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A History Worth Etching
The Story of California.
Long before statehood, the land that would become California was home to more Indigenous peoples than anywhere else on the continent — over a hundred sovereign nations weaving the original story of this coast.
Spanish missions, Mexican ranchos, and the lightning bolt of 1848 — when gold was struck at Sutter’s Mill — pulled the world toward a single shore. By 1850, California became the 31st state, and the American imagination has been chasing west ever since.
From Hollywood’s reels to Silicon Valley’s circuits, from Cesar Chavez’s fields to Yosemite’s granite walls, California is where America keeps reinventing itself.
1542
First Contact
Cabrillo sails into San Diego Bay, the first European to set foot on California shores.
1769
The Mission Trail
Father Junípero Serra founds the first of 21 Spanish missions, beginning the Camino Real.
1848
Gold at Sutter’s Mill
James Marshall’s discovery sets off a global rush — over 300,000 arrive in five years.
1850
The 31st Star
California enters the Union as a free state, skipping over the territorial stage entirely.
