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Valley Center was the site of the capture of the largest California Grizzly Bear in history. In 1866, a grizzly weighing 2,200 pounds was killed at the Lovette house, which has now been demolished. Although the town had been settled in 1845 and homesteaded in 1862 after President Lincoln signed the Homestead Act, it had no formal name until the famous 1866 bear incident. The notoriety surrounding the event gave Valley Center its original name of Bear Valley. The name was subsequently changed to Valley in 1874, to Valley Centre in 1878 and, finally, to Valley Center in 1887. An exhibit of a smaller California Grizzly bear is on display at the Valley Center History Museum.