Publisher, Steve Johnson. His first post was November 2004. Menifee 24/7 provides quality information and a discussion forum for Menifee residents. Menifee's first information website was the www.CityOfMenifee.com website, which was started in the Spring of 2005 by Eric and Whanda Madrid. It is a not for profit community service provided to the residents of Menifee. These two sites helped put Menifee on the map in anticipation of a future city incorporation. For years- the sites online presence was the only online sites that future Menifee residents had to learn about the community and was also a place for existing residents to promote ideas and businesses.