Statewide Region Local History News Articles

Elections & Politics History

San Francisco Set to Apologize to Black Residents for ‘Systemic Racism’

02/16/2024
Members of the board gathered to put forward a resolution that takes responsibility for the history of discrimination against Black San Franciscans.

From Los Angeles Times...

Art, Culture & Media History

Was L.A.’s Ellen Beach Yaw the Proto-Taylor Swift?

02/05/2024
She toured the world wowing audiences, and she captured the public’s imagination for decades. No, not Taylor Swift; Ellen Beach Yaw, also known as Lark Ellen.

From Los Angeles Times...

Art, Culture & Media History

James Dean Made His Last Stop at This Lonely Gas Station

02/01/2024
James Dean’s last stop before he died in a car crash was at Blackwell’s Corner, a gas station in rural Kern County. His memory isn’t the draw it once was.

From SF Gate...

Animals History

New ‘Toothless’ Walrus Discovered Along California Coast

02/01/2024
An extinct species of walrus was unearthed in Santa Cruz County, evoking a time when California was teeming with odd creatures that feel closer to fantasy than reality, researchers said.

From Los Angeles Times...

Elections & Politics History State of California

California Lawmakers Unveiled 14 Reparations Bills. None Call for Cash Payments

01/31/2024
The California Legislative Black Caucus released a list of 14 bills as a first set of reparations for the descendants of African Americans who were enslaved.

From CalMatters...

Elections & Politics History State of California

‘Just the Beginning’: California Reparations Backers Applaud Bills, Even Without Big Cash Payouts

01/31/2024
Lawmakers introduced a package of bills designed to tackle some forms of reparations. The measures may face budget constraints and opposition.

From SFGate...

Business, Economy & Jobs History

Iconic California Restaurant Closes Without Warning

01/10/2024
Pea Soup Andersen’s, a Buellton, Calif., restaurant just shy of its 100th birthday, closed suddenly. The restaurant's other location, near Interstate 5 in Santa Nella, remains open.

From Los Angeles Times...

Art & Culture Business, Economy & Jobs History

Ignacio E. Lozano Jr., Longtime La Opinión Publisher, Dies at 96

12/28/2023
Under him, the newspaper expanded from focusing largely on foreign news to covering local issues important to Latinos that the English-language media ignored or misinterpreted.

From CalMatters...

Art & Culture Public Safety History Crime & Justice Government

American Graffiti is Back: Cruising Now Legal Again in California, But So Are Speed Cameras

12/27/2023
Under new state laws, five cities will test cameras to catch speeding drivers and cruising bans will be lifted statewide. The first is supposed to improve road safety, but critics of the second say it will endanger the public.

From CalMatters...

Art & Culture History Community Service & Support Government

California Presses Universities to Return Thousands of Native American Remains and Artifacts to Local Tribes

12/25/2023
State audits of the University of California and the California State University found both systems have failed to comply with decades-old state and federal laws mandating the return of Native ancestral remains and cultural artifacts. Only UCLA and Cal State Long Beach have returned a majority of their collections.

From SFGate...

Environment Land Use & Development Water History

Tribe Acquires Vast Land in Northern California, Will Remove Dams

12/21/2023
The Hoopa Valley Tribe announced it is acquiring about 10,000 acres of land in Northern California for $14.1 million. As part of this, the tribe will remove dams along the Klamath River and restore salmon runs.

California Local Pin Marker From California Local...

Elections & Politics History Government

Kevin McCarthy: A Look Back

12/17/2023
Image for display with article titled Kevin McCarthy: Looking Back on the Career of California’s Once Powerful Congressional Republican

Image for display with article titled Kevin McCarthy: Looking Back on the Career of California’s Once Powerful Congressional Republican

The Bakersfield Republican’s rapid rise to power began with a winning lottery ticket.

From The New York Times...

Water History Sustainability

Who Gets the Water in California? Whoever Gets There First.

12/14/2023
Water fights have shaped California since its infancy as a state, when its abundance seemed limitless. Now, Californians are being forced to confront limitations, and the state that prides itself on creating the future is now reckoning with its past.

California Local Pin Marker From California Local...

Elections & Politics History Government

Why Gov. Newsom Can’t Fill McCarthy’s Seat

12/10/2023
Image for display with article titled Why Gov. Newsom Can’t Appoint Kevin McCarthy’s Replacement

U.S. Constitution spells out different procedures for naming new members of House and Senate

California Local Pin Marker From California Local...

Education Elections & Politics History Government

How California Works: An Editors' Note

12/07/2023
Image for display with article titled How California Works: an Editors' Note

True stories about how, at its best, California has resisted and pushed back against anti-democratic forces. The histories and policies, deeply human characters, and controversies that have led us to where we are today.

From SFGate...

Land Use & Development History

Native American Tribe to Get Back 40 Acres of Land from State

12/06/2023
The Fort Independence Indian Community is getting the Mount Whitney Fish Hatchery from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife at no cost in 2024. Native Americans had lived on this land for centuries before the hatchery’s construction.

From CalMatters...

COVID-19 Elections & Politics History Government

California vs. Florida: Need-to-Know Facts About the Rival States Ahead of Newsom-DeSantis Showdown

11/28/2023
Political wonks in California, Florida and maybe a few states in between, will be glued to their screens Thursday night to watch Gov. Gavin Newsom and Gov. Ron Desantis square off in a highly-anticipated Blue vs. Red State debate that’s been brewing since the summer.

From SFGate...

History

Hundreds to Gather at Alcatraz at Sunrise on Thanksgiving

11/22/2023
Hundreds of people are expected at Alcatraz on Thanksgiving morning to commemorate Native Americans occupying the island from 1969-71. The event is known as the Indigenous Peoples Sunrise Gathering.

California Local Pin Marker From California Local...

Land Use & Development History

The Near-Ghost Town in the Desert

11/13/2023
Image for display with article titled California City: The Near-Ghost Town in the Desert

A massive grid for California City is laid out in the Southern California desert, with just 15,000 residents

California Local Pin Marker From California Local...

History

Building on the Past

11/10/2023
Image for display with article titled Talking to Someone Who’s Helped Preserve Los Angeles

Outgoing head of Los Angeles Conservancy talks to New York Times

Statewide Region Local News: History