Club History

The history of the San Diego County A&M Club extends back to early 1900′s, after the end of World War I, when local Aggies would gather for the annual Muster.

World War II brought large numbers of Aggies to San Diego as armed forces personnel and as engineers working in the aircraft and shipbuilding industries.

Major and Mrs. Walter C. Rodgers ’12, Major John F. Blanton ’17, and Mrs. Lillith Blanton ’12 are credited with starting the San Diego County A&M Club, according to “Old Army” Aggie Ferd Reed ’39 and his wife Rita, San Diego residents since 1946. Mrs. Blanton was one of the first women graduates of A&M, where she met her husband. She attended A&M as a graduate student.

At the end of World War II many Aggies decided to settle in San Diego. The Korean War and a booming aerospace industry in the 1950′s saw San Diego become home to an ever-increasing population of Aggies. For six years, Richard Campbell ’41 made twice-yearly recruiting trips to College Station, hiring more than 90 Aggie engineers to work for the former General Dynamics Convair Division.

Today more than 600 Aggies call San Diego home.

In 1987 the Club applied to become a chartered A&M club after a check with the Association of Former Students revealed that no charter had been issued to the club. A charter was issued on February 28, 1988.

In 1990 Richard Campbell ’41 was cleaning out a storage room and “discovered” the original charter issued to the Club on April 21, 1947. The Club consider itself the oldest officially chartered national club (outside the state of Texas).