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Today in California

Other News

  • California Archives Month – 2015  (09/26/2015)
  • August 20th Speakers Series Event: “The Fruits of Fracture: The Corporate West, the United Farm Workers’ Movement, and the Rise of Reaganism in American Politics”  (06/16/2015)
  • May 21st Speakers Series Event: “Stories Untold: Finding Artistic Inspiration Through Historical Research”  (04/02/2015)
  • March 19th Speakers Series Event: Arabian Nights in the American Desert  (03/04/2015)
  • Whittier Historical Society & Museum Event – January 24th  (01/15/2015)

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Favorite Links

  • California State Archives
  • The Root Cellar – Sacramento Genealogical Society

Exhibits

“All Gave Some. Some Gave All.”

The last American troops left Vietnam 40 years ago. California’s black granite Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Capitol Park is celebrating its 25th anniversary. But the memories of that war on […]

Negro Exclusion Bill

AB 395 [1858] Rep(or)t Fed(eral) Rel(ations) April 21 [1858] on “Nigger Bill” Mr. President The Committee on Federal Relations to whom was referred Assembly Bill No 395. Entitled “An Act […]

"Peter Cobb Application," 1923

African Americans in California History

The presence of African Americans in California dates from the days of Spain and Mexico. By the time California entered the Union, African Americans comprised a small but vital community. […]

Blank Foreign Miner's License, 1853.

Gold Fever and Foreign Miners

James Marshall’s discovery of gold along the American River on January 24, 1848 forever transformed California.  Nearly one hundred thousand migrants rushed to the Mother Lode region of the Sierra […]

Kern County Agua Caliente Mining District.

In Search of Gold

Placer gold, or surface gold, was relatively abundant in California’s waterways when the Gold Rush first began in 1848. Early prospectors initially used primitive tools such as picks, pans, and […]

Stockton State Hospital Register, Entry for Reuben Clark, 1866

Architect Troubles

State Capitol Construction, Part III After its formation in 1856, the Board of State Capitol Commissioners immediately solicited architectural designs for the proposed state capitol building.  On August 13, 1856, […]

State Capitol Commissioners Payroll Receipt, 1862.

Construction of the State Capitol Building

State Capitol Construction, Part II The legislature first provided for the construction of a state capitol building in 1856, creating the Board of State Capitol Commissioners to handle contracts and […]

Proposed State Capitol, Front Elevation

A Structure That the Future Will Be Proud Of

State Capitol Construction, Part I The California Constitution of 1849 stipulated that the first session of the new legislature be held in San Jose. In subsequent years, both Vallejo and […]

3469.1860-seal

California in the Age of Lincoln

This version of the California State Seal was used in the early 1860s on the letterhead of various state entities, including the Governor’s Office and the Office of the Adjutant […]

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