California General Information

GENERAL

Abbreviated as CA on ABBREVIATIONFINDER.ORG, California is a US state in the western United States, bordering the Pacific Ocean, Oregon, Nevada, Arizona and the Mexican state of Baja California. The capital of California is Sacramento.

The most important cities are Los Angeles and San Francisco, the center of the metropolitan area San Francisco Bay Area around the San Francisco Bay, which is San Francisco Bay. Other major cities are San Diego, San Jose, Oakland, Santa Barbara, Ventura, Anaheim, Santa Ana, Newport Beach, and San Bernardino.

Nickname

The Golden State

Capital

Sacramento

Biggest town

Los Angeles

Area

Rank (within the US): 3rd out of 50 states

Total: 410,000 km²

Land: 404,298 km²

Water (%): 20,047 km² (4.72%)

Residents

Rank (within the US): 1st out of 50 states

Total (2000): 33,871,648

Density: 83 / km²

State membership

Place: 31st

Since: September 9, 1850

GEOGRAPHY

Time zone: Pacific: UTC -8 / -7

Latitude: 32 ° 30’N to 42 ° N

Longitude 114 ° 8’W to 124 ° 24’W

Width: 402.5 km

Length: 1,240 km

Highest position: 4,418 m

Average location: 884 m

Lowest position: – 86 m

California lies at the junction of two tectonic plates. That is why there are frequent earthquakes of varying degrees of severity, including at the San Andreas Fault. California is also known as the Fruit Garden of America, whose climate is ideal for growing grapes, oranges, lemons, and avocados.

The highest mountain in the United States outside of Alaska, Mt. Whitney, is in California. At the foot of the mountain is the place Lone Pine, where a well-known film festival takes place every year. Well-known films and series, such as Bonanza, were shot in this area around Mount Whitney. About 170 kilometers away is the desert area of the Valley of Death, which got its name from the time of the first settlers on the west coast, who often had to experience the agony of heat and thirst when they crossed the “Valley of Death” Has.

There are numerous nature parks and beaches of various types. Yosemite National Park is also one of the most famous parks. The Mammoth Mountain winter sports area is near Yosemite Park. This area of California was formed from huge volcanic craters, which makes it possible to see countless hot springs and geysers. Not far from Mt. Whitney there are several saline lakes, including Mono Lake.

POPULATION

California is the most populous state in the United States (approximately 34 million people).

HISTORY

After the landings of Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo in 1542 and Sir Francis Drake in 1579 (he laid claim to the territory of California, which he called “Nova Albion” on behalf of the English crown), the European colonial powers lost the territory of what is now the US state of California again largely out of sight. Thereafter, California as Upper California (Alta California) was the northern part of the Spanish colony California (historically), but was not settled until much later than the southern part. It was not until 1769 that the first of the 21 Spanish mission stations were built by Franciscan monks under the direction of Father Junipero Serra. With the missionaries, the first of the few Spanish settlers came to the country. Despite some success in setting up the mission stations and Christianizing the Indians, the country remained a sleepy province of Spanish America. With the independence of Mexico, the country then became a part of Mexico.

It was only after his arrival in 1839 that Johann August Sutter broke dynamism in the development of the country. At that time the country had 30,000 Indians and 5,000 Europeans as residents. Sutter received permission to build a branch, which he named “Nueva Helvecia”. It quickly became a flourishing colony with 20,000 head of cattle, three horse mills, two water mills, a sawmill, a tannery and over 50 houses. Sutter ruled like a little “emperor” over his little “empire”, which was built on agriculture, cattle breeding, timber trade and hunting.

But in 1848, after the land had just been taken from the Mexicans by the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, a gold discovery occurred. Sutter tried to keep this a secret, but the news spread like wildfire. Immediately a trek of fortune knights set out and flooded the country. There was complete chaos in the country, in which now only the law of the strongest prevailed. Sutter’s workers ran away from him, and the soldiers of fortune took possession of his estate. Hundreds of thousands ransacked the earth, the valley of the Sacramento had become the “golden” west. All of Sutter’s attempts to assert his legitimate claims to the land failed. Ultimately, the government recognized the illegal conditions as the United States suddenly became an important gold exporter.

The Indians were almost completely exterminated, and Sutter bitterly left the country in 1865 without having enforced his claims, only a small pension of $ 285 a year was granted to him. Sutter died almost completely impoverished in 1880. In 1854 Sacramento was named the capital of California.

POLITICS

Governor of the state has been the actor Arnold Schwarzenegger since 2003, who, like US President George W. Bush, is a Republican.

ECONOMY

With 14% of the gross domestic product of the USA, California is one of the most important economic locations in the country. As a separate state from the USA, California would be the fifth largest economic power worldwide, ahead of Canada and France. In particular, the south, favored by the weather for industrial agriculture, and the catchment area of cheap Mexican farm workers there, helps California achieve this prosperity.

However, the water supply requires great efforts. Huge reservoirs on the rivers in the neighboring state of Arizona, the canal constructions (with lengths as between Hamburg and Munich) from north to south and the aqueducts of the lakes east of the Sierra Nevada (USA) and mountain snow glaciers that deliver meltwater are of great importance here. Since the neighboring states (Arizona, Nevada) also want to draw on the natural resources to which they are entitled, agriculture is coming under increasing pressure. Nature conservation requirements increase this further.

California Counties and County Seats

According to Countryaah, there are a total of 58 counties in the state of California.

1. Alameda County (County Seat: Oakland)
2. Alpine County (County Seat: Markleeville)
3. Amador County (County Seat: Jackson)
4. Butte County (County Seat: Oroville)
5. Calaveras County (County Seat: San Andreas)
6. Colusa County (County Seat: Colusa)
7. Contra Costa County (County Seat: Martinez)
8. Del Norte County (County Seat: Crescent City)
9. El Dorado County (County Seat: Placerville)
10. Fresno County (County Seat: Fresno)
11. Glenn County (County Seat: Willows)
12. Humboldt County (County Seat: Eureka)
13. Imperial County (County Seat: El Centro)
14. Inyo County (County Seat: Independence)
15. Kern County (County Seat: Bakersfield)
16. Kings County (County Seat: Hanford)
17. Lake County (County Seat: Lakeport)
18. Lassen County (County Seat: Susanville)
19. Los Angeles County (County Seat: Los Angeles)
20. Madera County (County Seat: Madera)
21. Marin County (County Seat: San Rafael)
22. Mariposa County (County Seat: Mariposa)
23. Mendocino County (County Seat: Ukiah)
24. Merced County (County Seat: Merced)
25. Modoc County (County Seat: Alturas)
26. Mono County (County Seat: Bridgeport)
27. Monterey County (County Seat: Salinas)
28. Napa County (County Seat: Napa)
29. Nevada County (County Seat: Nevada City)
30. Orange County (County Seat: Santa Ana)
31. Placer County (County Seat: Auburn)
32. Plumas County (County Seat: Quincy)
33. Riverside County (County Seat: Riverside)
34. Sacramento County (County Seat: Sacramento)
35. San Benito County (County Seat: Hollister)
36. San Bernardino County (County Seat: San Bernardino)
37. San Diego County (County Seat: San Diego)
38. San Francisco County (County Seat: San Francisco)
39. San Joaquin County (County Seat: Stockton)
40. San Luis Obispo County (County Seat: San Luis Obispo)
41. San Mateo County (County Seat: Redwood City)
42. Santa Barbara County (County Seat: Santa Barbara)
43. Santa Clara County (County Seat: San Jose)
44. Santa Cruz County (County Seat: Santa Cruz)
45. Shasta County (County Seat: Redding)
46. Sierra County (County Seat: Downieville)
47. Siskiyou County (County Seat: Yreka)
48. Solano County (County Seat: Fairfield)
49. Sonoma County (County Seat: Santa Rosa)
50. Stanislaus County (County Seat: Modesto)
51. Sutter County (County Seat: Yuba City)
52. Tehama County (County Seat: Red Bluff)
53. Trinity County (County Seat: Weaverville)
54. Tulare County (County Seat: Visalia)
55. Tuolumne County (County Seat: Sonora)
56. Ventura County (County Seat: Ventura)
57. Yolo County (County Seat: Woodland)
58. Yuba County (County Seat: Marysville)