“There’s only the American Dream and the California dream.”
—Gov. Gavin Newsom
This year marks the 175th anniversary of California’s admission to the U.S. as the 31st state. But statehood wasn’t the beginning of the story. Celebrating California is a collection of 175 stories that highlight California’s unique history and role in the world. The goal is to offer examples of California’s unique character and that of its residents, past and present. That means among the good there will be some bad. For every success story, there’s a failure, a tragedy, an injustice. It’s from these mistakes that we learn and grow stronger together. Share a story with us that helps define what California means to you.
On December 18, 1879, One-Eyed Charley, one of the legendary stagecoach drivers of early California, dies of tongue cancer. As…
On December 6, 1887, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issues a patent for Dam and Reservoir Construction to Harriet…
It is late summer 1839, and John Sutter makes his first journey up the Sacramento River to establish a fortified…
Emily Pitts Stevens occupies a hallowed position in the pantheon of early suffrage advocates in California. San…
"For the first time in the history of this nation a political party has chosen a Negro woman for the…
On October 24, 1884, Marietta Stow declares her candidacy for vice president…
In 1961, José Sarria runs for a seat on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors and becomes the first openly…
Fresno, where it's hot enough to dry fruit in open air [CIFII_Scan652], California State Library Baldassare Forestiere, born July 8,…
Miriam Matthews. Photographed by Judith Sedwick. Courtesy of Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe Institute, Harvard University Miriam Matthews, often referred to as…