California

The Santa Clara Valley, with its rich soil and sunny weather, has been home to great diversity and great innovation long before it became known as Silicon Valley.

California's first immigrants from Mexico were astonished by its beauty. "The land is moist and the hills have an abundance of rosemary and herbs, sunflowers in bloom, vines as plentiful as a vineyard," wrote one. From the movie stars of Hollywood's golden era who once came to play to billionaires who grew apricots for pleasure, the valley has hosted orchards, electric railroads, Army camps and even a love-struck poet.

Join author and historian Robin Chapman as she uncovers the true tales of this ever-changing place.

The beautiful landscapes of central California's Coastside state parks were once home to forgotten pioneers and unique industries. The tumultuous personal life of Robert Mills didn't hinder his commitment to his dairy business in Half Moon Bay, now the Burleigh H. Murray Ranch State Park. And the Pigeon Point Light Station State Historic Park, named after a shipwreck, remains a beacon of architectural beauty more than a century later. From hideaways for freedom fighters rebelling against the Spanish to the site of several booming lumber operations, Coastside parks have long been an integral part of California's history. Join author JoAnn Semones as she explores the trailblazers and innovators behind these stunning parks.

Napa Valley is known for its wine and winemakers, but just beneath the fertile soil lies another, more complex version of its history. Uncover the story of Napa's first Chinatown--once home to nearly five hundred immigrants--that dwindled to fewer than seventeen residents before the last buildings were razed in the early twentieth century. Meet the small but determined group of African American farmers and barbers who called Napa home and the indomitable May Howard, a successful businesswoman and brothel owner. Learn about the Bracero Program that kept many of Napa's wineries, including Krug, Beaulieu and Stag's Leap, thriving during World War II. Join author Alexandria Brown as she explores these lesser-known stories of the ordinary people who helped shape modern-day wine country.

Some of the richest gold strikes in California history were found in the areas of Randsburg and Johannesburg, located in the Mojave Desert section of Kern County. The desert is a graveyard of abandoned mines, shafts, pits and tailing dumps. Fortunately, some of these historic old mines are still standing, providing us with a rare and valuable glimpse into the world of those who sought to uncover the hidden treasure of gold in the earth. Few got rich and many died paupers in the search for the shiny yellow mineral, yet the burning fever to hit that big strike kept luring men and women to California from all points of the globe. It was a time of "all or nothing." The King Solomon Mine is one of those relics of another era still standing, rising from the mountain and casting its long shadow over the debris and abandoned junk cluttering the ground around it. It sits quiet, a sentinel in the desert, waiting in hope for the day when it will come to life again for modern-day gold hunters.