California - Political   Capital Sacramento Largest City Los Angeles Major Cities San Diego, San Jose,San Francisco, Long Beach, Fresno, Bakersfield, Anaheim, San Bernardino, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Stockton, Modesto Nicknames Golden State Area 163,696 sq. miles Population 35,484,453

 

California - Physical features   Mountain Ranges Coast Ranges, Sierra Nevada, Klamath Mts., Tehachapi Mts., Cascade Range, Diablo Range, Transverse Ranges, Peninsular Range, Santa Cruz Mts. Peaks Mt. Whitney, Lassen Peak, Mt. Shasta, Boundary Peak, Mammoth Mountain Deserts Great Basin, Mojave Desert, Colorado Desert Bodies of Water Pacific Ocean, San Francisco Bay, Monterey Bay, Salton Sea, San Pablo Bay Capes- Cape Mendocino, Point Arena, Point Conception Lakes Lake Tahoe, Goose Lake, Mono Lake, Owens Lake, Clear Lake Straits Carquinez Strait Valleys Imperial Valley, Central Valley, Coachella Valley, Napa Valley Rivers Sacramento, San Joaquin, Colorado,Pit, American, Klamath Highest Point Mt. Whitney Islands Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa, Santa Catalina (Channel Islands) Bordering States Oregon (north), Nevada (east), Arizona (southeast), Mexico-Baja California (south) National Parks Kings Canyon National Park, Sequoia National Park, Channel Islands National Park, Death Valley National Park, Yosemite National Park, Joshua Tree National Park, Lassen Volcanic National Park, Redwood National Park Key Products Oranges, Wine, Grapes, Strawberries, TV, Movies, Computers, Electronics, Tourism Natural Resources Timber, Petroleum, Cement, Natural Gas, Oil

 

California - History   1769 First Spanish mission (outpost) established at San Diego by Father Junipero Serra. 1848 The whole state of California ceded to the United States at the end of the Mexican War, which was commemorated by the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo. The Gold Rush began in this same year when agriculturist John Sutter striked gold at Sutter’s Mill in Coloma. 1850 Becomes the 31st state. 1906 An earthquake, 7.8 on the Richter Scale, devastates San Francisco, followed by fires, which tore down more than half of the sprawling city. 1964 California surpasses New York to become the most populous state, a record it still holds today. Present Day Wine and grapes are the primary economic products of California’s heartland, the Central Valley.

 

California - Facts   California is the most populous and 3rd largest in area of the fifty states of the US. Mt. Whitney, the highest point in the contigious United States, lies partially in Sequoia NP. Badwater Basin in Death Valley is the lowest point in the western hemisphere, and has the record for the highest temperature ever recorded in US history as a scorching 134 degrees. The Transamerica Pyramid is the tallest skyscraper in San Francisco and the city’s most famous landmark. The Central Valley, encompassing the center of California, is a well-known source for grapes and other citrus fruits and is the state’s agricultural heartland. "San-San" is the term used to define the heavily populated, industrial megalopolis running from San Francisco to San Diego. Los Angeles and San Francisco are located on opposite sides of the San Andreas Fault, which roughly divides the state into two halves, and Los Angeles is moving north two inches a year. In millions of years, Los Angeles and San Francisco will be neighbors. Gold was discovered at Sutter’s Mill, Coloma, CA in 1848, thus beginning the California Gold Rush. The All-American Canal provides water for the Imperial Valley. Fresno is California’s sixth-largest and largest inland city. The Port of Long Beach is the second-largest in the US after the Port of South Louisiana. California has more Native Americans than any other state. California is the most urbanized state, with 94 percent of its population living in urban areas.