Mount Rubidoux
Located just west of the city of Riverside is Mount Rubidoux. This area has been seen to be a national landmark as well as a city park. It was originally a huge destination for tourists and it happens to be a very old site for one of the oldest nondenominational Sunrise services done on Easter Sunday within the whole United States. There are many memorials as well as historical markers that have been placed on the mountain, but the most well-known is the large cross that is located at the summit of the mountain. This cross was dedicated to Father Junipero Serra.
Tom Patterson, a historian as well as many others have stated that it was originally called Pachappa. It is believed that early settlers from Jurupa Rancho had called the area Pachappa after another amount with the main goal to actually extend property lines of the the Jurupa Rancho. It is because Pachappa had actually been assigned to be a market just southeast of Jurupa Rancho, that was given to Juan Bandini during 1838, and the reassignment of the mountain name may have extended the property by a lot and fuse many local areas with what is now considered to be riverside. It is also conceivable that the U.S. Government had renamed the mountain to keep the end goal of gaining land from the Mexican Land Grant.
It was during 1906, that Frank Miller, who owned Mission Inn as well as Charles Loring and Henry Huntington had created Huntington Park Association and purchased the land with an idea to turn the mountain into being a recreational center and creating roads that would lead to the summit, which would help to provide profits for the city of Riverside. To start with the park was called Huntington Park, but eventually it would be named after Frank Miller, who had given the property to Riverside during 1955.
During 1925, Frank Miller was given the Testimonial Peace Tower and the scaffolding that was created was a reproduction of the one in Spain. Then during 1932, a plaque was placed on the scaffolding for Shunzo Kido, who was an Olympic equestrian which would be completed in 1934. The plaque was based on the Kido giving up his Olympic medal to save his horse which was named Kyu Gun from dying.
It was during the early 1900s started changing the mountain by construction streets which were finished during February of 1907. The largest marker on Mount Rubidoux is located on the summit which is a large tablet and cross that was dedicated to Father Junipero Serra and was completed in 1907.
It was in 1909, during nightfall on Mount Rubidoux, that Carrie Jacobs-Bond had taken time to create the tune “A Perfect Day’, which for a long time was actually played daily to keep the tune in mind which was played on the chimes from the Mission Inn.
It was during 1955 that it was assigned as being a Riverside City Landmark, and ever since then has been a big tourist spot. The recreational area can be reached through 3.5 miles of hiking trails.