404 Third Ave. Admission is free.
Donations are welcome.
Fourteen exhibit cases display photos, maps, instruments, books and antique art, while a beautiful Asian garden boasts waterfalls, bridges, rocks and plants. The museum serves as an educational resource for San Diegans, offering translation services and all sorts of historical information, as well as hosting school field trips. Moved from its original location to make way for the development of the Horton Plaza shopping center, the museum was dedicated in January 1996. It's the centerpiece of the downtown's small but vital Asian Pacific Historic Thematic District. Most of the museum's permanent collection comes from donated items, including a magnificient wooden apothecary's cabinet that came from a dusty corner of the former Royal Pie Bakery.