Santa Cruz County History Articles

On March 10, the Pajaro River flooded the small agricultural town on its banks. Professor Dustin Mulvaney traces the turbulent history of the Central Coast’s second largest watershed.

Shopping malls revolutionized how Americans shopped, socialized, and lived. Now, malls face an uncertain future. How did the dream of a new town square go so wrong?

America has become a mostly suburban country, and California is known for its sprawling ’burbs. But what is a suburb? It turns out California may not be as suburban as people believe.

Gayle and Joe Ortiz’s scratch-made pastries have been a hit with locals and tourists from the beginning

The Capitola restaurant has been treating diners like family for over 50 years

Silicon Valley has been hit with repeated boom and bust cycles throughout its history, and layoffs are sweeping the tech industry in 2023. Here's why the Valley will survive the latest downturn, as it has all the others.

Black History Month provides an opportunity to remember the achievements of African Americans who fought for equality in the Golden State.

During January’s destructive storms, environmental studies professor Dustin Mulvaney created a concise, riveting timeline of the San Lorenzo River.

By Julie Horner A new book is available at the San Lorenzo Valley Museum: "When the Mission Bells Rang" by Dr. Judith Scott, illustrated by Lydia Gibson and in consultation with the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band. Written for children as …

For nearly 15 years, Lisa Robinson has had her hand in the development and trajectory of the San Lorenzo Valley Museum.  With two locations—one in Boulder Creek and the other in Felton—Robinson oversees both venues and works closely with her …

2022 was a year that needed a lot of explaining. And California Local was there. Here are our 10 most important explanatory journalism stories from the year gone by, from immigration to cryptocurrency to wealth inequality and more.

From its early days of hard-charging, Jewish immigrant moguls to today's domination by megacorporations, here's how Hollywood continues to hold its place as one of California's most important industries.

California is the most American of all states, both setting the direction for the rest of the country, and acting as a mirror of what the U.S. is today. Here’s why, and how it got that way.

Jolly Annual Flash Mob Kicks off the Season with a *Hic!* By Julie Horner Brigit Zent has always been someone who dresses up. “My dad was a reenactor. He did mountain man reenactments and then Civil War.” A member of …

David Schmaltz outlines a pivotal point in California history in his Monterey County Weekly cover story on the Battle of Natividad.

California's government was born out of utter chaos. Here's how the state developed some sort of order to the way it operates, and how it makes and enforces laws.

Trustees vote in favor of changing the Aptos community college’s name

California is full of places and communities, but most are not cities. Here's what it takes for a community to become a city, the benefits of being one—and why the state has a 'de facto moratorium' on new cities.

One of Santa Cruz's iconic natural spots transformed forever in one night

By Lucia MacLean Around 2005 or so, I was given a set of keys to Alba School and declared its docent by a prominent member of the Alba School Community. It was with the idea that I would go through …