Cheryl Anne Stapp

As early as 1850, San Francisco was firmly established as California’s premier commercial center, and its port the greatest maritime...

For almost 70 years in the 19th century, San Francisco contained a unique criminal district which was the scene of much viciousness and...

San Francisco’s infamous Barbary Coast began as Sydney-Town as early as mid-1849, so named for the glut of escaped or released men from...

When he died October 1, 1876, James Lick was the wealthiest man in California. From his deathbed in Lick House—the sumptuous San...

Sometimes strong bonds of affection develop between members of the animal kingdom. A case in point is the 1855 story of Nevada City...

Ever since the westward migration of the 1840s and 1850s brought dogs in large numbers to California, stray and abandoned animals have...

History books rarely say anything about it, but the pioneers who trekked overland in the 1840s seeking a better life in the West brought...

In days long ago, San Francisco had a horrific stray dog problem as hordes of scrapping, feral mutts roamed the city unrestrained. Most...

This year, the California State Fair—touted as the State Fair & Food Festival—runs from July 14 through July 30. As in past years, the...

It was supposed to be the realization of a dream: a dynamic new town laid out on a low bluff overlooking the Sacramento River, where a...

We call them Aphorisms: those pointed, succinct, pithy observations through which we express a truth or general wisdom of what is, not...

There have been citrus groves in California since the late 18th century, when the Spanish mission-builders brought seeds with them from...

The self-proclaimed Norton I, Emperor of the United States and Protector of Mexico, was a colorful citizen of San Francisco from the...

Hubert Howe Bancroft is one of the most famous names in western America, as the man who became one of the first important and respected...

The intrepid individuals who traveled 2,000 miles overland from the Missouri frontier to California in the 1840s had very few waystations...

There were no animals of any kind on the rocky island when explorer Sebastian Vizcaino stopped there in 1602, naming it Santa Catalina in...

Within a few months, the 1848 gold discovery turned pastoral California into a hotbed of mining and commercial activity. Seemingly...

This gemstone—rarer than diamonds—is only found in San Benito County, California. Sometimes called the “blue diamond,” Benitoite...

In 1849, California’s Gold Rush population, statewide, was 92% male. As reported in the Eastern press, the state of affairs in that...

The mighty smith of folklore was the blacksmith, who worked with iron and steel and whose hammer wielded more force than his fellow...