California Dreamin’ ~Charlene, Margaret, Tanya

State Trivia Logo 03.25.14

Some cool facts about our glorious Golden State!

In 1818, French Argentine corsair Hippolyte de Bouchard raided our coast and earned himself the title of our only pirate! (Pirata Buchar). Among his misdeeds, he raised the Argentine flag in Monterey in November and plundered the San Juan Capistrano Mission, about 375 miles south, on December 16, 1818.

Pirate

 

The Point Arena smokestack lighthouse opened in 1870 and stands 115 feet high. It’s about 129 miles north of San Francisco. (Tanya has climbed to the top and lives to tell the tale.)

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Speaking of the San Juan Capistrano and Argentina, the mission was founded on All Saints Day (November 1) in 1776 by the Franciscan order. Ever since, faithful little birds, the cliff swallows, return to the area every year on March 19, St. Joseph’s Day, after wintering in Argentina.

Air Force One, the Boeing 707 SAM 27000 that served each president from Richard Nixon to George W. Bush, was dismantled after its last slight on August 29, 2001, and now can be visited and even walked through at the Ronald Reagan Library in Simi Valley!

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California produces 17 million gallons of wine each year and produces more than 300,000 tons of grapes annually. (yum!)

Since it opened in 1937, the Golden Gate Bridge has seen more than 1,200 people plunge 220 feet to their deaths in San Francisco Bay.

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California is the home of many cool inventions including blue jeans, the boysenberry, the pill, white zinfandel wine, the square tomato, natural soda, the computer “mouse,” the wetsuit, theme parks and Chinese cookies.

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One out of every eight Americans is from California

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California is one of only five states that does not have an official residence for the governor.

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California has more than 10,000 earthquakes a year.  Fortunately, most are too small to be felt.

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If you have turkey for Christmas or Thanksgiving chances are it came from California, which raises more turkeys than any other state.

 

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California is home to “the happiest place on earth.”A commercial artist-cartoonist, Walter Elias “Walt” Disney opened Disneyland in Anaheim, California.  Walt Disney followed his dream and created a family friendly theme park and the dream became reality in 1955 after years of planning and construction, Walt Disney opened his theme amusement park, calling it Disneyland.  During 2010, over 15.8 million guests visited Disneyland, dubbed “the happiest place on Earth”.

 

Disney

California is also home to two American League (AL), and three National League (NL) baseball franchises. Northern California is represented by the San Francisco Giants (NL) and the Oakland Athletics (AL), who play home games at “AT&T Park” and the “Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum”, respectively. Southern California is represented by the Los Angeles Dodgers (NL), and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (AL), playing their home games at “Dodger Stadium” and “Angel Stadium of Anaheim”, respectively. In the southernmost portion of the state, the San Diego Padres (NL) play in “Petco Park”.

 

Faced with rapid growth due to the Gold Rush, California got a boost when the United States  Congress allowed it to jump straight to full statehood without going through the formal territory process most other states went through. Congress accepted California as a free-labor state under the Compromise of 1850 on September 9, 1850.

Built in 1852, the Iron Door Saloon in Groveland is the oldest saloon in California.

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The tallest tree in the world, at 369 feet, is in Humboldt Redwoods State Park.

 

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The Palm Springs Aerial Tramway is the largest vertical cable rise in the United States and the second largest in the world.

 

San Francisco Cable cars are the only mobile National Monuments.

 

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Thank you for joining us on our cyber-tour today!

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22 thoughts on “California Dreamin’ ~Charlene, Margaret, Tanya”

  1. Thanks Girls! I thoroughly enjoyed this post as I thoroughly enjoy California when I visit. Many of the places mentioned, I have had the pleasure of visiting. In fact, what better place to visit on my 50th birthday than “the happiest place on earth, Disneyland!”

  2. Hi Melanie, welcome th the golden state LOL.,Disneyland is just about my favorite place…we go often. My two year old grandson loves “tea” ( teacups) and pirates of the Caribbean. So glad you enjoy your visit here and the sites. It’s always good to see you at Wilfdlower junction???thanks for the post.

  3. Thanks for all the interesting tidbits. We lived in the Sacramento area for 2 years and were able to visit a bit of the state, but there is still more I’d like to explore.

  4. Hi Melanie, what a great way to spend your 50th. I love Disneyland but now that the grandkiddies are older, we don’t go quite as often. Thank you for stopping by! Take care.

  5. Hi Janine, I hope you do visit us soon. We have a lot to offer. Within an hour’s drive you can be at the beach, the mountains, the desert, the country or stuck in traffic. What more could you want?

  6. Hi Patricia, I LOVE Sacramento. Despite being a native Californian, I didn’t make it to our state capitol until recently, blush. Old Town was amazing, as was the Capital Building and the firefighter memorial. I loved The City of Trees. Thanks for stopping by today.

  7. Hi Tanya:
    Thanks for all of the tidbits. I love this state. It has a bit of everything doesn’t it? I spent a lot of years in Los Angeles, but now love living in the desert. So much beauty in this state.

  8. I’m proud to say I’m from California! My parents still live in the home I grew up in. I love my hometown and wish I could visit it more often. I’ve lived in various places around the world but California will always be “home” for me! Enjoyed your post, ladies!

  9. Hi Roben, I love the desert, too, have spent many vacations in Palm Springs. I’m more north central of LA and it’s less crowded, works better for me LOL. Miss you.

  10. You guys forgot the best part of California–Beyond the Sierra to INYO County. The highest point of Mt Whitney and the lowest point, Death Valley! This is my home and the BEST part of the State. That’s OK. I’ll forgive. LOL

  11. I have never been to California but I think I would like to. I think everyone when there during the Gold Rush days.

  12. Howdy Quilt Lady, I’ve been to a couple of gold mines and the gold country in Southern California (Holcomb Valley) but definitely want to explore “Highway 49” up north. Thanks for posting today.

  13. Goodness gracious, that is a ton of interesting info on CA! Not so nice about the Golden Gate Bridge. 🙁
    Thanks for sharing!

  14. I’ve been to California once in my life when I was ten to visit family that had moved there. We drove through the big Redwood tree and swam in Lake Shasta and the rest of my family went hunting for snakes but I had no part in that.

  15. A nice state to visit. I understand your taxes are really high. The earthquakes would prevent me from living there, that’s scary.

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