The first camels came to Australia from the Canary Islands in 1840. Nine camels were brought for the purpose of aiding the exploration of John Horrocks. None of these initial â¦ camels survived, although the first one lived for six years-long enough to shoot Horrocks.hese were the predecessors of today's wild camels. Camels continued to be brought over by later explorers. It was not uncommon for the explorers and/or the Afghan cameleers to release their camels, or for the camels to escape.
The expedition arrived in San Diego on May 14, 1769, the first overland party to reach Alta California. The next day, on May 15, Gaspar de Portola and Father Junipero Serra set out across the rugged, arid land of Baja California with a contingent of soldiers and Baja mission Indians.
The FOUNDING of CALIFORNIA. Old Town San Diego is considered the âbirthplaceâ of California. San Diego is the site of the first permanent Spanish settlement in California. It was here in 1769, that Father Junipero Serra came to establish the very first mission in a chain of 21 missions that were to be the cornerstone of Californiaâs colonization. Father Serraâs mission and Presidio were built on a hillside overlooking what is currently known as Old Town San Diego. At the base of the hill in 1820âs, a small Mexican community of adobe buildings was formed and by 1835 had attained the status of El Pueblo de San Diego. In 1846, a U.S. Navy Lieutenant and a Marine Lieutenant, raised the American flag in the Old Town San Diego Plaza.