December 13
Business in 1841
John Sutter purchased Fort Ross from the Russian American Fur Company for $30,000 on credit. He acquired materials and implements for Sutter’s Fort, including a small brass field howitzer that became known as the “Sutter Gun”.
Watercolour of Fort Ross by I.G. Voznesenskii (1841)
Source: Peter the Great Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography, St.Petersburg
Overland Journeys in 1844
The Stephens-Townsend-Murphy Party, ten families, reached Sutter’s Fort. They left Council Bluffs, Iowa on May 22, 1844 and were the first wagon train to cross the Sierra Nevada.
Wagon Train.
Margaret and Patrick Breen
Overland Journeys in 1846
Patrick Breen, traveling with the Donner Party, wrote in his diary, “Snows faster than any previous day. Wind N.W. Stanton & Graves with several others making preparations to cross the Mountains on snow shoes. Snow 8 feet deep on the level. Dull.”
Transportation in 1867
The Central Pacific Railroad construction reached the Nevada border. It started in Sacramento on January 8, 1863.
Chinese laborers work on the Central Pacific Railroad around 1867. Photo: Underwood Archives, Getty Images
Juana Briones
Briones in 1889
Juana Briones de Miranda, born into an early California family, died in San Francisco at age 87. After leaving her soldier-husband, she became a pioneer settler of Yerba Buena, raised eight children, including an orphaned Indian girl. She farmed the area today called Washington Square.
Environment in 1944
Los Angeles recorded a record low temperature, 28°F. The record high, 92°F, was in 1938.
Los Angeles (1944).
Environment in 1967
Snow fell in San Diego after temperatures plunged 19 degrees in eight hours.
Transportation in 1976
The Golden Gate Bridge District expanded ferry service from San Francisco to Larkspur Landing.
Larkspur Landing.
Radio in 1983
KYA-AM in San Francisco changed its call letters to KOIT. The station, which began in 1926, has had 14 owners and four different callsigns in 85 years.
Museums in 1997
A ribbon-cutting ceremony opened the $1 billion Getty Center in Los Angeles, one of the largest arts centers in the United States.
Bayview-Hunters Point.
Fires in 1997
A Bayview-Hunters Point housing project fire, started by a cigarette, killed six people. The San Francisco Housing Authority was found negligent for not installing a smoke detector or fixing a faulty heater. It paid a $13.5 million judgement.
Religion in 2002
Monsignor Ignatius Wang became an auxiliary bishop of the San Francisco Archdiocese, the first U.S. bishop of Asian ancestry.
Google.
Business in 2004
Google, in Mountain View, announced plans to digitally scan book collections of five major libraries that agreed to permit access to books published before 1900.
Business in 2004
Oracle Corp., in Redwood City, raised its takeover bid for rival PeopleSoft Inc. by 10 percent. The $10.3 billion deal created the world’s second largest maker of business applications software.
Oracle logo.
Crime in 2008
A woman in Richmond was jumped, taunted for being a lesbian, raped, and left naked outside an abandoned apartment building. Police arrested two men and two teens in January on suspicion of the gang-rape.
Kamala Harris.
Government in 2011
Kamala Harris, Attorney General, announced a new unit devoted to prosecuting high-tech crimes. Each year over 1 million Californians were said to be victims of identity theft, with losses of over $46 million in 2010.
Crime in 2012
Walgreens Co. was ordered to pay $16.57 million to California government and environmental agencies to settle claims of dumping hazardous wastes.
December 14
Ohlone Indians drawn by Louis Choris (1816)
Missions in 1793
Mission Santa Cruz was attacked and partially burned by Quiroste warriors, Ohlone people from a village near Año Nuevo.
Missions in 1817
Mission Saint Rafael was founded when Padre Vicente de Sarría said mass at the 20th of 21 missions. It served as a hospital for sick native people from Mission Dolores. Twenty-six people were baptized the first day.
Pirates in 1818
Hypolite Bouchard and his pirates attacked Mission San Juan Capistrano. They burned the king’s storehouse, soldiers barracks and the governor’s house.
Accidents in 1963
Baldwin Hills Reservoir in Los Angeles, built above an active fault line, broke open. In three hours 250 million gallons of water flooded the surrounding neighborhood, destroying 277 homes and killing five people.
Accidents in 1971
The lights were out all night on the Golden Gate Bridge due to a power failure.
Edward Hagedorn, “The Rainbow” (circa 1930).
Hagedorn in 1982
Edward Hagedorn, graphic artist, born in San Francisco, died in Berkeley at age 80. His work included, “Self Portrait with Cigarette” (circa 1930), “The Rainbow” (circa 1930) and “Sword Swallower” (circa 1936).
Crime in 1994
Bruce McNall, former owner of the Los Angeles Kings hockey team, pleaded guilty to fraud and went to prison for four years.
Public health in 1995
Jeff Getty, AIDS patient in San Francisco, received the first bone-marrow transplant from a baboon. Animal rights activists criticized the experimental procedure. The transplant failed, but Getty survived.
Peanuts.
Peanuts in 1999
Charles Schultz, creator of the Peanuts cartoon, announced he would retire. The final original Peanuts cartoon appeared on Feb 13, 2000.
Accidents in 1999
A main water pipeline In Mission Viejo ruptured, cutting supplies to 14 Orange County communities.
Mission Viejo.
The Walt Disney Company.
Business in 2005
Walt Disney Co., in Burbank, announced its first film production in China. It wanted to break into the Chinese entertainment market.
Business in 2006
Cisco Systems Inc., in San Jose, announced a $50 million investment in China Communications Services Corporation Ltd.. That made it the largest foreign investor in CCS.
Mike Evans as Lionel Jefferson on “All in the Family.”
Evans in 2006
Mike Evans, actor, died in Twentynine Palms at age 57. He is best known as Lionel Jefferson on “All in the Family” and for co-creating “Good Times.”
Crime in 2007
Maria Borrega, a former ticket agent for the Contra Costa County public transit system was charged with embezzling some $184,000.
Science in 2009
Researchers from U.C. Santa Barbara and the University of Michigan published a study describing synthetic red blood cells capable of delivering medicine, oxygen or MRI contrast agents throughout the body.
Crime in 2010
A mother was killed at a south Sacramento strip mall while helping her 2-year-old son into their car during a gun battle that wounded six others.
Plastic bag litter.
Government in 2010
San Jose adopted the strictest ban on plastic bags in the state.
Crime in 2012
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency charged over 24 people in San Diego with smuggling drugs into California from Mexico. The bust netted over 1,000 pouns of methamphetamine, 200 pounds of cocaine and 28 pound of heroin.
December 15
Overland journeys in 1846
Baylis Williams, one of the men working for James Reed of the Donner Party, died, probably of malnutrition.
San Jose
Government in 1849
The first California legislature met in San Jose. Sixteen Senators and 36 Assemblymen planned to attend but because of heavy rains, the roads were so muddy that only six Senators and 14 Assemblymen were present.
Libraries in 1858
Marysville Public Library received a donation of books, bookcases, maps, pictures, mineralogical and cabinet specimens. New books had to be shipped by sea around the Horn, so the library depended on gifts.
Golden Eagle Hotel, Marysville (1856)
Newspapers in 1858
S.G. Whipple began publishing The Northern Californian in Union.
Charles Bowles, also known as Black Bart.
Crime in 1881
Charles Bowles, English born gentleman bandit known as Black Bart, left poems at the scenes of his crime. He held up Wells Fargo Stagecoaches 28 times. The 19th was four miles east of Dobbins in Yuba County.
Hotels in 1909
The Palace Hotel reopened. The most modern hotel on the West Coast survived the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake but was gutted by the fire.
Palace Hotel, Palm Court.
Accidents in 1933
Lloyd Evans became the first worker on the San Francisco Bay Bridge to die. He was working 112 feet under water on the bay bottom and experienced decompression sickness. An 11-hour effort to revive him in a recompression chamber failed.
San Francisco Bay Bridge construction (1933 – 1936).
Disney in 1966
Walt Disney, cartoonist, film maker and businessman who changed the face of entertainment, died in Burbank at age 65.
Walt Disney (circa 1940s).
Fire Departments in 1969
The San Francisco Fire Department replaced leather helmets with plastic ones.
Jim “Catfish” Hunter.
Sports in 1974
Catfish Hunter, Oakland A’s pitcher, won a contract dispute to become a free agent. With the A’s, he pitched four consecutive years with at least 20 wins and four World Series wins without a loss.
Sports in 1977
Charles Finley sold his Oakland A’s to Marvin Davis for a reported $12.5 million.
Sports in 1997
The San Francisco 49ers retired Joe Montana’s jersey #16. Montana, as quarterback, lead them to four Super Bowl victories.
Prisons in 2006
A federal judge declared California’s execution procedure unconstitutional, extending the state’s execution moratorium. California held some 650 inmates on death row, the most in the U.S.
Google.
Business in 2007
Google, in Mountain View, was reportedly testing a new service called Knol. It enlisted users to write about human knowledge in competition with Wikipedia.
Government in 2008
California Senator Diane Feinstein became chairwoman of the U.S. Senate Intelligence Committee.
Arnold Schwarzenegger, California governor.
Museums in 2008
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger introduced the 2008 inductees to the California Hall of Fame. They included Dave Brubeck, Jane Fonda, Theodor Geisel (“Dr. Seuss”), Robert Graham, Quincy Jones, Jack LaLanne, Dorothea Lange, Julia Morgan, Jack Nicholson, Linus Pauling, Leland Stanford and Alice Waters.
Roberts in 2009
Oral Roberts, pioneer televangelist and founder of the Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Oklahoma, died in Newport Beach at age 91. He began broadcasting revivals on television in 1954 and later founded Oral Roberts University.
Edwards in 2010
Blake Edwards, film director, died in Santa Monica at age 88. His films include “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” (1961) and the “Pink Panther” series, which started in 1963.
Barry Bonds, San Francisco Giants
Sports in 2011
Barry Bonds was sentenced to 30 days of house arrest, two years of probation and 250 hours of community service. He was convicted of obstructing justice during a grand jury appearance in 2003.
December 16
Exploration in 1602
Sebastian Vizcaino named Monterey Bay. The conquistador who sailed from New Spain (Mexico) to the Philippines was searching for safe harbors for Spanish galleons returning from the Philippines.
Sebastian Vizcaino drawn by Barron Park School students
Overland Journeys in 1846
Patrick Breen, traveling with the Donner Party, wrote in his diary, “Fair & pleasant. Froze hard last night. & the company started on snow shoes to cross the mountains. Wind S.E. Looks pleasant.” The “company” was 17 of the strongest emigrants, with six days’ rations. The snowshoers were called the “Forlorn Hope”.
Garden Valley.
Post Offices in 1852
A U.S. post office opened in Garden Valley near Coloma. It closed in 1853, re-opened in 1854, then closed in 1862, re-opened in 1872 but closed in 1895 then re-opened in 1896 and moved 1/4 mile away in 1940.
Parks in 1896
Griffith Griffith donated 3,015 acres for Griffith Park to Los Angeles. He wanted to develop property near his ostrich farm Rancho Los Feliz.
Griffith Park strollers
Movies in 1913
Charlie Chaplin began his film career at Keystone Studios in Edendale, earning $150 a week.
“Frowning Alcatraz, Key of San Francisco” (1866)
Prisons in 1937
Theodore Cole and Ralph Roe escaped from Alcatraz Island Federal Penitentiary. Warden Johnson suspected the kidnapper and bank robber drowned in the bay.
Government in 1983
A judge in Riverside denied cerebral palsy victim Elizabeth Bouvia request to starve herself to death in a county hospital.
James in 1988
Sylvester James, disco superstar born in Watts, died in San Francisco of AIDS-related causes at age 41.
Business in 1996
Intel, in Santa Clara, announced development of the world’s fastest computer, capable of 1 trillion operations per second.
Intel logo (1968-2005).
Madlyn Rhue.
Rhue in 2003
Madlyn Rhue, actress, died in Los Angeles at age 68. She is remembered for roles in “Operation Petticoat” (1959), “It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World” (1963) and Star Trek episode “Space Seed” (1967).
Business in 2005
Google, in Mountain View, announced it would pay $1 billion for a 5% stake in AOL.
Google.
Bottoms in 2008
Sam Bottoms, film and television actor and producer, born in Santa Barbara, died in Los Angeles at age 53. He is remembered for roles in “The Last Picture Show” (1971), “The Outlaw Josey Wales” (1976) and “Apocalypse Now” (1979).
Government in 2009
San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom struck a deal with the U.S. Navy to acquire Treasure Island for a guaranteed payment of $55 million over several years.
The Walt Disney Company.
Disney in 2009
Roy Disney, Walt Disney’s nephew, died in Burbank at age 78. He oversaw creation of Disney World.
Government in 2010
The California Air Resources Board approved the nation’s first broad-based program to put a cap on green house gas emissions.
California air basin map.
Rohayent Gomez.
Crime in 2010
Rohayent Gomez, age 13, was shot and paralyzed by a Los Angeles police officer as the boy held a replica gun. A jury ordered the LAPD to pay $24 million to Gomez in 2012.
Business in 2011
Zynga, a digital game company in San Francisco, went public for $10 a share, valuing the company at $1 billion. It created Farmville.
Zynga.
December 17
Ranchos in 1833
Laguna de las Calabazas, a 2,304.75 acre Mexican land grant was deeded. The land in the San Fernando Valley, today is an affluent Los Angeles neighborhood.
Calabazas.
Margaret and Patrick Breen
Overland Journeys in 1846
Charles Burger and William Murphy, unable to keep up with the snowshoers, returned to camp. Five women, nine men, and 12-year-old Lemuel Murphy keep going. Patrick Breen wrote in his diary: “Pleasant sunshine today. Wind about S.E. Bill Murphy returned from the mountain party last evening. Bealis died night before last. Milt. & Noah went to Donners 8 days since; not returned yet; thinks they got lost in the snow. J Denton here to day.”
Post Offices in 1910
A U.S. post office opened in Muroc, a Kern County town in the Mojave Desert. It closed in 1951. The name honored settlers Ralph and Clifford Corum, whose surname spelled backwards is “Muroc.” Today it is part of Edwards Air Force Base, home of stealth technology.
Eagle Rocks, Mojave National Preserve
Radio in 1926
KYA-AM in San Francisco began radio transmissions. It has had 14 owners and four call signs in 85 years. Today it broadcasts Immaculate Heart Radio, a Roman Catholic radio format.
December 18
Margaret and Patrick Breen
Overland Journeys in 1846
Patrick Breen, traveling with the Donner Party, wrote in his diary, “Beautiful day; sky clear; it would be delightful were it not for the snow lying so deep. Thaws but little on the south side of shanty. Saw no strangers today from any of the shantys.”
Libraries in 1884
Frank Kimball used his personal book collection to open National Free Library and Reading Rooms in his real estate office. Ah Lem, a Chinese workman, assisted.
National City railway terminal, 1888.
North Fork.
Post Offices in 1888
A U.S. post office opened in North Fork in Madera County. The town was first named Brown’s after Milton Brown, a white settler. The North Fork name is from the North Fork Lumber Company, which opened in 1888.
Crime in 1997
Arturo Reyes Torres, a fired California highway employee, shot and killed four people at the Caltrans maintenance yard in Orange before he was killed by police.
Protests in 1999
Julia “Butterfly” Hill climbed down from an ancient redwood in Humboldt County after living there for two years. She protested logging of old growth redwood forests.
Business in 2002
Governor Gray Davis announced a $34.8 billion cash shortage over the next 18 months. A legislative analyst later assessed the deficit at $21 billion.
Business in 2003
Sierra Railroad, which began in 1897, bought the 40-mile Mendocino County Skunk Train, which began in 1885, for $1.4 million.
Business in 2007
Half Moon Bay hired lawyers to fight a federal court ordering the city to pay a developer $36.8 million in a property dispute. The city’s annual budget was $10 million.
Pacific Gas and Electric Company.
Energy in 2007
PG&E announced it would support the first commercial wave power plant off the Humboldt County coast. Eight power generating buoys were projected to begin working in 2012.
Business in 2009
U.S. bank regulators shut down seven banks including two in California. This brought to 140 the number of U.S. banks closed down due to the weak economy and loan defaults.
Office Depot.
Business in 2009
Ben Rosenfield, San Francisco Controller, released an audit that said Office Deport overcharged the city for some $5.75 million worth of office supplies over 4½ years.
Hellman in 2011
Warren Hellman, who privately sponsored the annual Hardly Strictly Bluegrass festival, died in San Francisco at age 77. He provided the free music event with funds to continue.
December 19
Juan Bautista de Anza
Exploration in 1788
Juan Bautista de Anza, Spanish explorer of Alta California, died in Arizpe, Mexico. He lead the first colonists north from Mexico to Monterey and found an inland route to San Francisco Bay.
Overland Journeys in 1846
Patrick Breen, travelling with the Donner Party, wrote in his diary, “Snowed last night; commenced about 11 o’clock. Squalls of wind with snow at intervals. This morning, thawing. Wind N. by W. A little singular for a thaw. May continue. It continues to snow. Sun shining. Cleared off towards evening.”
Newspapers in 1852
The Golden Era newspaper debuted in San Francisco. It featured articles by Mark Twain and Bret Harte, who became two of the most popular authors of the time.
The Golden Era masthead
Railroads in 1859
Grading began for San Francisco’s first railroad. Market Street Railway ran three miles from Market Street to Mission Dolores.
Market Street Railway 1860
Post Offices in 1920
A U.S. post office opened at Palomar Mountain, north of San Diego. Today it is famous for Palomar Observatory with a 200-inch telescope and as home to Palomar Mountain State Park.
Floods in 1964
Heavy rain from December 18, 1964 to January 7, 1965 flooded nearly every river in coastal Northern California. It was called the Christmas Flood.
Education in 1996
The Oakland School Board voted to recognize Black English, known as “ebonics.” The board later reversed its position.
December 20
Ranchos in 1844
Rancho Rio de los Molinos, a 22,172-acre Mexican land grant in present day Tehama County was deeded. It extended along the east side of the Sacramento River from Dye Creek to Toomes Creek, including present day Los Molinos.
Rancho diseno
Margaret and Patrick Breen
Overland Journeys in 1846
Patrick Breen, traveling with the Donner Party, wrote in his diary, “Night clear. Froze a little. Now clear & pleasant. Wind N.W. Thawing a little. Mrs Reid here. No account of Milt. Yet Dutch Charley started for Donners; turned back, not able to proceed. Tough times, but not discouraged. Our hopes are in God. Amen.”
Government in 1849
Peter Burnett became the first state governor of California. He proposed that blacks, slave or free, be banned from the state and thought it necessity to exterminate the state’s native people.
Government in 1934
A state liquor control law went into effect, making it legal to sell hard liquor by the drink in California hotels, restaurants and clubs.
Floods in 1955
The central Sierra and South San Francisco Bay Area rivers areas flooded. The storm resulted in 74 deaths and $200 million in damages. On Christmas Eve, a levee on the Feather River collapsed, flooding Yuba City and farmlands in the basin.
Yuba City 1955
Crime in 1968
The Zodiac Killer killed Betty Lou Jenson and David Faraday in Vallejo. The Northern California serial killer was never caught.
Darin in 1973
Bobby Darin, pop, rock, jazz, folk and country singer, died in Los Angeles at age 37. He is remembered for “Dream Lover” among other popular songs.
Intel logo (1968-2005).
Business in 1994
Intel, in Santa Clara, announced it would replace all flawed Pentium computer chips.
Weather in 1998
Snow fell in San Francisco and low temperature records were made around the Bay.
Snow in San Francisco (1887)
Calpine Corp.
Business in 2005
Calpine Corp., a power company in San Jose, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. It was some $22 billion in debt.
Business in 2005
Seagate Corp., a computer disk drive maker in Cupertino, agreed to pay $1.9 billion for rival Maxtor Corp.
Seagate Corp.
Business in 2007
U.S. regulators cleared the proposal by Google, in Mountain View, to acquire online advertising DoubleClick, sparking privacy concerns and challenges in the European Union.
Google.
Netsuite Inc.
Business in 2007
NetSuite Inc., a software maker headquartered in San Mateo, rose 37% in its first day of trading after raising $161.2 million in an IPO a day earlier.
Police in 2008
San Francisco Police Chief Heather Wong announced her retirement. She became the city’s first female police chief nearly 5 years before.
Murphy in 2009
Brittany Murphy, actress, singer and voice artist, died in Los Angeles at age 22. She is remembered for roles in “Riding in Cars with Boys” (2001), “8 Mile” (2002) and “Happy Feet” (2006).
Business in 2012
Apple Inc., in Cupertino, was denied a patent for mobile pinch-to-zoom gestures by U.S. patent authorities.