History Image

Monterey County History Overview



California Local Pin Marker Get To Know A Group

A self-described “living field guide to the California Central Coast,” the Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History has been teaching visitors about Monterey Bay ecosystems since 1883.

California Local Pin Marker Local History Digest

California’s Wildfire Smoke and Climate Change: 4 Things You Need to Know

09/04/2023

California wildfires every year emit as much carbon as almost 2 million cars, posing a threat to efforts to battle climate change.

Ancient Fires Drove Large Mammals Extinct, Study Suggests

08/17/2023

In a new study published Aug. 17 in the journal Science, fossil records at La Brea Tar Pits indicate that the disappearance of California’s sabertooth cats, dire wolves and other large mammals nearly 13,000 years ago was linked to rising temperatures and fire activity spurred by people.

California Local Pin Marker Recent Articles

Good Times logo LOCAL NEWS
Going Out On Top

After 33 years as Artistic Director of The Monterey Jazz Festival, Santa Cruz’s Timothy Jackson is stepping back, but not before one more world class explosion of sounds on September 22-24. The Monterey Jazz Festival is known as one of …

Monterey County Weekly logo LOCAL NEWS
Monterey County Board of Supervisors commits to a celebration of Bracero history.

Celia Jiménez here, thinking about the legacy our ancestors left behind and how the decisions they made shaped where we are today.

Image caption: New legislation will impose penalties on local school boards that ban books for covering issues of diversity.
New California Bill Slaps Back at School Book Bans

California will penalize school boards that ban books based on inclusion of certain groups under a bill the governor is expected to sign into law. But some fear unintended consequences.

Monterey County Weekly logo LOCAL NEWS
Lou Calcagno, a lifelong dairyman and longtime Monterey County supervisor, dies at 87.

Lou Calcagno was first and foremost a dairyman, raising cows in Moss Landing. He was born on the family dairy along Elkhorn Slough in 1936, and he died there on Thursday, Aug. 31. He married his high school sweetheart, Carol…

Salinas Valley Tribune logo LOCAL NEWS
Monterey County supervisors to honor original Bracero workers

MONTEREY COUNTY — Monterey County Supervisors Luis Alejo and Chris Lopez will be conducting a special honoring of living Bracero workers who reside in Monterey County at the Sept. 12 Board of Supervisors meeting in Salinas as part of the …

Monterey County Weekly logo LOCAL NEWS
Former county supervisor and longtime dairyman Lou Calcagno dies at 87.

Lou Calcagno was first and foremost a dairyman, raising cows in Moss Landing. He was born on the family dairy along Elkhorn Slough, and he died there on Thursday, Aug. 31, at age 87. He married his high school sweetheart,…

Image caption: Disney’s planned community of Celebration in Florida is far from Walt Disney’s earlier vision of a utopian city.
Solano County Planned City Latest in a California Tradition

Silicon Valley billionaires want to create a new city in Solano County. How have planned cities fared in California? From Lakewood to Irvine to Disney’s new Cotino, there have been many.

Image caption: One of four hydroelectric dams on the Klamath River targeted for demolition.
Dam Demolition Gets Going. Can Klamath River be Saved?

As four aging hydroelectric dams are demolished, tribes and communities along the Klamath River wait anxiously to see what the future holds. “Once a river is dammed, is it damned forever?” experts ask.

Image caption: A 1911 production of “Twelfth Night” at the Forest Theater.
Arts History

Performing arts centers, galleries, theater troupes, music festivals—here are 20 reasons why the Monterey Bay is a haven for arts lovers.

Image caption: Since the Gold Rush era, land reclamation has cost California 90 percent of its wetlands.
How Land Reclamation Hurts California’s Environment

Since the Gold Rush era, land reclamation projects have helped to build California, but they are also damaging the state’s environment for people, plants and animals by eliminating essential wetlands.

Upcoming Meetings & Events
California Local Pin Marker
Historic Resources Committee Meeting
Wednesday September 27 2023   3:00 PM

Select Facebook Feed From Menu