History
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Nov- 2022 -17 November
How Skiing Down Volcanoes Became a Time-Honored Tradition in Northern California
Volcanoes are the kind of geological formations that tend to inspire awe. Towering above everything else, they seem like a…
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14 November
The Legend of Old Shavehead – The Lassen Native American Known for Murdering Samuel Burney
As written in the book California’s Best Fly Fishing Old Shavehead. Photo: California State University, Chico While geologists estimate that…
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6 November
The Bizarre Story of the Horse that Summited Mount Shasta in 1903
Photo by Sebastien Goldberg Who isn’t fascinated with standing on top of NorCal’s premier active volcano, the formidable Mt. Shasta?…
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Oct- 2022 -27 October
The Legends and Mysteries of Siskiyou County
Photo by Marco Bicca It’s well documented that the areas surrounding Mount Shasta are full of legends and mysteries. From paranormal…
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26 October
Remembering the Deadly 75-Foot Tidal Wave that Leveled Crescent City in 1964
Beginning in Northern California and running all the way up to Alaska in the Pacific Ocean sits multiple fault lines…
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17 October
The Literary Titans of Northern California – Part 2
Northern California has always attracted creative superstars, and the list of famous writers who either come from NorCal or spent…
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17 October
Five Northern California Destinations Being Considered for Federal Historical Designation
Fort Ross Landing Historical and Archaeological District The California State Historical Resources Commission will hold a virtual meeting next Friday,…
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10 October
The Fascinating History of Redding Rancheria
The Wintu Tribe of Northern California When I am outdoors visiting our beautiful NorCal landmarks, curiosity always slips into my head…
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10 October
The Mystery Behind the Sunken World War II ‘Ghost Boat’ on Shasta Lake
Photo: U.S. Forest Service There have been plenty of historic structures revealed on Shasta Lake during severe drought. With multiple…
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10 October
This Popular Northern California Destination was Once the Scene of a Bloody Battle in 1855
Photo by Brandon DesJarlais We know Castle Crags as the beautiful Northern California wilderness area settled just between Shasta Lake and…
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5 October
Take this Hike to See Ancient Petroglyphs in Northern California
In the Lava Beds National Monument sits a wall of stone with petroglyphs that are dated as far back as…
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4 October
An Oral History of the Cantara Chemical Spill on the Sacramento River
Northern California is no stranger to disasters. Over time we’ve lived through earthquakes, volcanos, firenados, floods, mudslides and avalanches. Would…
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4 October
72 Bars on One Road? The Legend of Mount Shasta’s Whiskey Row
The stories of Siskiyou County during the Gold Rush are like something out of a Wild West movie. The town…
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Sep- 2022 -28 September
Remembering President JFK’s Trip to Northern California Just Weeks Before His Assassination
On November 22, 1963, President John Fitzgerald Kennedy was assassinated as his motorcade drove through Dallas, Texas. Less than two…
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18 September
Meet the Mount Shasta Lizard: The Largest Known Marine Reptile to Ever Live on Earth
Illustration of what the Shastasaurus could look like In 1893, Stanford University’s James Perrin Smith went of a fossil-collecting expedition…
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18 September
Grizzly Bears Once Ruled California. Here’s Why They No Longer Roam the State.
Photo by Zden?k Machá?ek Why does the California State Flag feature an extinct animal, the California grizzly bear, a beast so…
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13 September
The Yosemite Camping Trip that Changed America
I call it a successful camping trip if I don’t forget the mosquito repellant and a roll of TP. But…
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7 September
How John Muir Almost Died on the Slopes of Mount Shasta
Many people take the slopes of Mount Shasta for granted. You may see images of people from all over the…
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Aug- 2022 -29 August
A History Behind Shasta Dam’s Essential Role in California Water
In 1938, thousands of hardworking people arrived in rural Shasta County to build a dam and a dream. Shasta Dam…
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28 August
The Adventures of Mark Twain in Northern California
People dream of coming to California to become the next Meryl Streep or Tom Hanks, but hardly the “father of…
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1 August
The History Behind the Extravagant Castle Along the McCloud River
You’ve probably heard of the Hearst Castle, the magnificent residence of newspaper mogul William Randolph Hearst. But have you heard…
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1 August
The Real Life Zorro: The Life and Legend of Joaquin Murieta
Some say he was a good man turned renegade when all he held dear was taken from him. Others claim…
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Jul- 2022 -7 July
The History of NorCal Names – How Redding Was Once Named ‘Reading’
Photo courtesy of the Shasta Historical Foundation Redding, California sits center stage in Northern California, nestled comfortably smack dab in…
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1 July
This Northern California Ghost Town is Cursed, According to its Visitors
Flickr/Robert Shea The workers at the Bodie State Historic Park are used to receiving letters in the mail talking about…
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Jun- 2022 -20 June
1906 Film of San Francisco Upgraded to 4K is Absolutely Stunning
It was on April 14, 1906 when Harry Miles, a motion-picture pioneer in California, took to a cable car and…
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14 June
The Good Guys and Bad Guys of Historic Northern California – Part 1
Hollywood is obsessed with “good guys and bad guys,” and why not? There’s something very satisfying when good triumphs over…
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14 June
Gold Rush Days Returning to Historic Downtown Yreka this Week!
Brought to you by Discover Siskiyou The town of Yreka, sitting in the beautiful Siskiyou County, is one of the…
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9 June
Why Are There Old Train Tracks Going Into Lake Tahoe?
If you’ve ever explored the breathtaking beaches of Lake Tahoe, you may have noticed a rare sight of railroad tracks…
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May- 2022 -22 May
This Historic Northern California Boomtown Maintains its Gold Rush Charm
Brought to you by Discover Siskiyou It’s sometimes hard to fathom that Northern California once sat as the center of…
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22 May
On This Day in History: The Lassen Peak Eruption of 1915
It was the late-afternoon of May 22, 1915 when Lassen Peak exploded in a powerful eruption that blasted rock fragments…
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Apr- 2022 -19 April
Courageous Explorer or Bloodthirsty Killer? The Sobering Truth About Kit Carson in Northern California
Who hasn’t heard of Kit Carson, the steely mountain man, courageous explorer, military hero, character in numerous dime novels and…
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10 April
Historic Photos Show Lumberjacks Chopping Down the Giant Northern California Redwoods
Northern California is known for being the home of some of the oldest and largest trees in the world. The…
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Mar- 2022 -31 March
Remembering the Massive Avalanche at Alpine Meadows that Killed 7 and Changed the Tahoe Community Forever
In the 70’s and 80’s, ski resorts were rated for their avalanche danger with a scale of A through F…
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Jan- 2022 -13 January
And Just Like That, Shasta Lake’s Historic Train Tunnel is Underwater Once Again
The summer and fall on Shasta Lake was a somewhat depressing time. The lake’s water dropped to extremely low levels…
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12 January
These Stagecoach Drivers Were the Rock Stars of California in the 1800’s
Mark Twain tried, but no matter how good a storyteller you are, you just can’t make this stuff up. Historic…
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Dec- 2021 -20 December
NorCal Nerds: What Did Northern California Look Like Millions of Years Ago?
One of Active NorCal’s priorities is inspiring people to get out there and get active, to get off the couch…
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6 December
Famed Pioneer Stephen Meek Arrived in Northern California in the 1800’s. He Was Probably Just Lost.
When Christopher Columbus discovered the “New World,” (Cuba and the Bahamas, really) he was convinced he had landed on the…
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Nov- 2021 -22 November
Who Was Jim Beckwourth? A Life as Big as America
How do you take the measure of a man? It usually begins with facts documented and witnessed by credible sources.…
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9 November
Historic Covered Bridge Reopens Over the Yuba River for the First Time in 10 Years
Following a 10-year restoration project, the historic Bridgeport Covered Bridge at the South Yuba State Park has reopened to pedestrians,…
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Oct- 2021 -25 October
Historic California Ghost Town Transforms into a Winter Wonderland
The popular Bodie State Historic Park is a fun destination in the Eastern Sierra to learn about the history of…
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22 October
Remembering the Great Flood that Put Northern California Under 30 Feet of Water
If you take a look at Northern California on a map, it will show a large valley right down the…
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18 October
Historic Train Tunnel Now Fully Exposed on Shasta Lake
The abysmal water levels throughout Northern California currently sit at their lowest for 2021, with incoming storms bringing the prospect…
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Sep- 2021 -28 September
On This Day in History: President John F. Kennedy Dedicates the Whiskeytown Dam
On November 22, 1963, President John Fitzgerald Kennedy was assassinated as his motorcade drove through Dallas, Texas. Less than two…
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19 September
Mysterious Sunken Boat Revealed on the Low Shore of Shasta Lake
There have been plenty of historic structures revealed on Northern California reservoirs as water continues to shrink down to historically…
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13 September
How the Grizzly Bear Became the Symbol of California
The California Bear Flag (the official state flag of California) hardly gets any love despite flying over virtually every government…
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Aug- 2021 -16 August
Are There Frozen Bodies at the Bottom of Lake Tahoe?
Sitting at 6,225 feet elevation as the largest alpine lake in North America, there is plenty to be fascinated with…
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9 August
Jedediah Smith’s Travels Through Northern California – Part 2: Strong Was His Middle Name
Every time he visited California he got arrested. When a grizzly bear chewed off his hair and ear, he had…
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1 August
Jedediah Smith’s Travels Through Northern California – Part 1: The First White Settlers of NorCal
There is little doubt the standards have changed for what it means to qualify as a “bad dude.” NorCal has…
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Jul- 2021 -19 July
Remembering the Deadly 1996 Rockfall that Sent 90,000 Tons of Rock into Yosemite Valley
July 19, 2021 marked the 25th anniversary of the 1996 Happy Isles rockfall in Yosemite National Park. The deadly incident…
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19 July
S**** Valley Alpine Meadows to Host Washoe Cultural Tours
SVAM is excited to announce a new on-mountain summer experience: the Washoe Cultural Tour, beginning Monday, July 12. Not only is…
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Jun- 2021 -3 June
9 Fascinating Historical Gems to Visit in Siskiyou County
Brought to you by Discover Siskiyou Photo by Richard Lee When gold was discovered in the American River in the 1800’s,…
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May- 2021 -18 May
Wildfire Unearths Hidden Bunker in the Big Basin Redwoods
Photo: Julie Horner/SLVPost When the devastating CZU Fire blazed through the Big Basin Redwoods, it destroyed much of the state…
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10 May
This Northern California Town is the Closest to ‘Shangri-La’ According to the Author Who Coined the Term
Photo: California Outdoor Propoerties Shangri-la is a fictional place featured in the 1933 novel Lost Horizon written by British author…
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Apr- 2021 -15 April
Ishi: The Last California ‘Wild Indian’ We Never Really Knew
Ishi making a wood harpoon in Deer Creek in 1914 Most California school kids have heard the story of Ishi,…
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Mar- 2021 -22 March
How ‘Euro-Nymphing’ Originated in Northern California
Joe Kimsey was a fishing legend on the Upper Sacramanto River If you refer to that fly rod as a…
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9 March
Getting High on Mount Shasta with John Muir
“If I were you,†he said as he passed by, “I’d head back down the mountain. Storm’s brewing.†His words…
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Feb- 2021 -23 February
The Mystery Behind Rattlesnake Dick’s Lost Treasure in the Trinity Mountains
Richard Barter AKA “Rattlesnake Dick” Richard Barter lived a life of crime in the Gold Rush era of the 1800’s…
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18 February
Shame and Redemption: The History of Captain Jack’s Skull
Captain Jack The 1870s were turbulent, bloody times in Northern California. Tensions between Indigenous Peoples and the U.S. Army who…
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5 February
Getting High on Mount Shasta with John Muir – Part 3 Finale
Read Part 1 Read Part 2 Lightning, heavy winds, hail and deepening snow pummeled intrepid mountaineers John Muir and Jerome…
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2 February
Getting High on Mount Shasta with John Muir – Part 2
John Muir and Jerome Fay made it to the summit by 7:30am on that fateful day in 1875. That’s right…
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Jan- 2021 -19 January
Potter Creek Cave: the Coolest Northern California Cave You Can’t Visit
It’s larger than Shasta Caverns. Extinct ground sloths were found there, the first ever in California. Sharp-faced bears, the most…
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Dec- 2020 -11 December
The Legend of Captain Dick – The Hermit of Lake Tahoe’s Emerald Bay
Emerald Bay’s Fannette Island was once the home of Captain Dick. Photo by Patrick Minero. In the mid-1800’s, there weren’t many…
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4 December
Ski A Volcano: The History of the Lassen Ski Area
Large groups of skier in Lassen – 1936. PHOTO BY JERVIE HENRY EASTMAN, COURTESY DEPARTMENT OF SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, GENERALLIBRARY, UNIVERSITY…
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Aug- 2020 -12 August
8 Must-See Historic Gems Near Redding, California
Brought to you by Choose Redding While Redding, California is known to be the home of the some of the…
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May- 2020 -20 May
Ancient ‘Donut-Shaped’ Rock Found in Rural Northern California. What the Heck is it?
An interesting rock was discovered in the rural town of Termo this week, bringing many questions about how it was…
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2 May
A Northern California Couple Found Historic Coins Buried in their Backyard. The Discovery Landed Them $10 Million.
In 2013, a couple was walking their dog on their rural Northern California property when they discovered an unusual scene.…
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Apr- 2020 -9 April
Historic Video Footage Shows Scenes Around Tahoe in the Early 1900’s
Northern California was much different 100 years ago. The developed roads and landmarks we know so well today are just…
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Feb- 2020 -13 February
Stay Overnight at a Historic Northern California Lighthouse
There are so many great adventures to be had in Northern California, but there may be none as relaxing and…
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6 February
The Story Behind the Secret JFK – Marilyn Monroe Rendezvous in Castella, California
You may have passed Castella, California while driving on Interstate 5 just south of Mount Shasta, although it’s difficult to…
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Jan- 2020 -31 January
This Man is the Namesake of Lassen Volcanic National Park. His Murder Remains a Mystery.
You’ve surely seen the name Lassen plastered throughout Northern California, but behind the name sits a wild west murder mystery.…
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13 January
The Story of the Donner Party: Deadly Mistakes Over the Snowy Sierra
Photo of James F. and Margaret Reed, who were members of the Donner Party I could have died so many…
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Dec- 2019 -28 December
The Adventures of Mark Twain in California – Part 4: The Stand Up Comedian
While it might be a stretch to describe Mark Twain’s ascent to literary rock-stardom as luck, he truly did not expect…
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27 December
How this Man’s ‘Hell’ Became One of Northern California’s Most Popular Destinations
Bumpass Hell is a popular destination for people traveling through Lassen Volcanic National Park. Lassen is chock-full of hydrothermal activity,…
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23 December
The Adventures of Mark Twain in California – Part 3: Jackass Hill and Jumping Frogs
Who knew that Mark Twain, beloved American author and humorist, creator of Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer, spent seven wild…
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18 December
This Waterfall Was Once the Hideout of NorCal’s Most Notorious Stagecoach Robber
Hedge Creek Falls. Photo: Flickr/Eric Leslie Every bandit needs a hideout, and it just so happens that one of the…
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18 December
These Brothers Were Hanged in Redding in 1892. Their Hidden Treasure was Never Found.
On July 24th, 1892, a group of masked men stormed the Redding, California jail and dragged out two men accused…
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13 December
Rediscovered Film Takes a Trip Through San Francisco in Ruins Following 1906 Earthquake
On April 18, 1906, a 7.9 magnitude earthquake hit San Francisco, killing 3,000 people and destroying 80 percent of the…
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12 December
This 1952 News Reel Shows Passenger Train Buried in Tahoe’s Worst Blizzard in 50 Years
In January of 1952, the worst blizzard seen in 50 years slammed the Tahoe area, closing the pass over Donner…
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10 December
The NorCal Town Named ‘Rough and Ready’ Once Seceded from the United States
The only way you’ve probably heard of Rough and Ready, California is if you’ve driven on Highway 20 between Yuba…
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3 December
Remembering the Time it Rained 6,000 Pounds of Marijuana on Yosemite
Photo: Rick Schloss In 1977, Yosemite National Park was a much different place. Rock climbers traveled the world over to…
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Nov- 2019 -26 November
The Chronicles of Mark Twain in California – Part 2: Getting Fired in San Francisco
San Francisco’s Cliff House in the 1800’s By the time Mark Twain (formerly Sam Clemens) made it to San Francisco…
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22 November
Before the Fall: Stories of Conflict and Discovery in Northern California History
Like stepping off a bar stool after swilling shots of whiskey, nudging my canoe into Fall River catches me off-guard.…
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18 November
The Chronicles of Mark Twain in California – Part 1: The Stories Behind the Pen Name
People dream of coming to California to become the next Meryl Streep or Tom Hanks, but hardly the “father of…
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Oct- 2019 -31 October
Take a Walk Through History in this Ghost Town just Outside Redding, California
Brought to you by Visit Redding Shasta State Historic Park. Photo: Visit Redding In the mid-1800’s, the town of Shasta…
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28 October
City of Eureka Transfers Indian Island Back to Wiyot Tribe in Historic Ceremony
Facebook/ Wiyot Tribe In December of 2018, the Eureka City Council unanimously voted to return Tuluwat, or Indian Island, back…
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Sep- 2019 -4 September
Video Explores the Human History of Lassen Volcanic National Park
In an installment of Lassen NPS’s video newsletter, Lassen Peek, they give a brief introduction to the human history of the…
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3 September
This Beautiful Northern California Site was Once a World War II Internment Camp
When the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor on the morning of December 7, 1941, it started World War II, sending the United…
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Aug- 2019 -28 August
The History of the McCloud River and its World-Famous Fish
Photo: California Trout It’s the strangest feeling. I can be standing for hours in a rushing trout stream totally absorbed…
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7 August
Take a Historical Audio Tour Through the Modoc War
In the 1870’s, the national headlines set there eyes on the Modoc War, a bloody battle between the army and…
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Jul- 2019 -23 July
Eat a Historic Burger and Fries at Redding’s Damburger
https://www.facebook.com/EatingNorCal/videos/327242764799898/ In 1938, 18-year-old Bud Pennington had the idea to sell hamburgers to the thousands of construction workers building Shasta…
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Apr- 2019 -11 April
A Piece of NorCal History: Redding’s Diestelhorst Bridge
Considering its place adjacent to the recently added Lake Redding Bridge, you might overlook Redding’s storied Diestelhorst Bridge. Without scanning…
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5 April
NorCal History will Come Alive at Lava Beds’ Living History Event
Photo: NPS/Angela Sutton Press release provided from Lava Beds National Monument: History will come alive on Saturday, May 11th, during…
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Mar- 2019 -13 March
The Legend of Snowshoe Thompson: The Founder of California Skiing
Animated depiction of John Albert Thompson, also known as Snowshoe Thompson In the 1800’s, traveling across the Sierra Nevada in…
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6 March
Remembering the Deadly Flood of 1955 that Put a NorCal Town Under 20 Feet of Water
Overhead view of Yuba City. Photo: Sacramento Bee It was just minutes past midnight of Christmas Eve 1955 when the…
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Jan- 2019 -26 January
Wiyot Tribe Reclaims “Sacred” Indian Island in Humboldt Bay
Located off the shore of Eureka in Humboldt Bay sits an island called Duluwat, better know as Indian Island, which…
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15 January
Did the Real-Life Tarzan Dive Off Burney Falls?
BThe story was well known to me, but we at Active NorCal always check our sources. If you Google “Tarzan,…
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Dec- 2018 -21 December
Remembering Babe Ruth’s 1924 Exhibition Game in Dunsmuir, California
Photo by Paul J. Standar The Babe. The Sultan of Swat. The Great Bambino. The legend of Babe Ruth has…
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8 December
The Conflicted History of the Lava Beds National Monument
By Ryan Loughrey This past summer, we visited the desolate and beautiful Lava Beds National Monument to try to escape…
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8 December
This Northern California Town is Responsible for America’s First Bike Lane
The ever-popular bike lanes you see all around the country are a pretty new phenomenon. San Francisco received its first…
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Nov- 2018 -17 November
History Reduced to Rubble: Remembering the Honey Run Covered Bridge
The Camp Fire took many victims as it spread through Butte County on November 8th, the most significant being lost…
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