134 Fun Facts About California

What city serves as the capital of California?

Sacramento became California's permanent state capital in 1854, after several other cities briefly held the title.

In what year did California officially become the 31st U.S. state?

California became the 31st state in 1850, skipping the territorial stage entirely, as part of the Compromise of 1850 that balanced free and slave states.

What is the highest natural point in California and the contiguous United States?

Members of the 1864 California Geological Survey named it after Josiah Whitney, the state geologist who sponsored their expedition.

Which major industry is primarily associated with California's Silicon Valley region?

Silicon Valley is globally recognized as a hub for innovation and development in the high-tech industry.

Which famous bridge spans the entrance to San Francisco Bay?

The Golden Gate Bridge, completed in 1937, is an iconic suspension bridge and a marvel of modern engineering.

What bird is the official state bird of California?

The California Quail, known for its distinctive topknot, was designated the state bird in 1931.

What is California's official state flower?

The golden poppy, or California poppy, became the state flower in 1903 after botanist Sarah Plummer Lemmon lobbied for it through the 1890s and drafted the bill.

Which animal is featured on California's state flag and is its official state animal?

The California Grizzly Bear, though now extinct in the state, was designated the official state animal in 1953 and remains a powerful symbol.

Which city is the most populous in California?

With nearly 4 million residents, Los Angeles is not only the largest city in California but also the second-most populous city in the United States.

What is the official state motto of California?

Eureka, Greek for 'I have found it', has appeared on the state seal since 1849; a 1957 bid to replace it with 'In God We Trust' failed, and it was made official in 1963.

California is popularly known by which nickname?

The name took hold with the discovery of gold; the state colors are blue and gold, and the golden poppy is the state flower.

Which mountain range forms a significant natural barrier along California's eastern border?

Its granite peaks are still rising along fault-block escarpments on the eastern edge, and it holds the General Sherman Tree, the largest tree on Earth by volume.

In what year did James W. Marshall find gold at Sutter's Mill in Coloma?

Marshall spotted gold flakes on January 24, 1848, while building a sawmill for John Sutter on the American River; Sutter tried and failed to keep the find quiet.

How many counties are there in the state of California?

58 counties, the newest being Imperial County, carved out in 1907.

Which California valley is internationally renowned as one of the world's premier wine regions?

Napa Valley vaulted to fame at the 1976 Paris tasting, when its Chardonnay and Cabernet beat top French wines in a blind judging.

What famous geological fault line runs through much of California, known for causing earthquakes?

The San Andreas Fault is a major right-lateral strike-slip fault that extends for approximately 800 miles through California.

What is the largest natural freshwater body of water lying entirely within California?

Clear Lake in Lake County, about 68 square miles, is the largest natural freshwater lake lying wholly inside California and is thought to be one of the oldest lakes in North America.

Which type of ancient tree, known for its longevity, can be found in the White Mountains of California?

Great Basin bristlecone pines grow in the White Mountains; the oldest confirmed one, Methuselah, is more than 4,800 years old and its exact location is kept secret.

What major industry is synonymous with Hollywood in Los Angeles?

Hollywood has been shorthand for film and television since the studios settled there in the 1910s; the district merged into Los Angeles in 1910, largely to secure a water supply.

Which state sits across California's ruler-straight northern border?

The straight border runs along the 42nd parallel, a line inherited from the 1819 treaty between Spain and the United States.

Which name is given to the scenic stretches of California's State Route 1 that hug the ocean?

Pacific Coast Highway is the name given to State Route 1's ocean-hugging stretches; the same road is signed Cabrillo Highway and Shoreline Highway elsewhere, and its Big Sur section is a National Scenic Byway.

Which California valley's intense vegetable farming earned it the nickname 'America's Salad Bowl'?

The Salinas Valley, where John Steinbeck grew up and set East of Eden and Of Mice and Men, grows a large share of the nation's lettuce and other vegetables.

Which three-tiered National Park waterfall is billed as North America’s tallest?

Yosemite Falls drops 2,425 feet (739 m) in three tiers, Upper Yosemite Fall, the middle cascades and Lower Yosemite Fall, and is usually billed as North America's tallest.

Which California port was the busiest in the United States by container volume in 2024?

Combined with its neighbour at Long Beach, the complex ranked about tenth in the world.

Which Los Angeles basketball team has a long-standing rivalry with the Boston Celtics?

The Los Angeles Lakers have met the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals 12 times, more than any other pairing, from 1959 through 2010.

Which Major League Baseball team moved from Brooklyn to Los Angeles in 1958?

The Los Angeles Dodgers are a storied Major League Baseball franchise that moved from Brooklyn to Los Angeles in 1958.

Which NFL team won five Super Bowls between January 1982 and January 1995?

The San Francisco 49ers won Super Bowls XVI, XIX, XXIII, XXIV and XXIX, five titles in 14 seasons under coaches Bill Walsh and George Seifert.

Which island in San Francisco Bay once served as a notorious federal prison?

Alcatraz Island, often called 'The Rock,' housed some of America's most dangerous criminals from 1934 to 1963.

Which species, concentrated in Humboldt and Del Norte counties, includes Earth's tallest living trees?

Coast redwoods (Sequoia sempervirens) are the tallest living trees; the record holder, Hyperion, in Redwood National Park, stands about 116 metres (380 feet), its exact location kept quiet to protect it.

Which southern-coast city, home to over 1.4 million, is California's second-most populous?

San Diego, with about 1.4 million residents, trails only Los Angeles in California and sits on a deep natural harbor that hosts a major naval base.

Which major port city, the most populous in the East Bay, sits directly across the bay from San Francisco?

Oakland is the Bay Area's third most populous city and the eighth in California, as well as a major West Coast port.

What body of water forms most of California's eastern border with Arizona?

The Colorado River serves as a natural boundary between California and Arizona for much of their shared border.

What climate type gives California's coast its mild, dry summers?

A Mediterranean climate, with wet winters and dry summers, covers most of coastal California; its reliable sunshine helped draw the filmmakers who built the Hollywood studio system in the 1910s and 1920s.

What mid-19th-century event led to a massive population boom in California?

The Gold Rush that followed the 1848 strike drew roughly 300,000 people, about half by sea and half overland, and carried California straight to statehood in 1850.

What is the lowest point in North America, in California's Death Valley National Park?

Badwater Basin is an endorheic basin in Death Valley, notable as the lowest point in North America at 282 feet (86 meters) below sea level.

Which body of water borders California to the west?

California's entire western boundary is formed by the Pacific Ocean, giving it a long and diverse coastline.

What large, deep lake is shared by California and Nevada in the Sierra Nevada mountains?

Lake Tahoe is the largest alpine lake in North America and a popular destination for recreation, straddling the border of California and Nevada.

Which historical figure founded the first Spanish missions in California?

Junípero Serra founded Mission San Diego in 1769 and eight more before his death in 1784; Pope Francis canonized him in 2015 over objections from Native American groups citing forced conversions and abuse.

Which city is the largest in Northern California by population?

It overtook San Francisco in the 1990 census, and the 1849 constitutional convention chose it as the new state's first capital.

Which prehistoric predator, dug up by the hundreds at La Brea, is California's state fossil?

The saber-toothed cat Smilodon californicus became the state fossil in 1973; Los Angeles' La Brea tar pits hold the largest Smilodon collection anywhere, the cats probably trapped while going after stuck prey.

Which Mexican state sits directly across the border from San Diego and Tijuana?

The Spanish name Las Californias originally referred to the Baja peninsula; the region north of it was Alta California.

What is the name of the longest river that flows entirely within California?

The Sacramento River is the longest river entirely within California, flowing for approximately 400 miles through the northern Central Valley.

What is the large, shallow saline lake in Southern California with environmental problems?

The Salton Sea formed by accident in 1905, when Colorado River floodwater breached an irrigation canal and poured into the basin for two years; it has since shrunk and grown saltier, exposing toxic dust.

Which California city stages the Tournament of Roses Parade along Colorado Boulevard each January?

Pasadena's Rose Parade is followed by the Rose Bowl football game, and if January 1 falls on a Sunday the whole thing shifts to Monday.

Which rare blue gemstone, designated in 1985, is California's official state gem?

Benitoite became the state gem in 1985; gem-quality crystals have been found in only one place on Earth, near the headwaters of the San Benito River in San Benito County, which gives it its name.

Which renewable source has the world's largest field of its kind in Sonoma and Lake counties?

California is a leading producer of geothermal energy, with The Geysers in Northern California being the largest geothermal field in the world.

California is the third-largest U.S. state by area, behind Texas and which other state?

Alaska (665,384 sq mi) and Texas (268,596 sq mi) are the only states larger than California's 163,696 square miles, yet California holds far more people than either.

Which Spanish writer's 1510 romance is thought to have given California its name?

Garci Rodríguez de Montalvo's 1510 romance Las Sergas de Esplandián describes a gold-rich island called California ruled by Queen Calafia; Spanish explorers applied the name to the Baja peninsula in the 1530s.

Which captain led the first European expedition along the California coast in 1542?

Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo, sailing for Spain, led the first European voyage up the California coast; his ships entered San Diego Bay on September 28, 1542.

Which English privateer claimed part of the coast in 1579, landing north of today's San Francisco?

Francis Drake landed in June 1579, probably at Drakes Bay in Marin County, and claimed the land as Nova Albion for Elizabeth I before continuing his circumnavigation.

Which Russian trading post was built on California's North Coast in 1812?

Fort Ross, built by the Russian-American Company in 1812 in today's Sonoma County, was meant to supply Russia's Alaskan colonies with food and was sold to John Sutter in 1841.

Who led the 1775-76 overland expedition that brought settlers from Sonora to San Francisco Bay?

Juan Bautista de Anza led about 240 colonists overland from Tubac in 1775-76; the settlers went on to found the Presidio and Mission of San Francisco in 1776.

Which town was the site of the 1846 Bear Flag Revolt against Mexican rule?

On June 14, 1846, American settlers seized the Mexican garrison town of Sonoma and raised a flag bearing a bear, a star and the words California Republic.

Who was the only president of the short-lived California Republic?

William B. Ide led the Bear Flaggers and was the republic's only president; it lasted from June 14 to July 9, 1846, when the U.S. flag replaced the bear flag at Sonoma.

Which Mexican commander's home did the Bear Flaggers pound on in June 1846?

General Mariano Vallejo, the Mexican commander at Sonoma, was roused at dawn on June 14, 1846, and taken to Sutter's Fort; seizing him was meant to delay any Californio military response.

Which January 1847 agreement ended Californio resistance and gave the U.S. de facto control?

The Treaty of Cahuenga, signed January 13, 1847, by John C. Frémont and Andrés Pico, ended fighting in California; the wider war ended a year later with the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo.

Which city was the seat of government under Spain and then Mexico from 1777 to 1845?

Monterey was Alta California's capital from 1777 until 1845, when Pío Pico moved it to Los Angeles; the 1849 constitutional convention also met there, at Colton Hall.

Which city served as California's capital from 1853 to 1854, just before Sacramento?

Benicia was the capital from February 1853 to February 1854; its 1852 capitol building survives as Benicia Capitol State Historic Park.

On which date, observed as Admission Day, did California become the 31st state?

California was admitted as a free state on September 9, 1850, under the Compromise of 1850; September 9 is observed as Admission Day.

In what year was the first transcontinental railroad completed?

The first transcontinental railroad was completed on May 10, 1869, when the golden spike was driven at Promontory Summit, Utah; cross-country travel dropped from months to about a week.

Which 1913 state law barred Asian immigrants from owning property?

The 1913 Alien Land Act barred 'aliens ineligible for citizenship', in practice Japanese and other Asian immigrants, from owning farmland and capped leases at three years; the state Supreme Court struck it down in 1952.

Which 1928 dam collapse ranks with the 1906 quake as one of the deadliest U.S. disasters?

The St. Francis Dam north of Los Angeles failed just before midnight on March 12, 1928, killing more than 400 people, the second-deadliest disaster in California history after the 1906 earthquake.

Which river saw four hydroelectric dams removed in 2023-24, the largest such project in U.S. history?

Four dams on the Klamath River, Iron Gate, Copco 1 and 2 and J.C. Boyle, came down in 2023-24 after federal approval in November 2022, reopening some 400 miles of salmon habitat.

Which California county is the largest by area in the contiguous United States?

San Bernardino County covers about 20,100 square miles, larger than nine U.S. states, making it the largest county by area in the contiguous United States.

Which small island group lies west of San Francisco?

The Farallon Islands lie about 27 miles west of the Golden Gate and form a national wildlife refuge; the Channel Islands, by contrast, lie off the Southern California coast.

Which glacier is the largest in the Sierra Nevada?

Palisade Glacier, tucked beneath North Palisade in the eastern Sierra above Big Pine, is the largest of the range's several dozen small glaciers.

Which vanished body of water was once the largest freshwater lake west of the Mississippi?

Tulare Lake in the southern San Joaquin Valley was the largest freshwater lake west of the Mississippi by surface area; it dried up by the early 20th century after its tributary rivers were diverted for irrigation.

Which body of water east of the Sierra Nevada is an essential migratory bird habitat?

Mono Lake, a saline lake in the Mono Basin east of Yosemite, feeds millions of migratory birds on its brine shrimp and alkali flies and hosts one of the largest California gull colonies.

Which tree species grows naturally only in scattered groves on the Sierra Nevada's western slope?

Giant sequoias, the most massive trees on Earth, are native only to scattered groves on the Sierra Nevada's western slope, mostly between 5,000 and 7,000 feet, including those in Sequoia and Kings Canyon national parks.

Which 1994 earthquake, centered in the San Fernando Valley, collapsed sections of Los Angeles freeways?

The magnitude 6.7 Northridge earthquake struck at 4:31 a.m. on January 17, 1994, killing at least 57 people and collapsing sections of the Santa Monica and Antelope Valley freeways.

In which town was California's record low temperature of -45 °F set in 1937?

Boca, a former railroad and ice-harvesting town on the Truckee River east of Truckee, hit -45 °F on January 20, 1937, the coldest temperature ever recorded in California.

Which California pine bears the longest cones of any conifer, often over a foot long?

The sugar pine, Pinus lambertiana, bears the longest cones of any conifer, commonly 25-50 cm (10-20 inches); John Muir called it the king of the conifers.

Which state agency, created by Proposition 20 in 1972, permits development along the shoreline?

The California Coastal Commission, created by voters through Proposition 20 in 1972 and made permanent by the 1976 Coastal Act, must approve most development within the coastal zone.

Which emigrant party was trapped by snow in the Sierra Nevada in the winter of 1846-47?

The Donner Party, some 87 emigrants, was snowbound near today's Truckee from November 1846; nearly half died before rescue, and some survivors resorted to cannibalism.

Which town became California's 483rd incorporated municipality in July 2024?

Mountain House, in San Joaquin County near Tracy, incorporated on July 1, 2024, as the state's 483rd city; under state law 'city' and 'town' are interchangeable labels.

Which county's city of Shafter is near California's center of population?

Shafter, northwest of Bakersfield in Kern County, lies a few miles from California's census-computed center of population, which sits in the southern San Joaquin Valley.

Which 1986 ballot measure enshrined English as California's only official language?

Proposition 63, approved by about 73% of voters in November 1986, amended the state constitution to declare English the official language of California.

After English, which language is spoken at home by the largest share of Californians?

Spanish, the language of government until 1848, is spoken at home by more than a quarter of Californians, far ahead of Chinese, Tagalog and Vietnamese.

Which 1960s band promoted the image of Californians as laid-back, tanned sun-seekers?

The Beach Boys, formed in Hawthorne in 1961, sold surfing and hot-rod California to the world with 'Surfin' U.S.A.' and 'California Girls'; boosters had marketed the state as a sunny paradise for decades before.

Which Bay Area radio station traces its origin to a 1909 experimental station in San Jose?

KCBS traces its origin to Charles Herrold's experimental station in San Jose in 1909, which makes it a claimant to the title of oldest broadcasting station in the United States.

Which California-born fast-food chain is known for the Crunchwrap and Doritos Locos Tacos?

Taco Bell was founded by Glen Bell in Downey in 1962; McDonald's, Denny's, IHOP and Panda Express also began in California.

Which NHL team won the 2007 Stanley Cup, the first for a California franchise?

The Anaheim Ducks beat the Ottawa Senators in five games in June 2007, the first Stanley Cup for a California team; the Los Angeles Kings followed in 2012 and 2014.

Which stadium hosted the 1994 FIFA World Cup final in California?

The Rose Bowl in Pasadena staged the July 17, 1994, final, where Brazil beat Italy on penalties after a 0-0 draw; it hosted eight matches that tournament.

Which resort, now Palisades Tahoe, hosted the 1960 Winter Olympics?

Squaw Valley, renamed Palisades Tahoe in 2021, staged the 1960 Winter Games, making California the only state to have hosted both Summer and Winter Olympics.

Which Inglewood venue hosted Super Bowl LVI in February 2022?

SoFi Stadium in Inglewood hosted the game on February 13, 2022, the thirteenth time the state had staged a Super Bowl.

How many campuses make up the University of California system?

The University of California has 10 campuses, from Berkeley (1868) to Merced (2005); UC San Francisco is the lone specialized campus, devoted to graduate health sciences.

Which state agency builds and maintains California's state highways and freeways?

The California Department of Transportation, known as Caltrans, was created in 1972 from the old Division of Highways and maintains a state highway system of roughly 50,000 lane miles.

Which road to Pasadena opened in 1940 as the first freeway in the western United States?

The Arroyo Seco Parkway, later signed as the Pasadena Freeway, opened on December 30, 1940, linking downtown Los Angeles and Pasadena as the first freeway in the western United States.

Which island do the two sections of the Bay Bridge meet at?

They connect through the world's largest-diameter transportation bore tunnel.

Which was California's only major nuclear power plant operating in 2025?

Diablo Canyon, near San Luis Obispo, was the last operating nuclear plant in the state after San Onofre shut down in 2013; its closure was pushed back from 2025 to at least 2030.

How many members sit in the California State Assembly?

The Assembly has 80 members elected to two-year terms, while the Senate has 40 members serving four-year terms.

How many members does California send to the U.S. House of Representatives?

California sends 52 representatives, the most of any state, after losing a seat in the 2020 reapportionment; with two senators that gives it 54 electoral votes.

Which 1978 measure capped property tax increases at 2% a year?

Proposition 13, passed in June 1978, capped property tax at 1% of assessed value and limited assessment increases to 2% a year until a property is sold.

Which two Californians each won two presidential elections?

Richard Nixon (elected 1968 and 1972) and Ronald Reagan (elected 1980 and 1984) were both Californians; the state voted Republican in every presidential race from 1952 to 1988 except 1964.

Which California county is the smallest by land area?

San Francisco, with about 47 square miles of land, is the state's smallest county by area and its only consolidated city-county.

Who chose the Golden Gate Bridge's International Orange color?

Consulting architect Irving Morrow chose International Orange, the color of the steel's red-lead primer, for its warmth and visibility in fog; the Navy had suggested black and yellow stripes.

What was the toll per car when the Golden Gate Bridge opened in 1937?

The toll was 50 cents per car in each direction when the bridge opened in May 1937, plus five cents for each passenger beyond three.

Where in Death Valley was the world-record 134 °F reading taken on July 10, 1913?

The 134 °F reading was taken at Greenland Ranch, today's Furnace Creek, on July 10, 1913, and stands as the highest air temperature ever recorded on Earth, though some meteorologists dispute it.

Which Native American tribe, formerly called the Panamint Shoshone, lives in Death Valley?

The Timbisha Shoshone, federally recognized in 1983, have lived in Death Valley for at least a thousand years and gained a homeland reservation inside the national park under a 2000 act.

Which businessman, arriving in San Francisco in 1853, later patented riveted denim work pants?

Levi Strauss opened a dry-goods business in San Francisco in 1853 and in 1873 patented riveted denim work pants with tailor Jacob Davis; merchants often did better than the miners they supplied.

Which mining technique, effectively banned by an 1884 court ruling, washed away whole hillsides?

Hydraulic mining blasted hillsides with high-pressure water cannons; the 1884 Sawyer decision effectively banned it because the debris was choking rivers and flooding Sacramento Valley farms.

Which president signed the 1864 Yosemite Grant preserving the valley?

Abraham Lincoln signed the Yosemite Grant on June 30, 1864, ceding Yosemite Valley and the Mariposa Grove to California for public use; Congress made the surrounding land a national park in 1890.

Roughly how far above the valley floor does Yosemite's Half Dome rise?

Half Dome's summit stands 8,839 feet above sea level, roughly 4,800 feet above the Yosemite Valley floor; the cable route to its top was installed in 1919.

Which notorious gangster was among the first inmates transferred to Alcatraz in 1934?

Al Capone arrived on Alcatraz in August 1934 in one of the prison's first shipments of inmates and spent about four and a half years there before syphilis wrecked his health.

Which Soviet leader asked to visit Disneyland during his 13-day U.S. trip in 1959?

Nikita Khrushchev was refused a Disneyland visit during his September 1959 tour, ostensibly for security reasons, and complained about it publicly at a 20th Century Fox luncheon in Hollywood.

Which network televised Disneyland's dedication on July 17, 1955?

ABC, which had invested in the park, broadcast the 90-minute 'Dateline: Disneyland' special on July 17, 1955, with hosts Art Linkletter, Bob Cummings and Ronald Reagan; the public was admitted the next day.

Which four letters did the Hollywood Sign lose in 1949?

The sign went up in 1923 as HOLLYWOODLAND to advertise a housing development; when the Chamber of Commerce restored it in 1949 it dropped LAND, and the trimmed name stuck.

Which actress died in 1932 after jumping from the top of the Hollywood Sign's H?

Peg Entwistle, a 24-year-old stage actress, climbed a workman's ladder to the top of the H and jumped in September 1932, leaving a note in her purse.

Which rock singer paid for a Hollywood Sign letter in memory of Groucho Marx in 1978?

Alice Cooper paid about $27,700 for an O in memory of Groucho Marx, who had died in 1977; Hugh Hefner hosted the fundraiser, and Gene Autry and Andy Williams bought other letters.

Which company opened Hollywood's first film studio, in a former tavern on Sunset Boulevard, in 1911?

The Nestor Film Company opened Hollywood's first studio in October 1911 in the old Blondeau Tavern at Sunset and Gower; Selig had built earlier in Edendale, outside Hollywood proper.

Which Scottish-born naturalist co-founded the Sierra Club in 1892 and was its first president?

John Muir, born in Dunbar, Scotland, in 1838, co-founded the Sierra Club in San Francisco in 1892 and served as its first president until his death in 1914.

Which historic mail service had its western terminus in California's capital?

The Pony Express ran from St. Joseph, Missouri, to Sacramento from April 1860 until October 1861, when the transcontinental telegraph made it obsolete; mail went on to San Francisco by steamer.

Which nickname of California's capital reflects its abundant urban forest?

Sacramento's nickname 'City of Trees' comes from the dense canopy of elms, oaks and sycamores planted from the 1850s to shade its hot valley summers; 'Camellia City' is an older nickname.

Which 1915 San Diego fair's animal menagerie became the basis of the city's zoo?

The 1915 Panama-California Exposition in Balboa Park left behind caged animals that Dr. Harry Wegeforth organized into the San Diego Zoo in 1916; its Spanish-Baroque buildings anchor the park.

Who supervised the Los Angeles Aqueduct, completed in 1913?

William Mulholland, chief engineer of the Los Angeles water department, built the 233-mile aqueduct from the Owens Valley; at its opening in November 1913 he said, 'There it is. Take it.'

What caused most of the destruction in San Francisco after the April 18, 1906, earthquake?

Fires burning for three days after the April 18, 1906, quake destroyed some 28,000 buildings across 500 blocks, far more than the shaking itself; about 3,000 people died.

Which founding document of a global body was drafted and signed in San Francisco in 1945?

The United Nations Charter was drafted at the San Francisco Conference from April 1945 and signed in the city on June 26, 1945, by delegates of 50 nations.

Which San Francisco skyscraper, completed in 1972, became the symbol of the 'Manhattanization' fight?

The Transamerica Pyramid, 853 feet and 48 stories, was completed in 1972 amid fierce opposition to 'Manhattanization'; it was the city's tallest building until Salesforce Tower in 2018.

Which transistor co-inventor moved to Mountain View in 1956 and seeded Silicon Valley?

William Shockley, co-inventor of the transistor, set up Shockley Semiconductor in Mountain View in 1956; eight engineers who quit his lab in 1957, including Noyce and Moore, founded Fairchild Semiconductor.

Lake Tahoe is the second-deepest lake in the United States behind which one?

Tahoe reaches 1,645 feet; Crater Lake goes to 1,949.

Which classic Western TV series had its Ponderosa Ranch on Lake Tahoe's Nevada side?

Bonanza (1959-73) set the Cartwrights' Ponderosa Ranch on Lake Tahoe's Nevada shore; a replica ranch built at Incline Village in 1967 drew tourists until it closed in 2004.

Which president signed the law creating Sequoia National Park in 1890?

Benjamin Harrison signed the act creating Sequoia National Park on September 25, 1890, the country's second national park after Yellowstone; a week later he signed the Yosemite bill too.

Which president's wife led the 1966 scenic road ceremony at Bixby Creek Bridge?

Lady Bird Johnson, promoting highway beautification, presided at Bixby Creek Bridge in September 1966 when Highway 1 through Big Sur was dedicated as California's first State Scenic Highway.

Joshua Tree National Park straddles the Mojave and which lower-lying region?

The park's lower, hotter eastern half lies in the Colorado Desert, a western arm of the Sonoran, while Joshua trees grow in the higher Mojave section; it was upgraded from monument to national park in 1994.

Who conceived San Francisco's cable cars in 1869 after seeing a horsecar accident?

Andrew Hallidie, a wire-rope manufacturer, patented the grip and ran the first cable car down Clay Street on August 2, 1873; three lines survive as a National Historic Landmark.

Which architect designed Hearst Castle at San Simeon?

Julia Morgan, the first woman admitted to the architecture program at the École des Beaux-Arts, designed Hearst Castle over 28 years from 1919; Hearst had its Neptune Pool rebuilt three times.

Which 1941 film satirized Hearst Castle and its owner's lifestyle?

Citizen Kane (1941), Orson Welles's debut feature, modeled Xanadu on Hearst Castle; Hearst barred his newspapers from mentioning the film and pressed studio chiefs to suppress it.

Which singer-turned-mayor cracked down on Palm Springs' rowdy spring break in the early 1990s?

Sonny Bono, Palm Springs mayor from 1988 to 1992, pushed ordinances that closed Palm Canyon Drive to cruising and ended the city's rowdy spring break; he went on to Congress in 1994.

Which band's 1993 Ticketmaster-boycott concert at the Empire Polo Club led to Coachella?

Pearl Jam, boycotting Ticketmaster venues, played the Empire Polo Club in Indio in November 1993 and proved the site could hold a big crowd; the first Coachella followed there in October 1999.

In which Los Angeles suburb did In-N-Out Burger open its first location in 1948?

Harry and Esther Snyder opened the first In-N-Out in Baldwin Park in October 1948, billed as California's first drive-thru hamburger stand, with a two-way speaker box.

Which animal has been California's official state marine mammal since 1975?

Gray whales migrate along the California coast each year between Baja California and Arctic feeding grounds.

Which dance did California designate as its official state dance in 1988?

West Coast Swing, a smooth slotted partner dance that evolved from the Lindy Hop in 1940s Los Angeles, became the official state dance in 1988.

Which insect did the Golden State designate as its official insect in 1972?

The California dogface butterfly, Zerene eurydice, found only in California, was adopted as the state insect in 1972; the golden trout has been the state fish since 1947.

Which duck-billed dinosaur became California's official state dinosaur in 2017?

Augustynolophus morrisi, a hadrosaur known from two skeletons dug up in Fresno County in the 1930s and 1940s, became the state dinosaur in 2017; the California red-legged frog (2014) is the state amphibian.