The City Hemet was first inhabited by the members of the Cahuilla Indian Tribe. After Spanish settlement, it became a cattle ranch for the Mission San Luis Rey. When the Spanish missions were dismantled, the land was sold off to a few landowners who constructed the Great Hemet Dam in 1895. By 1893, 39 families and businesses in the town were buying domestic water from the local water company. Today, Hemet remains an agricultural community by land use. The quiet community is home to many retirement homes, like Sierra Dawn, the first mobile home subdivision.