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Santa Cruz County History Overview



California Local Pin Marker Get To Know A Group

The society’s mission is to preserve the history of the San Lorenzo Valley by exhibiting artifacts at the San Lorenzo Valley Museum, gathering historical information, and providing educational outreach programs.

California Local Pin Marker Local History Digest

Ocean Pacific Founder Remembered for Influence on Surf Culture

03/22/2023

OP was the staple brand for the California surfer in the '70s and '80s, known for its iconic corduroy shorts. But the brand went beyond fashion.

Santa Cruz County Gets First Medical Residency Program

03/09/2023

Dominican Hospital is planning to train an inaugural class of eight residents in a program lasting three years.

California Local Pin Marker Recent Articles

San Lorenzo Valley Post logo LOCAL NEWS
A Visit with the Last Private Owners of Quail Hollow Ranch

Harry and Maude Owen – Quail Hollow Ranch 1957 to 1974  By Richard James and Jim Bahn In November of 1957, Hayward, California rancher Harry Owen and his wife, Maude, purchased Quail Hollow Ranch from Sunset Magazine owner Larry Lane. …

Image caption: Detail from a photo tweeted by the city of Watsonville warning residents about the impending atmospheric river storm.
Behind the Levee Breach

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.

Image caption: The future of malls looks like one where the rich get richer while lower-end malls simply die out.
Mall Culture and the American Dream

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?

Image caption: Suburbia has become a defining feature of the California landscape. But what does the word really mean?
How the Suburbs Shaped America, and California Shaped the Suburbs

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.

Good Times logo LOCAL NEWS
Gayle’s Bakery & Rosticceria Turns 45

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

Good Times logo LOCAL NEWS
El Toro Bravo Rocks Sizzling Enchiladas

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

Image caption: Google is just one of dozens of tech companies announcing major layoffs in 2022 and 2023.
Silicon Valley Boom and Bust: Why California’s Tech Mecca Always Survives

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.

Image caption: Dianne Feinstein began her career in government six years before current Gov. Gavin Newsom was born.
Dianne Feinstein ‘Charted Own Path’ in Legendary Career

Dianne Feinstein, California's longtime senior U.S. Senator, has announced she will end a legendary career in public life that began in 1961 and took off amidst the turbulent, violent era of San Francisco in the 1970s.

Image caption: Clockwise from upper right: Architect Paul R. Williams, Assemblyman Frederick Madison Roberts, abolitionist Mary Ellen Pleasant, and Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley (with President Gerald Ford).
California Pioneers

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

Image caption: A view of the San Lorenzo River from the Soquel Avenue Bridge—which fared better in this storm than in 1982, when it collapsed.
Flowing Through History

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

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