Last updated on June 19th, 2024
61. There is a Volkswagen car graveyard in California. The automotive giant had to buy back its vehicles worth billions of dollars after the emission scandal it faced.
62. Santa Barbara is arguably one of the cities in California with the best climate. With its conducive nature, you can only compare it with few regions in California. We are talking of approximately 283 sunny days in a year, 36 rainy days, and limited winter lows that go up to 40 when worst. The perfections explain the reasons for expensive homes.
63. Sonoma County, California, is famous for a very different reason. That is because of the famous Windows Bliss wallpaper, which is, in reality, an unedited photo of the green hills and the blue sky of that area.
64. Colma is a small town in California where the dead outnumbered the living about a thousand to one. It’s also why the town got its nickname’ The City of the Silent.’
65. Napa and Sonoma County are the regions that are most famous for their world-class wines. It has extensive vineyards that stretch far across the region. Their Chardonnays, Merlots, and Pinot Noir are enjoyed by wine lovers worldwide in many countries.
66. California has another ghost town in the Mojave Desert known as Darwin. What is strange about this town is that it has a population of about 74 people, and they are all citizens.
67. The northern part of CA is home to the iconic Golden Gate Bridge, the hills of San Francisco, and the state’s capital Sacramento.
68. Did you know the Golden Bridge is not really golden? It is painted in international orange to make it easier to spot during foggy times, and it is not red like some people claim.
69. With over 80 parks in Oakland city and beyond that gives refreshing mood and the iconic photographic joints, there is a guarantee of exploring the city to a greater extent. Again, the Oakland Museum will help you learn a lot about the city.
70. A place where the weary traveler can come to rest is the balmy beaches of California. The Palm State Beach near the Pajaro River Mouth near Monterey Bay is but one of the many.
71. According to research conducted by Wallethub, California emerged as the most fun state to visit in America followed by Florida, New York, Washington, Colorado, Nevada, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Oregon, and Texas. Check out the full list
72. Did you know that Steve Jobs the legendary co-founder of Apple Computers, hated license plates and never used one on his cars? He would lease a new Mercedes-Benz SL 55 AMG every six months. The law in California allowed owners a grace period of six months before they had to get a license plate.
73. Daniel Kish, born 1966 in Montebello, California, the president of the World Access for the Blind, is an American expert in human echolocation. He has the ability to detect objects the size of a softball. He can also differentiate the size, texture, density and the position of the object. He does this by producing a sound with his tongue against the roof of his mouth which creates a kind of clicking sound. This click helps him with echolocation.
74. Kimberly Anyadike is a pilot from Compton, California. In 2009, at the age of 15, she became the youngest African American woman to complete a transcontinental flight across the United States, from Los Angeles, CA to Newport News, Virginia.
75. Arnold Schwarzenegger became the governor of California on October 07, 2003.
76. The world’s oldest male bodybuilder Jim Arrington is from Venice, California. He was born in 1932 and has been bodybuilding for the past 70 years.
77. In 2016, Dominic Devine, 10, was bitten by a venomous snake in Lake Mathews, California. And the treatment cost him $350,000, thanks to the expensive antivenom. Todd Fassler, one year earlier, was billed $153,000 for the treatment of a snake bite by a rattlesnake while attempting to take a selfie with it.
78. Alex Honnold, born in Sacramento, CA is an American rock climber. He is best known for his free-solo ascents of big walls. On June 3, 2017, he became the first free solo climber of Yosemite’s 3,000-foot El Capitan wall.
79. Did you know that an activist named Julia Butterfly Hill ascended a thousand-year-old redwood tree in California in December 1997 and remained there for a period of next two years until her demands were met? If you are guessing what she was demanding, learn that she was against the harvesting of the old redwood trees in the Headwaters Forest of Humboldt County.
80. Pauline Potter from Sacramento, California is the world’s heaviest woman alive. She weighed 643 lbs. at the time of setting this world record in 2011. That time she was 47 years old.
81. The Bear Flag Revolt took place during June and July 1846 when American settlers revolted against the Mexican government. They took control of Garrison Sonoma and hoisted a white bear flag.
82. About 1,500 men from California volunteered in 1862 to help fight the Confederates at the beginning of the Civil War. They marched east to confront the rebels who had already moved into Texas.
83. When the land became very crowded in 1912, San Francisco decided to outlaw burials. At the eviction of the dead, all bodies were moved to a neighboring city to be laid to rest there.
84. While California was part of the Mexican territory, Alta California, many Americans immigrated illegally from the US to this part of the world. At that time, the area was largely undeveloped and provided many opportunities.
85. More people live in California than in many other countries around the world. That is because of the vast population growth through migration caused by the remarkable progress of this state in the US.
86. California has three of the top ten most populous cities– Los Angeles, San Diego and San Jose.
87. On April 18, 1906, an earthquake hit California which resulted in the death of nearly 3000 people and a loss of over $500 million in property damages.
88. In March 2018, a California Judge ruled that coffee companies must provide a cancer warning because of the presence of a cancer-causing chemical produced in the roasting process.
89. Due to Thomas Edison’s inventions, many movie makers were forced to bring their trade to California. That was because of the way his patents restricted how and who could use his inventions for making films.
90. Slavery was why California nearly split in two shortly after it received statehood. The issue resolved itself during the outbreak of the Civil War and was never discussed again.
91. Every state in the US has a motto; the California state motto is a single word that means ‘I Have Found It.’ The motto is Eureka, and has been since 1963.
92. The official California state flower is the California Poppy, and it has been since 1903. The poppy represents the discovery of gold in the state and the Golden Gate.
93. Everybody knows that California is big on surfing, but did you know it is also the official sport of this state? There is also an official surfing day in California on September 20.
94. The Official state ghost town of California is Bodie. It was designated a Historic Landmark in 1961, and about 170 original buildings from the gold rush are still standing.
95. The California Gray Whale was designated as the State Marine Mammal in 1975. It measures 40 to 50 feet in length and weighs between 30 to 40 tons. The whale travels along to coast towards south during December and February and returns back through the same coastline during March and April.
The whale travels in small groups called pods. Some of these whales swim more than 12,000 miles round-trip. Due to their good memory and vision, they are able to cover such a vast amount of distance successfully.
96. The Dog head or Dogface butterfly is one of the most prominent butterflies in California and is named like that because of its poodle-like silhouette. It is also the official California state butterfly.
97. Grizzly Bears were tracked and hunted during the gold rush in California, and the last bear was shot in 1922. It is sad because Grizzly bears used to thrive in this state. The California grizzly bear (state animal) is now extinct.
98. The last Grizzly bear at that point was in captivity and was used as the model for the one that appeared on the California state flag. They say that William Randolph Hearst captured it.
99. The Grizzly bear is one of the state’s most notable symbols. It is found on both the state flag and seal. It was designated as the official state animal in 1953.
100. Interestingly, more Turkeys are raised in California than in any other state in the U.S.
101. The San Francisco garter snake is endemic to California and is not found anywhere else in the world. The snake species can only be found in the San Francisco peninsula and nearby areas.
California – quick facts and state symbols
| State Abbreviation | CA |
|---|---|
| State Capital | Sacramento List Of 50 U.S. States And Their Capital |
| Largest City | Los Angeles |
| State Size | Total (Land + Water): 163,696 sq miles; Land Only: 155,959 sq miles |
| Population | 38,965,193 (Estimate July 1, 2023 from United States Census Bureau) |
| Statehood | September 9, 1850 |
| State rank by population | 1st |
| State rank by date of formation | 31st |
| State rank by area | 3rd |
| Number of Counties | 58 Complete list of 50 states and number of counties in each |
| Demonym | Californian |
| Bordering States | Arizona, Nevada, Oregon |
| Official Language | English |
| Highest Point | Mount Whitney, 14,505 ft (4,421.0 m) |
| Lowest point | Badwater Basin −282 ft (−86.0 m) |
| Mean elevation | 2,900 feet above sea level |
| Length | 770 miles (1,240 km) |
| Width | 250 miles (400 km) |
| National Parks | Channel Islands National Park Death Valley National Park Joshua Tree National Park Kings Canyon National Park Lassen Volcanic National Park Redwood National Park Sequoia National Park Yosemite National Park |
| Governor | Gavin Newsom (D) |
| Lieutenant Governor | Eleni Kounalakis (D) |
| Electoral Votes | 55 |
| High school graduate or higher, percent of persons age 25 years+, 2012-2016 | 82.1% |
| Foreign born persons, percent, 2012-2016 | 27.0% |
| Persons per household, 2012-2016 | 2.95 |
| Mean travel time to work (minutes), workers age 16 years+, 2012-2016 | 28.4 |
| Median gross rent, 2012-2016 | $1,297 |
| State Motto | Eureka (I have found it) |
| State Nickname | El Dorado State Golden State Golden West Grape State Land of Milk and Honey Sunshine State |
| % Water | 4.7 |
| Nobel Prize Winners | Thomas C. Schelling (Economic Sciences, 2005) Andrew Z. Fire (Physiology or Medicine, 2006) Elinor Ostrom (Economic Sciences, 2009) Carol W. Greider (Physiology or Medicine, 2009) Thomas J. Sargent (Economic Sciences, 2011) William E. Moerner (Chemistry, 2014)Joseph Erlanger (Physiology or Medicine, 1944) Edwin M. McMillan (Chemistry, 1951) Willis E. Lamb (Physics, 1955) Owen Chamberlain (Physics, 1959) John Steinbeck (Literature, 1962)Luis Alvarez (Physics, 1968) Dudley R. Herschbach (Chemistry, 1986) Robert B. Laughlin (Physics, 1998) Eric Cornell (Physics, 2001) Leland Hartwell (Physiology or Medicine, 2001) |
| State Folk Dance | Square dance |
| State Dance | West Coast swing dance |
| State Song | "I Love You, California" |
| State Prehistoric Artifact | Chipped stone bear |
| State Mineral | Gold |
| State Lichen | Lace lichen |
| State Bird | California Valley Quail |
| State Animal | California grizzly bear |
| State Flower | Golden poppy |
| State Fossil | Saber-toothed cat |
| State Gemstone | Benitoite |
| State Gold Rush Ghost Town | Bodie |
| State Marine Mammal | California gray whale |
| State Historical Society | California Historical Society |
| State Tree | California redwood and sequoia |
| State Fish | Golden trout |
| State Military Museum | California State Military Museum |
| State Insect | California dogface butterfly |
| State Grass | Purple needlegrass |
| State Marine Reptile | Pacific leatherback sea turtle |
| State Rock | Serpentine |
| State Tall Ship | The Californian |
| State Soil | San Joaquin Soil |
| State Silver Rush Ghost Town | Calico |
| State Vietnam Veterans Memorial | California Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Sacramento's Capitol Park |
| State Reptile | Desert tortoise |
| State Marine Fish | Garibaldi |
| State Amphibian | California red-legged frog |
| State Fruit | Avocado |
| Nut | Almond |
| Vegetable | Artichoke |
| Longitude | 114°8′ W to 124°26′ W |
| Latitude | 32°32′ N to 42° N |
| Time Zone | Pacific Time Zone |
| Website | www.ca.gov |
| Area Codes | 209, 213, 310, 323, 341, 369, 408, 415, 424, 442, 510, 530, 559, 562, 619, 626, 627, 628, 650, 657, 661, 669, 707, 714, 747, 752, 760, 764, 805, 818, 831, 858, 909, 916, 925, 935, 949, 951 |
| Last updated | July 1, 2024 |
Facts about Sacramento (Capital of California)
Sacramento, is the seat and the largest city of Sacramento County. Sacramento is famous for its tech industry, fresh farm crops and many other things alike.
1. Sacramento is located on the confluence of the Sacramento River and the American River.
2. Sacramento is named after the Sacramento River, which is the largest river in California. The river itself was named the river Rio de los Sacramentos in 1808, by the Spanish explorer Gabriel Moraga.[42]
3. By population, Sacramento is the ninth largest capital city in the United States and the sixth largest city in California.
4. Maidu (North American Indians) were the early inhabitants of the region.
5. John Sutter, a Swiss national, after leaving Switzerland due to financial crises, arrived in California in 1839 and persuaded the Mexican governor to grant him lands on the Sacramento River. There he established the colony of New Helvetica which later became Sacramento.
However, the discovery of gold on his land by a carpenter named James W. Marshall brought some bad luck for the Swiss. When the news about the discovery of gold broke out, the colony was deserted by workers and gold seekers alike, and his goods and livestock were stolen and destroyed. Eventually when the U.S. court denied him title to his Mexican grants, he went bankrupt.
6. The discovery of gold nuggets in the Sacramento Valley in early 1848 which sparked the California Gold Rush, lead to the extraction of gold worth nearly $2 billion. With the spread of the news, prospective gold miners started travelling towards the land. Before the gold rush, the non-native population of California was less than 1,000 and by the end of 1849, the number changed to 100,000 and more. More than 75,000 pounds of gold was extracted by the miners during the California Gold Rush.
Sacramento on the map
7. The city got incorporated in 1850, making it the oldest incorporated city in California. It also witnessed Gold Rush which helped it position itself as a major commercial center and distribution point for northern California.
8. Based in Sacramento, the Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team, which is the only team in the major professional North American sports leagues located in Sacramento.
9. The Pony Express, the mail delivery service that used a relay system of horse mounted riders, originated in Sacramento in 1860. The delivery service carrying messages, newspapers, and mails, operated between Sacramento and Missouri. However, it only lasted for 18 months before going bankrupt because of the establishment of faster telegraph services.
10. The city has various interesting nicknames including; The Big Tomato, Camellia Capital of the World, City of Trees, and Sactown. The Sacramento Valley was once nicknamed the “inland sea.”
11. Time magazine once named Sacramento “America’s Most Diverse City.”
12. Sacramento is known as the nation’s “Farm To Fork Capital” and has the largest certified farmers market in California. Since 2013, the city also celebrates “Farm To Fork Festival” every year. The aim of the festival is to connect people with the farmers, ranchers, vintners, brewers and chefs.[40]
13. Did you know that one of Sacramento’s nickname “the Big Tomato” came out because of the fact that the city was once a shipping hub for the delicious red fruit. The state once hosted many tomato canneries as well.
14. Sacramento has more trees per capita than any other city in the world. And there are many benefits of having plenty of trees in the city including improved air quality, lowered temperatures and a calming effect on drivers. Sacramentans even have a 40-year plan to double the city’s tree canopy. That’s inspiring, isn’t it! Another city that has plenty of trees is Paris, France. They say that Paris has 1 tree for every 10 people.
15. Sacramento is the fastest growing city in California.
16. Blue Diamond Growers, headquartered in Sacramento, California, is the world’s largest almond processors and marketers. Starting its operation in 1910, the plant today has more than 50% of California almond growers as its members. The processing plant in Sacramento spans 90 acres.
17. The Sacramento Zoo, also known as the “little zoo in the park” started operating on June 2, 1927, with a mere collection of 40 animals including deer, raccoons, monkeys and birds on an area spanning some 4.2 acre. In 1965, the zoo began charging twenty-five cents as admission fee.
18. Did you know that in 1850 and in 1861 the city of Sacramento was flooded? And while there was a thriving underground network of tunnels, they had to be shut down due to flooding and over the years, many of these underground spaces have been filled or destroyed by subsequent development.
19. Mark Spitz, the Olympic gold medal winner trained at the age of nine at Arden Hills Swim Club in Sacramento, California. He is most known for winning 7 gold medals in 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich. He won all the medals in world record time. Interestingly, it took 36 years for a fellow American named Michael Phelps to break his record after he won eight gold medals at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China. Mark Spitz once said, “If you fail to prepare, you’re prepared to fail.”
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