Cheryl Anne Stapp

It is famous for its raisins, for its geographic centrality midway between northern and southern California; and as a gateway to...

Most of them are still there, lining tree-shadowed Main Street, and still in operation: the now-historic structures that were built in...

They said it was the greatest gold discovery since James Marshall’s original discovery at Coloma in 1848. In November 1855, following the...

He turned out to be one of the lucky gold rushers . . . though it can certainly be said that he made his own luck. Three-plus years after...

In 1849, gold rushers who went West by sea still had to travel upriver to reach the interior gold regions, after their ship landed at San...

The stampede from America’s Atlantic Coast started in early December, 1848, when President James Polk publicly confirmed that the gold...

The Mexican-American War came to Pacific shores in July 1846, when U. S. Navy warships invaded the seaports at Monterey and San Francisco...

He is still famous for two reasons - his cynicism and distinctive writing style: dark imagery, with so-called “trick endings” in his...

As early as 1850, San Francisco was firmly established as California’s premier commercial center, and its port the greatest maritime...

For almost 70 years in the 19th century, San Francisco contained a unique criminal district which was the scene of much viciousness and...

San Francisco’s infamous Barbary Coast began as Sydney-Town as early as mid-1849, so named for the glut of escaped or released men from...

When he died October 1, 1876, James Lick was the wealthiest man in California. From his deathbed in Lick House—the sumptuous San...

Sometimes strong bonds of affection develop between members of the animal kingdom. A case in point is the 1855 story of Nevada City...

Ever since the westward migration of the 1840s and 1850s brought dogs in large numbers to California, stray and abandoned animals have...

History books rarely say anything about it, but the pioneers who trekked overland in the 1840s seeking a better life in the West brought...

In days long ago, San Francisco had a horrific stray dog problem as hordes of scrapping, feral mutts roamed the city unrestrained. Most...

This year, the California State Fair—touted as the State Fair & Food Festival—runs from July 14 through July 30. As in past years, the...

It was supposed to be the realization of a dream: a dynamic new town laid out on a low bluff overlooking the Sacramento River, where a...

We call them Aphorisms: those pointed, succinct, pithy observations through which we express a truth or general wisdom of what is, not...

There have been citrus groves in California since the late 18th century, when the Spanish mission-builders brought seeds with them from...