La Mesa (lə mā´sə), city (1990 pop. 52,931), San Diego co., S Calif., a suburb of San Diego; inc. 1912. It is a retail center and a popular residence for upper- and middle-income professionals in the San Diego area. There is light manufacturing. Points of interest include the McKinney House, the Pacific Southwest Railway Museum, and nearby Mt. Helix, with its impressive view of the surrounding region.

Lamesa (ləmē´sə), city (1990 pop. 10,809), seat of Dawson co., NW Tex., in the Llano Estacado; inc. 1917. Lamesa is a processing and shipping center for an irrigated area where cattle and hogs are raised and cotton, sorghum, and wheat are grown. Manufactures include electric motors, sheet metal, cottonseed oil and other cotton products, and apparel. The city also has several oil and natural-gas wells.