Name: San Diego's North Island
Brand: Katrina Pescador
SKU: 9780738547954
Price: 18.74 USD
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San Diego's North Island

9780738547954

$24.99 $18.74 Save 25%

San Diego's North Island is one of the most significant venues of aviation in the world. Starting in 1911, it was the home to one of the nation's first aviation schools, founded by Glenn Curtiss, who pioneered seaplane flight. He trained the nucleus of America's future air forces there, including Lt. Theodore Ellyson, the first naval aviator. When the United States entered World War I, the government took over the island with plans to build a training center for the nation's armed forces. The new army base was named Rockwell Field, and the navy portion was named Naval Air Station San Diego. By 1937, the army had moved out, and the navy became the sole tenant. Today NAS North Island is part of the largest aerospace-industrial complex in the navy and is headquarters for the Naval Air Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet.

Canyon Lake

9780738547121

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Canyon Lake lies on the western edge of Menifee Valley, between Sun City and Lake Elsinore, and is both a private gated community and an incorporated city with a population approaching 10,000. This is quite a change from 1890 when only one family lived here near Salt Creek and San Jacinto River. In 1882, when the California Southern Railroad began service between Perris and Elsinore, the area was known as Railroad Canyon, but after three washouts, the line was abandoned. The Temescal Water Company later purchased the land and constructed a dam, thus creating Railroad Canyon Lake. The Evans family operated a fishing resort there for 30 years until 1968, when Temescal developed the private community of Canyon Lake. This original weekend retreat is now home to retirees and young families as the area surrounding Canyon Lake is rapidly becoming more urban.

Newark

9781467133364

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Often overlooked as a minor enclave surrounded by the sprawling suburb of Fremont and confused with its New Jersey namesake, Newark, California, has been a hub of innovation commercially, industrially, and technologically, even before it officially became a city in 1955. While Newark had already been home to factories and chemical plants, citizens were reticent to allow the small town to become an industrial section of the city and thus opted out of an ambitious plan among several hamlets to become Fremont. Since then, it has become a functioning city unto its own with its own infrastructure and a passionate constituency whose spirit has made Newark a friendly city but never a boring one.

Orange County Chronicles

9781626191334

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Orange County is one of the best-known, yet least understood, counties in California. The popular image of beautiful people in beach cities is certainly accurate. But the Orange County that is often overlooked includes workaday lives in Anaheim, the barrios of Santa Ana, townhouse living in Brea and the diverse communities of Little Saigon, Little Texas, Los Rios, La Habra and Silverado Canyon. Modern Orange County offers very little sense of history, and it sometimes seems as if the urbanization of the 1960s is all that defines the place. Orange County historian Phil Brigandi fills in the gaps with this collection of essays that explores the very creation of the county, as well as pressing issues of race, citrus, attractions and annexation.

Cover image for Orange County Chronicles, isbn: 9781626191334

California Vines, Wines and Pioneers

9781609498849

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Grab your glass and take to the wine trail with food genealogist Sherry Monahan as she traces the roots of California's Vines, Wines & Pioneers." While cowboys and early settlers were writing the oft-told history of the Wild West, California's wine pioneers were cultivating a delicious industry. The story begins when Franciscan missionaries planted the first grapes in Southern California in 1769. Almost a century later, news of gold drew thirsty prospectors and European immigrants to California's promise of wealth. From Old World vines sprang a robust and varied tradition of wine cultivation that overcame threats of pests and Prohibition to win global prestige. Journey with Monahan as she uncorks this vintage history and savors the stories of California's historic wineries and vineyards."

Occidental

9781467104630

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Occidental is a picturesque village in West Sonoma County nestled between the Salmon Creek and Dutch Bill Creek watersheds. William "Dutch Bill" Howard is considered the first permanent European settler in 1849, but he was not Dutch, and his name was not Bill--he was actually Danish and had assumed a new identity after deserting a ship to look for gold. Howard and another early settler, logging baron "Boss" Meeker, were instrumental in shaping early Occidental. The North Pacific Coast Railroad arrived in 1876, requiring construction of the country's tallest timber bridge. The railroad allowed much faster communication and transportation of people and goods, including redwood, charcoal, tanbark, and produce. Italians also started arriving in the 1870s, opening authentic Italian restaurants that have now served generations of families. In the 1970s, a culture clash occurred between ranchers and farmers with hippies and artists, but together they fought to maintain the beauty and character of Occidental.

Annapolis and the Gualala River

9780738581149

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Annapolis--a hidden jewel of a community--is tucked into the timber-filled ridges above the jagged northern Sonoma coastline. Undeterred by the steep, mountainous terrain and rugged living, early settlers were first lured to the area by the timber. They quickly discovered Annapolis had perfect weather for apple farming. At the beginning of the 20th century, almost every farm had apples, and apple dryers dotted the hills. The wild Gualala River, known for Coho salmon and steelhead trout, is 32 miles long and flows through the Annapolis area before meeting the Pacific Ocean. Early Native American Pomo tribes settled along this important river, which eventually served as a boundary between Sonoma and Mendocino Counties.

San Francisco's Visitacion Valley

9780738530413

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Rancho Cañada de Guadalupe, La Visitacion y Rodeo Viejo was named in July 1777 by a party of Spanish priests and soldiers who lost their way in heavy fog while en route to the Presidio. Now called Visitacion Valley, this area was the only Mexican land grant within San Francisco deeded to an Anglo. Windmills pumped water to irrigate the fields of early settlers' cattle farms, nurseries, and vegetable gardens, leading to the nickname "Valley of the Windmills." Over the years, however, the pastoral scenery gave way to a mix of housing and commerce, and today Visitacion Valley is one of the city's most ethnically diverse neighborhoods.

Irish San Francisco

9780738530499

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The Irish have always been an important part of San Francisco. An 1852 census showed that almost nine percent of the city of 36,000 hailed from Ireland; by 1900, nearly a quarter of the population had come here from the Emerald Isle. Today a walk through any part of the city will showcase influential Irish street names such as Downey, Fell, Kearney, O'Farrell, O'Shaughnessy, and McAllister. Churches such as St. Brigid's and St. Patrick's still are supported by many of the faithful, while landmark buildings such as the Fairmont, Phelan, and Flood stand sentinel over the city's bustling downtown. Many businesspeople handle their finances through the successors of the original Hibernia Bank, established here by Irish immigrants in 1859. And after work, many folks like to relax with a pint at pubs such as Kate O'Brien's, Abbey Tavern, or the Little Shamrock.

Napa Valley Chronicles

9781609499266

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In 1905, Napa's mayor, J.A. Fuller, announced, Napa for half a century has been slumbering in a Rip Van Winkle sleep but she has awakened at last. Back then, fifteen cents bought coffee and a donut at the Depot and Sawyer's Tannery made soft leather baseball gloves. In this collection, local author Lauren Coodley reimagines the unvarnished country life of historic Napa Valley through the stories of notables like postmaster Ernest Kincaid, Napa Register reporter Phyllis King, firefighter historian Rita Bordwell and Brewster's owners Rachel and Larry Friedman. Trace the region's lasting legacy, from the time when a horse and buggy purchased Browns Valley to the days when art galleries replaced blue-collar businesses and the California grape took center stage from Sunsweet prunes.

Haunted Santa Cruz, California

9781467136037

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Though generally a peaceful coastal city, the dark stains from Santa Cruz's past still linger. A former Spanish Mission, Holy Cross Catholic Church harbors a dark history of a brutal revolt of native Ohlone Indians that killed the cruel Father Andres Quintana. Frequented by mobsters and celebrities in its heyday, the famous Brookdale Lodge's most talked-about guest is the ghost of a little girl who died nearby in 1892 after nearly drowning. Terrorized by three different serial killers during the 1970s, the city earned the nickname of the Murder Capital of the World. Local resident Alfred Hitchcock derived inspiration for his iconic film Psycho from the haunted mid-nineteenth-century Hotel McRay. Tracing the city's eeriest incidents back to their roots, historical researcher and paranormal investigator Maryanne Porter details these and many more stories of local legend and lore.

Cover image for Haunted Santa Cruz, California, isbn: 9781467136037

Haunted Monterey County

9781467142359

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From the vistas of Big Sur to the streets of Monterey, the souls of the dead still linger. The Mission San Carlos Borromeo, today known as the Carmel Mission, is the site of numerous unmarked graves from centuries past. Monterey’s Cannery Row once housed the lab of marine biologist Ed Ricketts, who was struck by a train there in 1948—some say on a quiet night you can still hear the sound of the wreck. In Salinas, the Steinbeck House is known for its charming atmosphere and delightful meals, as well as visits from John Steinbeck, despite the fact that he died in 1968. Join writer Patrick Whitehurst as he explores tales of the supernatural and Monterey County’s haunted locales.

Cover image for Haunted Monterey County, isbn: 9781467142359

Saratoga

9780738569642

$7.99 $5.99 Save 25%

Saratoga boasts a rich history.

Cover image for Saratoga, isbn: 9780738569642

S is for San Francisco

9781942402510

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S is for San Francisco takes you on an A-B-C tour of San Francisco's most popular icons including the Ferry Building, cable cars, seals on Pier 39, Golden Gate Park and twenty-one other places and things that make San Francisco beloved worldwide. With witty rhymes and bright illustrations that showcase the iconic places and things of San Francisco, this board book is sure to make any resident and visitor smile.

Cover image for S is for San Francisco, isbn: 9781942402510

Clearing the Air in Los Angeles

9781467156745

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Solving the mystery of California’s most persistent smog.Once known as the Smog Capital of the World, Los Angeles has changed “air you can see” into “air you can breathe.” While the fight to eliminate pollution in the city continues, modern smog is not the thick, oppressive, silver-blue haze that drove people to move out of Los Angeles altogether during the mid-twentieth century. Professor Arie Haagen-Smit became a key leader in the fight against smog after making a crucial discovery—what caused it.

Join author Carl R. Oliver as he delves into the sixty-year battle to clear the air in Los Angeles.

Cover image for Clearing the Air in Los Angeles, isbn: 9781467156745

San Francisco's Parks

9781467160155

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San Francisco was incorporated in 1850, when there was just one communal outdoor space: Portsmouth Square. The square was the literal nucleus of planning for the city, as development maps were measured from its center point. Over time, the city developed into the current metropolis with a population of around 815,000. In a reflection of that growth, 230 parks are now governed and maintained by the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department. The variety of spaces administered by the department includes parks, playgrounds, miniparks, open spaces, and community gardens—within these, many different activities and programs are on offer. In 2017, San Francisco was cited as the nation’s first city where every resident lives within a 10-minute walk to a park; this was calculated by the Trust for Public Land, a national nonprofit that facilitates the creation of parks and analyzes parks for the nation’s 100 largest cities.

Cover image for San Francisco's Parks, isbn: 9781467160155

Cemeteries of San Diego County

9780738558219

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From its Native American and mission graveyards to its modern megacemeteries, San Diego County's historical landscape has an incredibly diverse array of final resting places. Cemeteries of San Diego County takes the reader in-depth to reveal the region's dynamic cultural history through dramatic modern photographs and never-before-seen vintage images of the county's most sacred spaces--its lost and forgotten historical burial grounds. A number of these graveyards have disappeared entirely, erasing the last vestiges of too many of the region's formative pioneers. This book uncovers the location of dozens of local cemeteries and reestablishes them as consecrated grounds.

Bay Area Coffee

9781467140614

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San Francisco was booming in the mid-nineteenth century, and along with adventurers seeking their fortunes came sacks of green coffee beans. The old Yerba Buena Cove swiftly filled with ships, and the city emerged as the third-largest coffee port in the United States. What followed was the rise—and local demise—of the “big three” coffee roasters: Folger’s, Hills Brothers and MJB. Specialized Bay Area roasters like Peerless, Peet’s and Blue Bottle sprang up in their wake, while places such as Tosca’s, Caffé Trieste and the Blue Unicorn blazed the way for modern coffeehouses. Join author Monika Trobits as she traces the historic voyage of the humble coffee bean to the shores of San Francisco Bay.

Cover image for Bay Area Coffee, isbn: 9781467140614

Mexican American Baseball in Sacramento

9781467102698

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Mexican American Baseball in Sacramento explores the history and culture of teams and players from the Sacramento region. Since the early 20th century, baseball diamonds in California's capital and surrounding communities have nurtured athletic talent, educational skills, ethnic identity, and political self-determination for Mexican Americans. The often-neglected historical narrative of these men's and women's teams tells the story of community, migration, military service, education, gender, social justice, and perseverance. Players often became important members of their communities, and some even went on to become professional athletes—paving a path for Latinos in sports. These photographs serve as a lens to both local sports history and Mexican American history.

Cover image for Mexican American Baseball in Sacramento, isbn: 9781467102698

Del Mar Racetrack

9780738531465

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"Where the Turf Meets the Surf" entered horseracing lore after the 22nd District Agriculture Association (DAA) established a 241-acre fairground at Del Mar that included a stadium and one-mile oval racetrack in the 1930s. The venue gave an enterprising trio the impetus to bring thoroughbred racing to the San Diego County coast. The Del Mar Turf Club was led by Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby, Pat O'Brien, and Bill Quigley. A DAA contract to hold a 55-day annual racing season was secured, and on opening day, July 3, 1937, the velvet-voiced "Der Bingle" greeted the first patrons at the gate. Racing established the Del Mar name beyond California, but it was suspended in 1942 for World War II. The Marines moved in and the Del Mar Turf Club Aircraft Division formed to manufacture wing ribs for B-17s. Racing reopened in 1945 to continued success under the direction of Del Mar Thoroughbred Club president Joe Harper.

Mountain View

9780738531366

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Mountain View earned its name for its scenic vantage point
between the Santa Cruz and Diablo ranges. Founded as a stagecoach stop along the El Camino Real in 1852, Mountain View became a diverse and bountiful agricultural community in the "Valley of Heart's Delight." During the depths of the Depression, Bay Area citizens raised almost half a million dollars to purchase land north of town that was offered to the navy. The gamble paid off with the opening of Moffett Naval Air Station in 1933, inaugurating Mountain View's turn toward commercial and residential development. It was in an old apricot storage barn on San Antonio Road that William Shockley founded the first silicon manufacturing company in 1956, making it the true birthplace of the "Silicon Valley."

Rancho Santa Margarita

9780738580043

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Set in the foothills of the Santa Ana Mountains, Rancho Santa Margarita is a vibrant city with the unique quality of an urban village. Although incorporated on January 1, 2000, making it one of California's youngest cities, it has a rich and intriguing history that dates back to the origins of the Golden State. During the late 1800s, the original ranch covered 230,000 acres, making it one of the largest in the Southwest. With many never-before-seen images, this book captures the essence of this fascinating story of the city, including the Spanish expedition in the 1700s, the Mexican governance of the land, the ownership of the area by the O'Neill family, the ranch activities of the 1960s, and the building of city landmarks in the 1980s, including the development of the most scenic lake in Orange County.

Early Hayward

9780738529479

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The vibrant East Bay city of Hayward was named for William Hayward, a '49er and American squatter who endeared himself to Mexican landowner Guillermo Castro by making him a good pair of boots. With Castro's permission, William stayed to open Hayward's Hotel on what is now Main and A Streets. That fortuitous location, near the convergence of the eight tributaries forming San Lorenzo Creek, made the region a natural transportation hub between the bay and the fertile Livermore Valley. Stagecoach lines, a narrow-gauge railroad, and later modern transportation links encouraged more immigrants to settle. Today Hayward is a diverse city of almost 150,000 people, and home to a campus of the California State University.

Modern San Rafael:

9780738593074

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Modern San Rafael: 1940-2000 begins where the first volume, Early San Rafael, left off. San Rafael changed dramatically in the years following World War II, and in the 1950s, the gentle hills with roaming cattle gave way to housing developments and shopping centers. Expansion of the city into Terra Linda, Marinwood, and Santa Venetia provided housing for all the new residents. The population soared, and to keep pace, new schools, new streets, and new ideas expanded the size and ambience of the town. The new Marin County Civic Center designed by Frank Lloyd Wright became an instant architectural icon. Not everything changed, and some of the old town remains today, adding to San Rafael's charm. The vibrant downtown, the attractive streets with Victorian homes, and the beautiful landscape close to San Francisco Bay have been preserved. San Rafael is a place where the healthy outdoor lifestyle meets a busy center of cultural activity, and the result is a great place to live.

Growing Up in Burbank

9781625859860

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Life in Burbank during the '60s and '70s was an unparalleled experience. From biking Lucky Busters trail to enjoying movies at the Cornell Theater and shopping at The Akron, Burbankers' choices of entertainment seemed endless. Relive fond memories of dining out at Genio's, the Dip or Santoro's. Recall visits to the Golden Mall before heading home to watch Dark Shadows on television. While some of the local icons may have changed, the spirit has remained the same—and it's waiting to be rediscovered. Authors Wes Clark and Mike McDaniel guide you through their hometown and remember the fads, the hijinks and the places that made Burbank the place it is today.

Cover image for Growing Up in Burbank, isbn: 9781625859860

Redlands

9780738528830

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The home of sunshine, snow-capped mountains, and oranges, Redlands is the model city of the Southern California dream. Founded by two Easterners seeking "health, pleasure, and residence," this jewel of the Inland Empire grew to become the center of a worldwide citrus empire. Both navel oranges and visitors flourished in the warm, dry climate, each nourishing the wealth and philanthropy that would become the hallmark of Redlands. At the industry's zenith, more than two dozen packing houses shipped the golden fruit around the world. Money also grew in orange groves that carpeted the area. Citizens proudly watched as monuments, parks, homes, and buildings blossomed, beautifying the town and giving physical form to the generous local character. Through the years, a unique sense of philanthropy and community improvement, begun by the Smiley Brothers, proved infectious to the town spirit, and remains a guiding source of inspiration today.

Mono Lake Basin

9780738559094

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Mono Lake dominates the volcanic landscape east of the Sierra Nevada between Yosemite National Park and Nevada. The lake's unusual water chemistry produces algae and brine shrimp, feeding millions of birds and creating strange mineral formations called tufa, for which the lake is famed. From the early days of the Kuzedika Paiutes to the arrival of miners and settlers in the late 19th century, the lake has stood sentinel for the surrounding camps, mines, and towns. Around the lake, the town of Lee Vining has served travelers and residents since 1926, and Carson Camp has been a recreational destination for generations. Some of the world's earliest hydroelectric plants were established here, and Los Angeles began diverting streams and channeling their waters beneath the Mono Craters to the city's aqueduct in the 1940s. Impacts of those water diversions gradually became apparent, generating controversy around this otherwise placid landscape.

Sacramento's Chinatown

9780738580661

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Sacramento's Chinatown has played a central role in the history of the Chinese in America since the Gold Rush. It was named Yee Fow (Second City) by the early Chinese pioneers because it was the second stop by steamboat on the way to the gold country. In the 1960s, Sacramento's Chinatown, one of the oldest Chinatowns in America, was largely torn down by redevelopment, but today Chinese Americans in the capital city are planning a Yee Fow Center for History, Culture, and Trade as they seek to remember the past and look to the future.

Al Zampa and the Bay Area Bridges

9780738529967

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Most of the commuters who daily cross the Alfred Zampa Memorial Bridge do not know much about its namesake. Yet Alfred Zampa (1905-2000) lived a remarkable life that touched not only the bridge named in his honor, but many of the other bridges around the Bay Area. An active ironworker from 1925 on, he typified a worker who was hardy and tough, but with the skill to perform extremely precise work under hazardous conditions. He often worked hundreds of feet above the San Francisco Bay with only the spindliest of support, and he fell from the Golden Gate Bridge in 1936. Caught by the safety net, he became a charter member of the ultra-exclusive "Halfway to Hell" club. Zampa died at the age of 95, six weeks after attending the groundbreaking of his namesake Alfred Zampa Memorial Bridge, the only bridge named in honor of a building tradesman.
The Images of America series celebrates the history of neighborhoods, towns, and cities across the country. Using archival photographs, each title presents the distinctive stories from the past that shape the character of the community today. Arcadia is proud to play a part in the preservation of local heritage, making history available to all.

The Thacher School

9781467130691

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Sherman Day Thacher, a Yale-trained lawyer, moved west in 1887, intending to join his brother as an orange rancher in California's Ojai Valley. However, after accepting a request from a Yale colleague to tutor his nephew, Thacher's focus changed from cultivating oranges to cultivating young minds. His small educational enterprise eventually became The Thacher School. Combining unmatched academics with a unique horse and camping program, Thacher has prepared more than 5,000 young men and women to become contributing members of society at the local, state, and national levels since its founding in 1889. With an educational philosophy based around Sherman Thacher's precepts of "honor, fairness, kindness, and truth," The Thacher School continues to be recognized as one of the premier secondary schools in the country.

Crestline

9780738530833

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Before the word "resort" was applied to them, all the communities of the San Bernardino Mountains boasted a wild and woolly lumberjack lifestyle. But soon, efforts to take advantage of the clean air, alpine vistas, and winter snows of this region--just a few hours away from Los Angeles--led to a new kind of development. The town of Crestline, while possessing striking scenery, was also essential in the creation of Lake Arrowhead as the staging area for cement and supplies arriving to build Lake Arrowhead's dam. An outpost in the heart of the San Bernardino National Forest, today's Crestline is a year-round resort and residential community near the popular Lake Gregory, built during the Depression and now part of a county regional park.

Mount Tamalpais Scenic Railway

9780738559421

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A hundred years ago, high on the summit of Mount Tamalpais, stood a grand lodge with a breathtaking view. For 33 years, elegantly dressed men and women came to visit on the gritty steam trains of a famous twisting railroad known affectionately as the Crookedest Railroad in the World. They could dine, dance, and spend the night, and in the morning coast down the mountain in a gravity car. The Mount Tamalpais Scenic Railway had 281 curves in 8 1/5 miles. It had a branch into Muir Woods. It was built by business-minded conservationists in seven months in 1896 and climbed from a depot on the dirt streets of Mill Valley through a redwood forest and on to the rocky summit one-half mile above San Francisco Bay.

Ukiah

9780738570402

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Nestled in the Yokayo Valley, surrounded by coastal ranges, Ukiah officially became a town in 1859 when it broke away from being governed by Sonoma County. Spanish settlers put down roots through land grants and brought their rich culture to the area. Pomo Indians who lived in Ukiah wove baskets, which are collectors' items today throughout the world. Vichy Springs Resort, built in the mid-1800s on the outskirts of Ukiah, had many notable visitors, including Presidents Grant and Harrison, Mark Twain, Robert Lewis Stevenson, and Jack London. Today Ukiah is a city where people still ride their bicycles, and the high school has a homecoming parade before the big game. Farmers, ranchers, and vineyard owners work side by side. Summer months bring the annual Sunday in the Park free concerts, and the area is home to an active performing-arts community as well as several art galleries.

Grover Beach

9780738555966

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The city of Grover Beach is nestled in the dunes of the California coastline in San Luis Obispo County. In 1842, Jose Ortego received a Mexican land grant and made the first claim on the area. Ortego sold his 8,838 acres to Isaac Sparks in 1867, and Sparks later sold half to John Price. Price sold his share to Dwight William Grover for $22,982.20 in gold. By 1887, Grover had filed with the county and founded the Town of Grover. Developers John F. Beckett in 1892 and Horace V. Bagwell in 1935 followed. Growing gradually, the city incorporated in 1959, changed its name to Grover Beach in 1992, and received Amtrak rail service in 1996--a permanent connection to the surrounding communities and commerce. The city has come full circle, from D. W. Grover's dream to reality.

Lighthouses of Greater Los Angeles

9781609496197

$21.99 $16.49 Save 25%

Despite news of shipwrecks along California's dangerous coastline, a burgeoning maritime trade came to what would become the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. The shipping complex became the nation's busiest, in part because of the bright navigation lights that enabled reliable access for early vessels. In 1874, sister lighthouses Point Fermin and Point Hueneme were lit on the same day, followed by the Los Angeles Harbor Lighthouse in 1913. Nicknamed the Hollywood Lighthouse for its frequent use in movies, in 1926, Point Vicente was established to light the Palos Verdes Peninsula. Today, they are joined by the Anacapa Island Light Station, Long Beach Light and the private aid to navigation, Lions Lighthouse for Sight. Together with the U.S. Coast Guard, these historic beacons continue to illuminate and protect the coast of Greater Los Angeles. Join author Rose Castro-Bran as she explores their storied history.

Cover image for Lighthouses of Greater Los Angeles, isbn: 9781609496197

Early Livermore

9780738530994

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Englishman Robert Livermore jumped ship in Southern California in 1822, yet just 15 years later became the respected owner of the 40,000-acre Las Positas land grant. Here he built his new Californio wife an adobe house in 1839. The wealth that flowed into California during the gold rush allowed Livermore to import a two-story house around the Horn, but entrepreneurs and squatters flowed in as well. Nathaniel Patterson opened the first hotel in the old Livermore adobe, frequented by miners on their way from the South Bay to the Sierra gold mines. Laddsville, a village built where the roads to Stockton and Dublin met, was also a going concern until the Central Pacific pushed over the Altamont Pass. On this line grew the town founded by William Mendenhall in 1869, named for pioneer Livermore, who had died more than a decade earlier. Soon Livermore became the valley's commercial center for hay, wheat, barley, wine grapes, and ranching.

Calaveras Big Trees

9780738581187

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Augustus T. Dowd could scarcely believe his eyes when he stumbled upon one of nature's majestic wonders in 1852. Hunting down a wounded bear in the hills above the mining camp of Murphys, Dowd instead found a tree of mammoth proportions. After initial skepticism about the size of these trees, news of Dowd's discovery quickly spread. Local businessmen soon acquired the grove of 100 mammoth trees, or giant sequoia, and built accommodations for travelers. Thus began one of California's earliest tourist attractions in 1853. Dedicated as a California State Park in 1931, Calaveras Big Trees State Park hosts 250,000 annual visitors who come from around the world to marvel at these wondrous giants in their magnificent natural surroundings.

Mission Hills

9781467132688

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Several visionaries shaped the character that defines present-day Mission Hills. First, there was Sarah Miller, stepdaughter of Captain Johnston of the SS Orizaba. She inherited land from him and built a dream home overlooking Old Town and the Pacific Ocean. There was also Kate Sessions, the mother of Balboa Park, whose nursery growing grounds just outside the original Mission Hills subdivision proved difficult for her clientele to traverse, leading her to convince transportation mogul John D. Spreckles to expand the streetcar route to accommodate her business. In 1905, George Marston, a San Diego civic leader, commissioned landscape architect and urban planner John Nolan to implement a development plan for the city. Nolan's plan, however, was never adopted. In 1908, as if to prove what was possible, Marston's syndicate formed the restricted subdivision of Mission Hills. Then, in 1909, the city announced plans to celebrate the opening of the Panama Canal. The fuse was lit, and the boom that followed brought builders and skilled artisans to San Diego. As a result, Mission Hills became architecturally magnificent.

Torrance Airport

9780738546629

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Californians were panicked by the Pearl Harbor attack of December 7, 1941, and civilian flights within 200 miles of the coast were immediately terminated. Airfields were commandeered and new ones hastily built. One of these was the Lomita Flight Strip, known today as Zamperini Field, the Torrance Municipal Airport, or TOA. This 490-acre parcel sent four squadrons of P-38 fighter pilots off to war with one commanded by the judge of the Charles Manson trial, an ex-Flying Tiger. Six other pilots became generals, two became commandants of cadets at the Air Force Academy, and one became the only fighter pilot with combat victories in both World War II and the Vietnam War. Japanese Americans returning from World War II internment camps found temporary housing at the field, and the world's largest manufacturer of civilian helicopters settled there in 1973. The first runway takeoff of a Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) aircraft was pioneered at TOA, and aerobatic champ Bob Herendeen trained at the site.

Sacramento

9780738559001

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California's capital city, Sacramento, has played many roles over time, including Gold Rush boomtown, railroad terminus, regional industrial center, and seat of state government. These varied roles meant dramatic changes as the city grew outward and upward.

Tuolumne City

9780738589183

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Tuolumne City traces its history back to the historic Gold Rush of the mid-19th century. Founded in 1854, the town--first named Summersville, then changed to Carters in the 1880s before finally becoming Tuolumne in 1906--played host to one of the most prominent gold- and quartz-mining outposts in the region. When many of the more profitable camps along Turnback Creek and Tuolumne River began to wane, the industry of choice for Tuolumne shifted to timber, which would drive the town and shape its character for the greater part of the 20th century. The West Side Lumber Company harvested huge, lucrative stands of virgin pine, fir, and cedar, reaching deep into the forest alongside treacherous 40-degree to 60-degree curves and along a unique narrow gauge track. Tuolumne's lumber-rich past is celebrated to this day with the annual Lumber Jubilee.

Walnut

9780738595474

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The city of Walnut is approximately 8.9 square miles and is home to more than 32,000 people. It is primarily a residential community, but it has more than 600 businesses. The city has a rural charm that is preserved by a well-defined general plan. Nestled at the foot of the San Gabriel Mountains and approximately 22 miles east of Los Angeles at the junction of four counties--Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, and San Bernardino--Walnut is considered a bedroom community with rural charm and cultural diversity.

Marin County

9780738555713

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Marin County has long been known for its beautiful woodlands, seashores, and hills, but its towns, people, and architecture tell an equally compelling story. The largest of the Bay Area's nine counties, Marin has an amazingly varied makeup in both its populace and its natural setting. From the sparse, rocky seascapes and sandy beaches along the Point Reyes Peninsula, Bolinas, and Stinson Beach, to the suburban tracts of San Rafael, Corte Madera, and Novato, this county runs the gamut of California lifestyles and landscapes.

California's Lamson Murder Mystery

9781467136532

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On Memorial Day 1933, Stanford executive David Lamson found his wife, Allene, dead in their Palo Alto home. The only suspect, he became the face of California's most sensational murder trial of the century. After a judge sentenced him to hang at San Quentin, a team of Stanford colleagues stepped in to form the Lamson Defense Committee. The group included poets Yvor Winters and Janet Lewis, as well as the Sherlock Holmes of Berkeley, criminologist E.O. Heinrich. They managed to overturn the verdict and incite a series of heated retrials that gripped and divided the community. Was Lamson the victim of aggressive prosecutors, or was he a master of deception whose connections helped him get away with murder? Author and Stanford alum Tom Zaniello meticulously examines the details of a notorious case with a lingering legacy.

Cover image for California's Lamson Murder Mystery, isbn: 9781467136532

Crockett

9780738529141

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The small town of Crockett rests on the shore of the Carquinez Strait, a narrow shipping waterway running from San Francisco Bay into the Sacramento Delta region. Crockett's early history was heavily influenced by the shipping industry, and the shoreline was filled with warehouses and wharves. Twin cantilever bridges across the Carquinez Strait at Crockett distinguish the town's skyline from other ports in the area. A third span was recently added across the strait and named in honor of Crockett native Alfred Zampa. Much of Crockett's identity has been associated with the C&H sugar refinery, and for more than 50 years, Crockett was a devoted company town.

Cover image for Crockett, isbn: 9780738529141

Magalia to Stirling City

9780738530185

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The West Branch of the Feather River in northern Butte County was once a rich mining region. In 1859, an incredible 54-pound gold nugget washed from the flanks of Sawmill Peak, named for the ridge's other main industry, logging. An intricate web of stage roads, and later railroads, linked the little mining and lumber towns that dotted these peaks covered in giant white and ponderosa pine. Steam engines hauled huge logs to mills like the Diamond Match Company, crossing steep canyons on wooden trestles stretched to heart-stopping heights. Some early mining towns like Magalia (once known as Dogtown--site of the gargantuan nugget) and Stirling City, are still there. Others like Nimshew, Lovelock, Toadtown, Powellton, Chaparral, Coutelenc, and Inskip, are ghost towns, inhabiting only the photographs that memorialize their short heyday.

The Norconian Resort

9780738555591

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The Norconian Resort Supreme was a magnificent disaster. A chance discovery of "hot sulfur water" in 1926 led entrepreneur Rex Clark to construct one of the finest and most comprehensive recreation facilities on the West Coast. Movie stars, Olympic champions, and the richest of the rich flocked to it. Sadly the Norconian debuted just months before the onset of the Great Depression, and very quickly Rex Clark's $4.5-million dream became known as "Rex's Folly." The resort eventually became one of the preeminent naval hospitals in the nation, a top-secret think tank, and a medium-security prison.

Miraculously most of the original structures still exist. The old hotel, despite its placement on the National Register of Historic Places, has become a political hot potato and now sits languishing in the middle of the California Rehabilitation Center--abandoned yet stunning, with fabulous chandeliers, tile work, and breathtaking paintings still intact.

Half Moon Bay

9780738529639

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First dubbed San Benito and then "Spanishtown," Half Moon Bay is a coastside town with a long and intriguing story. Many know it for its lovely natural surroundings, quaint downtown architecture, and relaxed atmosphere, but not many people know that this town was the first to be established in San Mateo County as a result of 1840s land grants to early Spanish settlers. Isolated on the coast for a time, it became home to Mexican, Chilean, Italian, Portuguese, and other cultures after the 1850s, when roads finally reached over the mountains. During the 20th century, a wide variety of businesses thrived here, as people arrived by road, water, and even railroad. Farms, churches, schools, businesses, and homes sprang up, and the town modernized, though today's Half Moon Bay looks much like it did 100 years ago.

Willows

9780738580609

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Hot, thirsty range cattle led cowboys to a shady, spring-fed pond midway between the coastal and sierra foothills in Northern California. The area was referred to as "the Willows." It was a place no doubt well known to the native Wintun Indians long before white men came exploring. Settlers began buying up land at $4 an acre after the Gold Rush. Milton French was ranching to the west of town as early as 1857. In June 1876, Johnson and Hochheimer opened a general store. Daniel Zumwalt provided land to railroad magnate Charlie Crocker, who extended train service to the "the Willows" by 1878. Broad streets were laid out in an east-to-west orientation. The town was on its way to becoming the center of one of the most productive agricultural areas in the state, thanks to the development of deep-water wells and the building of canals.

Pasadena in Vintage Postcards

9780738508191

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The postcard has been a popular part of American communication for over a century, documenting both the interest of a place and its history. Captured here in nearly 200 vintage postcards is the unique history of this California town, translated in Chippewa as Crown of the Valley. The City of Pasadena, just north of Los Angeles, sits against the majesty of the Sierra Madre mountain range. Incorporated in 1885, the city was originally known as a resort city, filled with tourists from all over the world. Showcased here through the use of the author's personal postcard collection are vintage images of Millionaires Row, the Tournament of the Roses Parade, the Mt. Lowe Railway, and the Alpine Tavern.

Cover image for Pasadena in Vintage Postcards, isbn: 9780738508191

San Diego's Gaslamp Quarter

9780738528656

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Founded in 1850, San Diego's Gaslamp Quarter, located in what was then called New Town, became the bustling anchor of commerce for the developing City of San Diego. In this new history of the area, nearly 200 striking images tell the story of the area's early boom and bust, the saloons and bordellos of infamous Stingaree Town, the urban decay of the mid-twentieth century, and the rebirth and restoration of the neighborhood over the last 30 years.

Livermore

9780738596976

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Mid-century Livermore saw a demographic shift from farms and ranches to suburbanization and continuing support of the existing health care industry, New Deal programs, a naval airbase, and two national laboratories. The health care industry flourished with the dedication in 1925 of a veterans' hospital, which is still operational today; the Livermore Sanitarium for the treatment of alcoholism and mental disorders; and the Del Valle Sanitarium for the treatment of tuberculosis. During the 1930s, Livermore residents supported the Hetch Hetchy Project and numerous efforts of the Works Progress Administration. A naval airbase for training pilots was established in 1942, during World War II. This base became the Lawrence Livermore Radiation Laboratory in the 1950s and was soon accompanied by an extension of Sandia National Laboratories across the street.

Oakland Fire Department

9780738529684

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For over 150 years, brave firefighters have battled to preserve the lives and property of the citizens of Oakland. Beginning in 1853, volunteer engine and hook and ladder companies organized and the Oakland Fire Department formed in 1869. Until 1922, teams of magnificent horses pulled steamers belching black smoke and embers, with firemen holding on for dear life. These gallant fire horses were as much firefighters as the rugged men of Oakland who extinguished blazes with leather hoses and brass nozzles. After waging an internal battle of racial integration--a 35-year struggle that began in
1920--the Oakland Fire Department became one of the first in the nation to hire women firefighters beginning in 1980.

The Humboldt Wagon Road

9780738576435

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This book offers readers an opportunity to ride the historic Humboldt Wagon Road from Chico to Susanville through images that have been collected since the 1860s. Many never-before-published photographs and oral histories tell a story of people who established what has been called this "small corner of the West." In the 1850s, John Bidwell, a California pioneer, agriculturist, businessman, and politician, envisioned a freight and passenger route that would connect San Francisco, the Sacramento River, and his newly established community of Chico. He wanted it to cross the mountains to the gold and silver mines in Idaho and Nevada. Bidwell financed, constructed, and opened the road for horses, wagons, stagecoaches, and eventually trucks and automobiles. From the Civil War era until the present, the road has carried everything from lumber to tourists.

Lake Arrowhead

9780738547022

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Lake Arrowhead is Southern California's premier alpine resort located in the heart of the scenic San Bernardino Mountains. From the 1920s to the 1950s, the resort's "golden years" offered city-weary urbanites a sophisticated rural playground of camping, boating, golfing, horseback riding, hunting, fishing, luxurious lodging, and dining--all showcased here in many vintage images never before published. Taken from author Keller's private collection of postcards, this history of Lake Arrowhead offers a true window into the past with images and evocative postcard sentiments about this remarkable community.

Santa Monica in Vintage Postcards

9780738520551

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Santa Monica was founded in 1875 and by 1887, the area was caught up in the real estate frenzy of the time with advertisements suggesting that it had "one of the grandest panoramic views the human eye has ever rested on . . . " In over 200 vintage postcards, here is Santa Monica in all its coastal splendor, including views of the bathing beaches, the Roosevelt Highway, and private citizens' beautiful Chinese Gardens.

Legendary Locals of Fillmore

9781467101929

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Since its beginning as a Southern Pacific Railroad town 100 years ago, Fillmore has been the setting of many legends and true tales, like the St. Francis Dam disaster, the 1994 earthquake, and the Hollywood film shoots. Joaquin Murietta hid in the hills, and the story of the T. Wallace More murder in Rancho Sespe in 1877 was the murder of the century. Rancho Camulos, owned by the del Valle family until 1924, signifies the last of the Californios. Today, it is owned by the descendants of August Rubel. Tales of the sycamore tree abound, and it is an icon on Highway 126, as is the tower of the Sanitary Dairy, which was ordered from the Sears, Roebuck & Company in Chicago. Oil was discovered early in Shiells Canyon and brought Texaco to town. The fruit industry prospered, and Sunkist was welcomed. Hugh Warring installed indoor plumbing in the Piru Mansion. The likes of Booty Sanchez, Marcelino Woody Ybarra, Gene Wren, Kevin Gross, Jim Fauver, and Dorothy Shiells still influence the community.

Cover image for Legendary Locals of Fillmore, isbn: 9781467101929

Lemon Grove

9780738571935

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Lemon Grove dates to 1892 when it first appeared in the San Diego County records as Lemon Grove. The tiny, whistle-stop town emerged during the second gold rush, the rise of California's citrus industry, which was facilitated by the 1849 Gold Rush, the break up of the Mexican ranchos in Alta California, and the advent of statehood for California in 1850. Land speculators poured into California, lured by the exquisite climate, five growing seasons, and the possibilities for success in agriculture and business. Lemon Grove became home to gentlemen farmers from the East and Midwest, whose descendants live on in the community to this day.

Powerhouses of the Sierra Nevada

9780738547572

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The historic powerhouses of the Sierras have been powering much of California's growth for the past hundred years or so. Located in canyons where water can be dropped thousands of feet from ridges above, they were California's first source of electrical power. The oldest powerhouses were built by survivors of the original gold rush, who turned metalworking and pipe-fitting skills to the task of generating electricity. The resulting machines were curious amalgamations of steam valves, riveted pipes, waterwheels, and rudimentary electrical devices imported from the East Coast. These views show how miners chipped out a small ledge on a granite cliff hundreds of feet below Spaulding Lake dam to create an anchor point for a powerhouse that seems embedded in the rock itself. They also celebrate the genius of mining-camp tinkerer Lester Pelton, who, in 1880, invented a more efficient waterwheel capable of spinning a generator shaft at high speed. His invention bore his name, and the basic design is used to this day throughout the world.

Legendary Locals of Los Gatos

9781467101356

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In 1878, Charles Erskine Scott Wood, builder of the Cats Estate, wrote "Good citizens are the riches of a city." From its beginning, Los Gatos has suffered no shortage of hardworking, inventive, entrepreneurial, and gifted people. Early orchardists found the land unbelievably productive, but their crops were threatened with disease and pesky infestations of gophers. John Bean and Zephyr Macabee provided solutions. Louise Van Meter was an unconventional teacher who championed the new concept of kindergarten. Neta Snook Southern defied traditional female roles to become a pilot. She taught Amelia Earhart to fly before retiring to Los Gatos, where she raised prunes, apricots, and miniature horses. John Steinbeck wrote The Grapes of Wrath during one long, hot summer in town. Steve Wozniak settled in Los Gatos and donated computers to schools. The lives presented here have contributed to the sparkling legacy of the "Gem City of the Foothills."

Ocean Beach

9781467131988

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Ocean Beach, a neighborhood of San Diego, California, is known throughout the city, county, and beyond as a unique and quirky place with the feel of a small town, despite being a stone's throw from the center of a major metropolis. Founded in 1887 in a coastal area known for its beautiful cliffs and rock formations, Ocean Beach went through growing pains in the early 1900s before establishing itself as a family-oriented, self-contained beach community by the mid-1930s. Full of mom-and-pop stores and very walkable, Ocean Beach is a favorite destination for thousands of tourists and San Diegans each year.

Norco

9780738530352

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Norco's motto, "City Living in a Rural Atmosphere," is clearly reflected in this town where horses trot down the street next to cars and are frequently seen hitched up outside of local shops. In the late 1920s and 1930s, Norco was the home of the Norconian Club, an out-of-the-way hot spot for the Hollywood crowd. Built by city founder Rex B. Clark in 1928, the 900-acre luxury resort featured a 55-acre lake, hot sulfur spring, five-story hotel, casino, golf course, and a private airport. The club was sold in 1941 and eventually became the U.S. Naval Warfare Assessment Center, as well as the California Rehabilitation Center. The home of national rodeos and other premium equestrian activity, this unique community of more than 25,000 residents is tucked into Riverside County's southwestern corner and crisscrossed with 90 miles of horse trails. The archival photographs in this chronological compendium depict the founding, growth, and modern development of Norco.

Hermosa Beach

9780738547091

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Unlike most Los Angeles County beach communities, the City of Hermosa Beach owns its own beach. But perhaps more than most coastal Southern California destination cities, Hermosa Beach represents shared experience, detailed on thousands of postcards over the decades. This greater square mile of sand, surf, and sun has conjured cherished memories for fishermen, surfers, and volleyball players as well as jazz fans, diners and tavern celebrants, and simply lovers of the beach who found lifelong or short-term happiness in Hermosa. These postcards recall many bygone landmarks and changing lifestyles and celebrate the Hermosa Beach century (1907-2007).

Cemeteries of San Diego

9780738547145

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San Diego has a rich and unique cultural history that can be effectively told through the commemoration of its dead. Local cemeteries throughout the city reflect San Diego's multiethnic cultural dynamism and pinpoint marked shifts in power from Native American to Spanish to Mexican to American governance. They also reveal the current struggle for space in a burgeoning metropolis. Graveyards, with their individually detailed and hauntingly beautiful monuments, offer an unrivaled historic yet continuous glimpse at the essence of this diverse community. The story of San Diego's cemeteries is a telling narrative that offers remarkable insight into the evolution of "America's Finest City."

Brief History of Eastvale, A

9781609499501

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The vibrant and beloved community of Eastvale was once an agrarian paradise. Developed initially as ranchlands, this area tucked along the Santa Ana River was transformed by industrious farmers who produced alfalfa and other crops, raised poultry and eventually thrived as dairymen. Eastvale's latest agents of change, however, weren't cattlemen or farmers but real estate agents. Indeed, land developers saw the same potential in Eastvale as the initial ranchers did. Beginning in the 1990s, developers created charming homes and planned neighborhoods for former city dwellers eager to live in Riverside County. Despite the changes, the bucolic ambiance of the bygone era remains. Authors Loren P. Meissner and Kim Jarrell Johnson recount the dynamic changes, important people and exciting events that created Eastvale.

Baldwin Park

9780738574844

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Known as the Hub of the San Gabriel Valley due to its location as the geographic center of the valley, Baldwin Park formerly consisted of cattle-grazing lands for the San Gabriel Mission. Known as Vineland by 1880, and renamed after legendary investor and landowner Elias J. Lucky Baldwin in 1906, the city incorporated in 1956. Baldwin Park evolved as a diverse community along the San Gabriel River, where Ramona Boulevard and Maine Avenue became major thoroughfares. One of the city's thriving businesses was the very first of the famous In-N-Out Burger stands, opened by Harry and Esther Snyder in 1948, southwest of where Francisquito Avenue passes under Interstate 10. From the area's first schoolhouse at what became North Maine and Los Angeles Avenues through the award-winning adult school of the Baldwin Park Unified School District, pride in education has remained a Baldwin Park constant.

Cover image for Baldwin Park, isbn: 9780738574844

Santa Margarita

9781467133746

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Santa Margarita de Cortona was founded in 1775 as part of the original Spanish mission system. Its asistencia, in fact, has been considered a lost mission. Santa Margarita Ranch was later founded from a Mexican land grant. In 1889, the arrival of the Southern Pacific Railroad, with its terminus in Santa Margarita, created a boomtown with dance halls, blacksmiths, hotels, pool halls, saloons, and a jail. And with the popularity of auto travel half a century later, Santa Margarita was once again revitalized with garages, gas stations, motor inns, restaurants, and bars. It fell into a deep sleep, however, as Highway 101 bypassed the town in the mid-1950s. Landlocked by the 17,000-plus-acre Santa Margarita Ranch, the town has remained frozen in time until recently.

Cover image for Santa Margarita, isbn: 9781467133746

Camp Mather

9780738558479

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Since the 1920s, Camp Mather has beckoned to outdoor enthusiasts to come enjoy restful, carefree times in the Sierra. Bordering Yosemite National Park, Mather was established as a construction camp for laborers building the O'Shaughnessy Dam in the Hetch Hetchy Valley. The camp began welcoming San Franciscans after construction was completed and then, as now, offers a welcome respite from city life. Guests stay in employee cabins and swim in the lake near the site of a former sawmill. Horseback riding, hiking, swimming, and three-squares-a-day have long been hallmarks of the Mather experience. From its humble Hog Ranch beginnings through the Mather Station days, Camp Mather has been a cherished spot enjoyed by multiple generations of San Francisco families.

Early San Rafael

9780738559414

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The Coast Miwok and the early friars of Mission Dolores chose San Rafael both for its good weather and running streams, and the mission was named after the Archangel Raphael, the patron saint of bodily healing. When looking for a country estate, many wealthy San Franciscans sought the clean air and ideal weather here to escape the city's damp fog. San Rafael grew fast thereafter--it was the first city in Marin County to incorporate, the first to build a railroad, and the first to build a luxury hotel. San Rafael is the seat of county government, the center of commerce, and a cosmopolitan community in a natural setting. The dusty village of long ago was refined by fine schools and churches, the coming of the library, and by the ambitious efforts of the San Rafael Improvement Club. These early efforts made this a charming place to live, with Victorian homes, sylvan streets, and historic buildings in the business district. The pioneers would be pleased with the state of today's San Rafael.

San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Department

9780738575452

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Since 1850, the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Department has proudly served the community as the chief law enforcement agency. The office of sheriff was originally created by the California Constitution to meet the public safety needs of each county. From horseback to gigabit, the sheriff and his deputies have responded to the needs of the citizens by providing the highest quality of protection. While the manner in which service is delivered has changed significantly since 1850, the quality of protection has remained high throughout history and is chronicled in this unique portrayal.

Dana Point

9780738547329

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For two centuries before it was sculpted into a modern marina, the curve of the Pacific coast that is now Dana Point Harbor was a natural anchorage within Capistrano Bay for winddependent trading ships. Boston sailor Richard Henry Dana arrived on one and later described the site as "the only romantic spot in California" in his 1840 classic, Two Years Before the Mast. Situated halfway between San Diego and Los Angeles, Dana Point's rugged coves attracted mainly fishermen and surfers. Then in the 1920s, the marine terraces above the surf were carved into streets, but the community's development was stilled by the national financial crash of 1929. Now Dana Point has matured into a popular recreation and resort port, as well as a thriving residential city, while much of the natural beauty that inspired namesake Dana has been preserved.

Riverside in Vintage Postcards

9780738529783

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Riverside has been a vital center of agriculture and government throughout the growth of Southern California. Postcards sent from this city to those far away usually depict it as a resort, situated on the western edge of the Colorado Desert, where the historic Mission Inn has been a vacation destination for generations. Illustrating many facets of this world-renowned, garden-like gathering spot, these attractive images also showcase Riverside's Main Street, public buildings, parks, broad avenues, the sharply rising Mt. Rubidoux on the edge of town, and the influence of the citrus industry.

Hot Rodding in Santa Barbara County

9781467132183

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California's central coast was fertile ground for hot rodding, and all motor sports in general, during the 1940s and 1950s. Hot Rodding in Santa Barbara County takes the reader back in time with a collection of remarkable photographs from the earliest days of the hot rod movement. This book includes images of the first drag strips in the country, rough-and-tumble jalopy racing, early road-racing action, and lots of great hot rods and customs. Follow local hot-rodders as they take trips to El Mirage dry lake and the world-famous salt flats at Bonneville, Utah, and visit a long-lost world as seen through photographs taken from the personal albums of people who contributed to the birth of a culture that would spread across the nation.

Lafayette

9780738547558

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Today's Lafayette is a modern East Bay suburb with a long and intriguing history of people, agriculture, and commerce. The story began in the summer of 1846, when Elam Brown and 13 families left St. Joseph, Missouri, in wagon trains and embarked on a sixmonth journey west to establish new homes and lives. By February 1848, Brown and his family had purchased the Rancho Acalanes in Contra Costa County from a San Francisco financier and had established the settlement that would later became Lafayette. Gradually Brown sold his land to other settlers, and the community began to grow. Eventually homes, stores, roads, schools, and churches were built. In these pages, the genesis of Lafayette, along with the story of its creators and early residents, is revealed in stirring early imagery.

Lost Restaurants of Santa Cruz County

9781467143851

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Millions of people come to Santa Cruz every year to enjoy the beach and eat at one of the many popular restaurants. Favorite places have come and gone, but they haven't been forgotten. From the treasured Miramar Fish Grotto, in business for more than seventy years, to Nature's Harvest, local, seasonal food has always been a staple of this little slice of paradise. Food trends were embodied in places like the Wild Thyme Café and the Sāba Club alongside longtime fixtures such as the Tea Cup and Adolph's Italian Family Restaurant, catering to locals and tourists alike. Author Liz Pollock combines wonderful stories and classic cocktail recipes from bygone eras in this trip down memory lane.

Nicasio

9780738558028

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Situated in the geographic center of Marin County, Nicasio was home to the Coast Miwok village of Echatamal and likely named for a Tamal Indian and alcalde, Guequistabal, who was baptized as Nicasio at Mission Dolores in 1802. As European settlers arrived, many established themselves as dairy ranchers and timbermen. Soon a town square began to take shape, complete with a merchandise store, a butcher shop, two saloons, a racetrack, a livery stable, a Catholic church, and a luxurious three-story hotel. These pioneers aspired to make Nicasio the county seat, a bid that was ultimately lost by a single vote in 1863. The land reserved for civic buildings was repurposed as a baseball diamond, which at one time hosted semipro games and continues to serve local little leaguers. The Rancho Nicasio now stands in place of the hotel, yet the town otherwise appears untarnished by time. Not surprisingly, a number of residents have roots tracing back to Nicasio's founders, with newcomers drawn to its pastoral charm and a lifestyle in deep contrast to that of nearby San Francisco.

Madera

9780738529844

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Madera almost didn't exist. In 1876 there was nothing where this thriving city now stands, but the California Lumber Company was looking for a western terminus for its massive logging flume under construction. Prompted by a deal from early landowners, the company chose this spot and put up a temporary boardinghouse for its workers. Soon
the town was platted out, lots were sold, and the city grew as the completed flume began to bring in lumber from the hills, meeting the railroad. Hotels, stores, a post office, and citizens followed, making Madera (Spanish for "lumber") an important place of business, life, and leisure. In 1893, the city became the county seat of the newly minted Madera County, and structures continued to spring up along Yosemite Boulevard and beyond. The flume is gone now, but Madera owes its existence to early logging.

Redwood Valley

9781467134507

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Redwood Valley was named after the majestic redwood groves between Road M and Calpella. Prior to 1857, the Pomo Indians occupied the valley along with grizzly bears, mountain lions, and eagles. The valley became a melting pot of nationalities, with people coming into it from Italy, Germany, Scotland, and Finland. They plowed the land, herded their flocks, harvested their crops, and established unique industries. The early pioneers set the tone for the valley community with their ambitions and hard-work ethic. Together, they paid for and supported schools, churches, an improvement club, the grange, fire and water districts, post offices, agricultural improvements, and stores. The infamous People's Temple was located here. Redwood Valley's 150-plus years of recorded history is rich in what it takes to make a valley into a community.

Chinatown and China City in Los Angeles

9780738581651

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By 1900, the Chinese population of Los Angeles City and County had grown to over 3,000 residents who were primarily situated around an enclave called Old Chinatown. When Old Chinatown was razed to build Union Station, Chinese business owners led by Peter SooHoo Sr. purchased land a few blocks north of downtown to build New Chinatown. Both New Chinatown and another enclave called China City opened in 1938, but China City ultimately closed down after a series of fires.

Wilmington

9780738556109

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The Port of Los Angeles neighborhood of Wilmington was included in the 1784 Spanish land grant of Rancho San Pedro and was known as New San Pedro from 1858 to 1863, when it became the city of Wilmington. It was named by "Father of the Harbor" Phineas Banning after his Delaware birthplace. The City of Los Angeles annexed Wilmington in 1909, and today it and neighboring San Pedro form the waterfront of one of the world's largest import/export centers. Wilson College, precursor to the University of Southern California, opened here in 1874 as the first coeducational college west of the Mississippi. Entrepreneur and sportsman William Wrigley built innovative housing in Wilmington that was dubbed the "Court of Nations." From the Union Army's Drum Barracks headquarters of the Southwest in the Civil War to the port's myriad maritime activities during World War II, Wilmington has long-standing ties to the U.S. military.

Newport Beach

9780738530345

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Of all the West Coast communities lapped by the Pacific Ocean, Newport Beach has stood for generations as the epitome of seaside affluence. Its beaches, harbor, yacht clubs, surfing spots, restaurants, and other playground attributes give it the outward appearance of a carefree vacationer's paradise. That truth coexists with another, that Newport Beach has also been a workaday town with traditional businesses. The more than 200 images compiled for this handsome representation of Newport Beach illustrate both the resort aspects that have made the city a worldwide favorite and the building-block businesses that have kept it a viable family community. That's why many corporate and Hollywood giants, such as John Wayne, have called Newport Beach home.

Apple Valley

9780738547497

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From its earliest days, the entrepreneurs who created Apple Valley found treasure lying beneath its surface of sand. Just two years after gold was discovered in neighboring Holcomb Valley, the Homestead Act of 1862 ushered in a new population to Apple Valley. Max F. Ihmsen, publisher of the Los Angeles Examiner newspaper, moved to the area in 1915 and made his fortune in apple farming. News of his great success spread quickly, enticing a steady migration of Southern California residents to relocate to the nearby desert. The rich and famous, as well as the colorful and inspired, flocked to Apple Valley. Clark Gable, Carol Lombard, Gregory Peck, and Joe Louis all visited area guest ranches. Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis, Desi Arnaz, and Roy Rogers frequented celebrityrich parties at the Apple Valley Inn. In less than 100 years, Apple Valley earned itself a unique reputation in Hollywood history and became suburban America to many famous residents.

Old Torrance Olmsted District

9780738530659

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The City of Torrance anchors Los Angeles County's South Bay area and is known widely as a "headquarters city" for corporate giants Exxon Mobil, Nissan, Honda, and others. Yet the city's unique history often gets glossed over. "Downtown Torrance," also known as "Old Torrance" and the "Olmsted Districts," was laid out in 1912 by Frederick Law Olmsted Jr., the influential urban-designer son of the "Father of Landscape Architecture," F. L. Olmsted Sr. The town founder and patriarch, Jared Sidney Torrance, gave Olmsted Jr. the imperative to create a unique industrial city. The results are in the streets, buildings, and parks between Western Avenue and Crenshaw Boulevard, north of today's Plaza Del Amo and south of Dominguez Way. Some structures in this district were designed by renowned architect Irving Gill, including the Southern Pacific Railroad Bridge and the Pacific Electric Railway depot.

Indian Valley

9780738558363

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It is estimated that Indian Valley in Plumas County was inhabited by the Maidu people for 10,000 years. It was then and is still a beautiful valley, surrounded by lush forests and flowing rivers. Pioneer Peter Lassen was the first white man to see its beauty. The Gold Rush caused the first population boom, and towns sprang up around the valley. Huge copper finds, in later years, increased the valley's population once again and brought in the railroad. After the mining started to fade there were many farmers, ranchers, and loggers working to replace the jobs lost from the mines closing. Today Indian Valley is home to several picturesque towns such as Taylorsville, Greenville, and Crescent Mills.

Los Angeles Railway Yellow Cars

9780738547916

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Local rail-borne transit in Los Angeles began with horsecars in 1874, evolving with cable-powered and later electric-powered passenger vehicles. "Yellow Cars" describes the principal local transit system in and around Los Angeles in the first half of the 20th century. The canary-colored local streetcars formed the inner-neighborhood lines between a vast rail network of main lines known as the "interurban" system, primarily the Pacific Electric Railway "Red Cars," which spiderwebbed throughout Los Angeles County and into Orange, Riverside, and San Bernardino Counties. Rail tycoon Henry Edwards Huntington consolidated several independent lines into this great interurban empire. He sold it in 1910 to the Southern Pacific Railroad, keeping the Los Angeles Railway Yellow Cars. These evocative photographs illustrate travel during decades of change, progress, economic setbacks, war, and postwar retrenchment, when streetcar service was taken over by bus lines.

San Francisco

9780738580852

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The golden age of postcards coincided with several momentous events in San Francisco history, including a major earthquake and fire destroying over one third of the city, rapid reconstruction, strikes, political upheaval, parades, festivals, and a world's fair. From World War I through World War II, jazz-age San Francisco experienced a building boom of houses, skyscrapers, and engineering marvels such as the Bay Bridge and Golden Gate Bridge, creating a marvelous Bay Area landscape documented on thousands of ubiquitous, inexpensive picture postcards popular with both visiting tourists and local residents.

The 1960 Winter Olympics

9781467130141

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The 1960 Olympic Winter Games were a long-shot effort that succeeded beyond the wildest expectations. Working in a sparsely populated valley in the Sierra Nevada with only rudimentary facilities, organizers created a world-class Olympic site in four short years. For the only time in Olympic history, the venues and athlete residence halls were located in a compact, intimate setting that encouraged sportsmanship and interaction between athletes. There was elaborate pageantry in the ceremonies and decorations. The underdog American ice hockey team won the first-ever USA gold medal in that sport. American figure skaters swept gold in the individual events. Well-trained Soviet and Scandinavian athletes dominated the speed skating and cross-country skiing events. American women proved their mettle in the Alpine skiing events. German skiers made surprise upsets in the Nordic combined and ski jumping contests. And CBS-TV was there to capture the most exciting moments and make groundbreaking live broadcasts to American audiences.

Pacifica

9780738580425

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Pacifica and its coast, once envisioned as a string of resorts, casinos, and vacation cottages in place of artichoke fields, was overlooked after the failure of the Ocean Shore Railroad in 1920. Demand for reasonably priced housing revived the boom, and Pacifica was incorporated in 1957.

Banning

9780738529929

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Comings and goings in Banning often amounted to coming and going. Located in the San Gorgonio Pass between Mt. San Gorgonio and Mt. San Jacinto, the city was once a way station for stagecoach travelers, as well as a midway rest stop for motorists making the trip between Riverside and Palm Springs. The headquarters crews that built the Colorado River Aqueduct made longer stopovers. Gen. George S. Patton Jr. bivouacked his tanks in the deserts east of Banning to train prior to their deployment in North Africa's Sahara to fight the Second World War. But many stayed in Banning, too, and ranched the badlands; grew almonds, peaches, and other crops; built plants to dry the fruit and manufacture plastic goods; and generally stuck around "the pass," making it much more than just a place in the rearview mirror.

San Ramon Chronicles

9781467118439

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Though a relatively young city, San Ramon has history stretching back to California's founding. Ohlone Indians first inhabited the area before rancheros grazed the land more than a century ago. Drawn by the Gold Rush, pioneers and prospectors settled the place promoters labeled a "Garden of Eden." Diversified farming of the valley, full of orchards and plentiful fields, sustained the rural population. Sitting in the shadow of historic Mount Diablo, San Ramon is a growing city recognized for its extraordinary parks, schools and active citizenry. Local author Beverly Lane brings to life San Ramon's vibrant past.

Corona

9780738546728

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More lemons once were shipped from Corona than anywhere on Earth, as a dozen citrus packing houses were located along the railroad tracks in this rural Riverside County enclave known for its circular boulevard and hard-working inhabitants. The postcards collected for this trip down Corona's memory lane reflect its six decades of citrus-industry dominance and portray the past in street scenes, commerce, ranches, schools, churches, homes, and the outlying resorts of Glen Ivy and the Norconian Club. The Corona Road Races-spectacular national affairs in 1913, 1914, and 1916-are also depicted.

Los Angeles's Koreatown

9780738575520

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Koreatown, located in the Mid-Wilshire district of Los Angeles, is the heart and nexus for Koreans in America. In the early 20th century, a small Korean community--many of whom were active leaders and supporters of the Korean independence movement--initially settled around Bunker Hill. The community migrated in the 1930s toward Jefferson Boulevard, near the University of Southern California, to an area known as Old Koreatown. By the late 1960s, following the freeway construction boom and the Hart-Cellar Act of 1965, Korean markets, restaurants, and businesses began to blossom along Olympic Boulevard. Today, Koreatown is a thriving urban center where Koreans, Hispanics, and Bangladeshis coreside in one of the most densely populated and diverse sections of Los Angeles. Its boundaries were officially designated by the Los Angeles City Council on August 20, 2010.

The Dams of Western San Diego County

9781467127219

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The unreliability of the San Diego River compelled the Franciscan fathers to construct the area's first dam in 1813 to conserve drinking and irrigation water for the Mission San Diego de Alcalá. This water-driven circumstance continued and expanded in the ensuing American era. Lacking a reliable water source at the turn of the 20th century, San Diego County was destined to experience modest growth. The region's semiarid conditions, cyclical droughts, and existing river systems determined that the only effective way to maintain a ready water supply was to conserve runoff and river floodwaters behind dam-created reservoirs. Between 1888 and 1934, private and municipal interests constructed a series of massive structures that made San Diego County the dam-building center of the world. The county featured some of America's first multiple arch dams and earliest hydraulic fill dams. Into the mid-1940s, dammed reservoirs remained the principle water source for county consumers and made the municipal expansion of the city of San Diego possible.

Cover image for The Dams of Western San Diego County, isbn: 9781467127219

Central Americans in Los Angeles

9780738571638

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The second-largest Latino-immigrant group in Los Angeles after Mexicans, Central Americans have become a remarkable presence in city neighborhoods, with colorful festivals, flags adorning cars, community organizations, as well as vibrant ethnic businesses. The people from Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama living in Los Angeles share many cultural and historical commonalities, such as language, politics, religion, and perilous migratory paths as well as future challenges. The distinctions are also evident as ethnicities, music, and food create a healthy diversity throughout residential locations in Los Angeles. During the 1980s and 1990s, an unprecedented number of new Central Americans arrived in this cosmopolitan city, many for economic reasons while others were escaping political turmoil in their native countries. Today they are part of the ethnic layers that shape the local population. Central Americans have embraced Los Angeles as home and, in doing so, transported their rich heritage and customs to the streets of this multicultural metropolis.

Early Universal City

9780738570235

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Known as much today for its theme park, Universal City is also the largest and the longest continuously operating movie studio in "Hollywood." The Universal Film Manufacturing Company was formed by a dozen independent producers in 1912, and Universal City was designed to provide a single facility in which to make their films. Since its official opening on March 15, 1915, Universal City has served as a training ground for great directors such as John Ford, William Wyler, and James Whale and as home to stars like Hoot Gibson, Deanna Durbin, Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, Lon Chaney Sr. and Jr., and Tom Mix. This evocative volume explores the studio that brought The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923), The Phantom of the Opera (1925), All Quiet on the Western Front (1930), Dracula (1930), Frankenstein (1931), and 100 Men and a Girl (1936) to the screen.

Mexican Americans in Redondo Beach and Hermosa Beach

9780738546995

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The century-old presence of Mexican Americans in Redondo Beach and Hermosa Beach is an important, colorful part of the history of Los Angeles County's South Bay region. This evocative pictorial history documents the ways in which this group left significant marks on the economic, agricultural, academic, religious, professional, and governmental fabric of both communities. World War II heroes, star athletes, lawyers, professors, teachers, city councilmen, a judge, an astrophysicist, and many other professionals have come from this heritage. The first known Mexican American in Redondo Beach was Mauro Gonzales, who arrived in 1900 to unload ships at the city's old wooden pier. He was followed in 1910 by Domingo Moreno, who fostered 12 children, and Mauricio Colin, who had 13, after they escaped the Mexican Revolution. They initiated a large and vibrant Mexican American community, one that has virtually been ignored by conventional histories.

California State Park Rangers

9780738559933

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The first park ranger in the world was appointed in California in 1866. Galen Clark was chosen as "Guardian of Yosemite," at what was then Yosemite State Park, and the concept of rangers to protect and administer America's great nature parks was born. The tradition continued in 1872 with the establishment of the first national park at Yellowstone. From the earliest days, park rangers have been romanticized; they are explorers, outdoorsmen, tree lovers, animal protectors, police officers, nature guides, and park administrators. The park ranger has become an American icon, whose revered image has maintained itself to this very day.

Mojave Desert

9780738588872

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It is a desert like no other, stretching from the eastern outskirts of Los Angeles across the width of Southern California and into parts of Arizona, Nevada, and Utah. The Mojave Desert's attractions include Death Valley, the Joshua Tree National Park, the Mojave National Preserve, Las Vegas, Hoover Dam, Lake Mead, the Colorado River, Palm Springs, the Cabazon Dinosaurs, Calico Ghost Town, and dozens of Route 66 landmarks. It is the most spectacular desert on Earth, and it draws more tourists each year than all other deserts of the world combined. Mojave Desert is the first book of its kind, using rare and vintage postcards to provide a pictorial, historical grand tour of this American wonderland.

Grand Central Air Terminal

9780738546827

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From 1923, when it was known as the Glendale Airport, to the World War II era, when the military took it over, Grand Central Air Terminal was the main commercial airport serving Southern California and the ancestral home of what became Convair (General Dynamics) and Hughes Aircraft. The first scheduled transcontinental passenger service was flown out of Grand Central by Charles Lindbergh, with Amelia Earhart among the passengers. Grand Central had the first paved runway west of the Rocky Mountains, and was a terminal for Pickwick, TWA, American, and Pan Am's Mexican subsidiary. After Pearl Harbor, commercial operations ceased and the Army Air Corps turned Grand Central into a training center and a key element in the air defenses for Los Angeles when a Japanese invasion seemed imminent.

The Orange County Fair: A History of Celebration

9781626198029

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The Orange County Fair is one of Southern California's most anticipated summer events. From its first year in 1890 with a few livestock exhibits and horse races, the fair evolved into what is now a month-long extravaganza of rides, games and entertainment that still celebrates the importance of local agriculture. Millions of visitors have crowded the grounds over the years to enjoy the spectacle of everything from ostrich races and demolition derbies to its unique Centennial Farm and the time-honored All-Alaskan pig race. Author Chris Epting recounts more than a century of community history and revelry at the OC Fair.