Pioneer Park (also called Mission Hills Park) is such a lovely park. We visited this park a few times before we learned it was was built on a cemetery – I had no idea! The only way* you can tell it’s a cemetery is the memorial in the corner, which is a collection of headstones. This is certainly one of the most unique parks in San Diego and I hope you visit!
*unless you’re sensitive to spirits… then you might feel the sensation of being watched in the park or (reportedly) even spot a wandering ghost!
Drinking fountain, parking lot, picnic tables, public transportation, restrooms, street parking, hot coal bins
Playground, Tot Lot, baby swings, regular swings, climbing structure, climbing tree, climbing wall, monkey bars, sand, shaded, slides (medium and small), swings (regular and baby),
Large grassy area, tennis courts (two, across the street), fitness equipment (kinda scary)
Alcohol Allowed (the ban is 8pm-8am), dogs allowed (leashed), historical
Playground
Pioneer Park has such a great little playground. There is a tot lot and an area for children 5-12.
The tot lot is shaded (the whole park is pretty shady) and has a little set of stairs, a small climbing ladder and two little slides.
The play structure for older children is also shaded. It has an artificial climbing rock, a climbing wall, two slides, monkey bars, a little play house, a climbing structure, and a pole. There is some rubber ground, but it’s mostly sand.
One note on the slide – it is STEEP! I don’t know if you can see in the pic, but it has a pretty good incline. My daughter wasn’t a fan, but little daredevils might enjoy it!
There is a set of swings with two baby (bucket) swings and two regular (saddle) swings.
Picnic Area
Located next to the playground is a picnic area and a bench. One section has two round tables and another section has two rectangle tables. There is also a bin for hot coals. Honestly though, the entire park is great for a picnic – you don’t even need a shade structure!
Built on a Cemetery
Unless you venture to the far corner of the park, you might not have any idea that this park was built on a cemetery – yes, there are actually bodies buried under this beautiful park. I found more information from Hidden San Diego, and I’d encourage you to read everything they wrote about Pioneer Park. Here’s a snippet:
You can even find a plaque with the names of the 1800+ bodies whom are interred within, although it is rumored that there may be up to 4,000 bodies buried here.
There are six plaques like the one below, and each has 312 names!
I’ve always been drawn to all things supernatural. As a 12 year old, I wanted to visit the Winchester Mystery House on my summer break after reading about it. I also loved Unsolved Mysteries and the Whaley House in San Diego – so this park is definitely interesting to me.
Although I have become more skeptical as I’ve gotten older, I believe that nobody can say this place (or any place!) isn’t haunted. Because, really, what do we know about the supernatural or the afterlife?
A part of me hoped to see “something” in the photos I snapped from my visit, but all of my experiences at Pioneer Park have been pretty mundane. If you’ve visited Pioneer Park, have you experienced anything?
Friendly Ghosts?
Initially, I thought it was pretty creepy to think that bodies are still buried here while people play and picnic above (maybe disrespectful, even?). But now my feeling is that cemeteries are for the living and are supposed to be lovely places – why not add a playground and some picnic tables? While we’ll never know how those who are interred within the park would have felt about it, I’d like to think that I’d prefer my final resting place to be happy and lively.
Natural Beauty
Pioneer Park is filled with big, beautiful trees! It makes it a very peaceful and shaded – a lovely place for a picnic or to read a book.
I mean, look at this beauty! My daughter would love to play on this tree and its roots. It really is a beautiful and peaceful place, thanks to all these lovely trees.
Bathrooms
Pioneer Park has one restroom building with men’s/women’s restrooms. The women’s restroom has two stalls, including one ADA stall. The sinks are located outside. There are no changing tables. The building is very close to the playground though, which is always a big plus in my book!
Tennis Courts
There are two tennis courts across the street from Pioneer Park.
Some of the rules of the tennis court (which are all in the photo below) include:
- Grant Elementary has exclusive use of courts on school days and at other times as required for the intramural and competitive tennis programs.
- No instruction (paid or unpaid lessons) allowed without written consent of the City of San Diego Park and Recreation Department
- Courts are closed for cleaning 7am-9am on Friday
Fitness Equipment
You will find fitness equipment at Pioneer Park, but I don’t know how eager one might be to work out on this equipment. I think it may be as old as the headstones! (Kidding)
There are pull-up bars and sit-up benches. Try not to get a splinter!
Secret Access
In the very back of the park, there is a staircase that leads to Pringle Street, which runs behind the park. I realize this isn’t helpful information to most people, but I do think it adds to the “spirit” (see what I did there?) of the park… imagine going to meeting somebody at Pioneer Park, accessing it from this staircase, and completely surprising the person by coming from a direction they didn’t expect!
