California (U.S. State)

During World War II, many California factories switched to building airplanes and ships, with workers producing one Liberty Ship every 8 days in Richmond!

The famous Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco was completed in 1937 and was the longest suspension bridge in the world at that time!

California’s Silicon Valley became the world’s technology center starting in the 1970s, giving us companies like Apple, Google, and Facebook!

The first Spanish mission in California, Mission San Diego de Alcalá, was established in 1769, and eventually there were 21 missions along El Camino Real!

The Pony Express mail service, which carried letters between Missouri and California on horseback, only operated for 18 months from 1860 to 1861!

The California state capitol building in Sacramento took 14 years to build and was completed in 1874!

In 1882, California began growing navel oranges from just two trees brought from Brazil, eventually creating the massive citrus industry!

Angel Island in San Francisco Bay served as an immigration station from 1910 to 1940, where many Asian immigrants first entered the United States!

I Love You, California” has been California’s official state song since 1951, with lyrics celebrating the state’s redwood forests, golden fields, and ocean breezes!

California’s state marine mammal is the gray whale, which migrates about 10,000 to 14,000 miles each year along the California coast!

California has an official state nut — the almond — which is actually a member of the peach family!

Disneyland, which opened in Anaheim, California, in 1955, was the only Disney theme park that Walt Disney himself got to walk through!

The Hollywood Sign, located in the Hollywood Hills of Los Angeles, California, originally read “HOLLYWOODLAND” when it was built in 1923 as an advertisement for a new housing development!

Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay was a federal prison from 1934 to 1963, and no prisoner ever successfully escaped!

The Winchester Mystery House in San Jose, California, has 160 rooms, 40 bedrooms, 13 bathrooms, and stairs that lead to nowhere!

The Giant Dipper roller coaster at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk has been running since 1924, making it one of the oldest wooden roller coasters still in operation!

Hearst Castle in San Simeon, California, has 165 rooms and was built by newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst, featuring art and furniture from around the world!

The Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles has helped more than 76 million visitors observe the stars and planets since it opened in 1935!

The Cabazon Dinosaurs, enormous concrete dinosaur statues visible from Interstate 10, were built by one man over 11 years starting in 1964!

The Mystery Spot near Santa Cruz, California, seems to defy gravity, with balls rolling uphill and people appearing to stand at impossible angles!

LEGOLAND California in Carlsbad features more than 60 million LEGO bricks, including Miniland USA, which uses over 20 million LEGO pieces alone!

The Exploratorium in San Francisco, California, has more than 600 interactive science exhibits that let kids explore everything from light to life sciences!

The La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles have trapped and preserved animals for over 50,000 years, with more than 3.5 million fossils discovered so far!

The Jelly Belly Factory in Fairfield, California, makes about 14 million jelly beans every day!

The Golden Gate Park in San Francisco is actually larger than New York’s Central Park by more than 174 acres!

California has been home to many famous actors including Marilyn Monroe, Tom Hanks, and Leonardo DiCaprio!

Apple Computer was started in a garage in Los Altos, California by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak in 1976!

California has more professional sports teams than any other state, with 5 Major League Baseball teams, 4 NBA teams, 3 NFL teams, and 3 NHL teams!

The annual Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena uses about 18 million flowers to decorate its floats, which must be completely covered with natural materials!

The first McDonald’s restaurant was opened in San Bernardino, California in 1940 by brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald!

California produces more than 80% of the world’s almonds and a large percentage of America’s walnuts, pistachios, and dates!

Famous children’s author Dr. Seuss (Theodor Geisel) lived in La Jolla, California, where he wrote many of his famous books including “The Lorax”!

The Beach Boys, one of America’s most famous rock bands, formed in Hawthorne, California in 1961, singing songs about surfing and California beaches!

California’s Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival is one of the largest music festivals in the world, with more than 250,000 people attending each year!

The Peanuts comic strip creator Charles Schulz lived in Santa Rosa, California for 40 years and created characters like Snoopy and Charlie Brown!

California has over 100 different Native American tribes, each with their own language, culture, and traditions!

California produces more food than any other state, growing more than 400 different agricultural products!

If California were its own country, it would rank among the largest economies in the world!

California has the highest point (Mount Whitney) and the lowest point (Death Valley) in the continental United States, and they’re only 84.6 miles (136.2 kilometers) apart!

California has more national parks than any other state, with nine parks including Yosemite, Joshua Tree, and Redwood!

The largest tree in the world by volume is the General Sherman Tree in Sequoia National Park, California, which weighs as much as 9.5 blue whales!

Approximately 25% of California’s electricity comes from renewable sources like wind, solar, and geothermal power!

The strongest earthquake ever recorded in California was the 1857 Fort Tejon earthquake with an estimated magnitude of 7.9!

In California’s Mojave Desert, there’s a place called the Kelso Dunes where the sand “sings” when you slide down it, creating a booming sound!

The first web server in the United States was at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC) in California, helping create the World Wide Web as we know it today!

California produces about 90% of all the strawberries grown in the United States!

The world’s tallest thermometer is in Baker, California—it’s 134 feet tall, representing the record temperature of 134°F (56.7°C) in Death Valley!

El Capitan in Yosemite National Park is one of the world’s largest granite monoliths, rising 3,000 feet (1,100 meters) from base to summit!

California has more than 100 million tourists visit each year—that’s more than double its own population!

The first motion picture theater opened in Los Angeles in 1902, helping establish California as the center of the movie industry!