Queen Calafia The name California comes from the myth of a warrior queen who ruled a land of black women in the Adventures of EsplandiĂĄn, circa 1500, by Spaniard Garci RodrĂ­guez de Montalvo. He drew inspiration from the frontier of the New World in the same way that science-fiction is inspired by the frontier of space.

Pt. Reyes

Monterey Pt. Conception Santa Barbara

San Diego

Johannes Vingboons Map of California. Circa 1650. When California was first encountered by Spanish explorers in the 1500s, the tip of what is now called Baja California appeared to be an island. Until the 1700s, maps of the world and North America continued to depict California as an island with some continuing to do so as late as 1865. Johannes Vingboons Map of California that is the background of this page draws from many source maps of this period. Some areas accurately portray coastal points of interest as reported by Spanish explorers, such as San Diego, Point Conception above Santa Barbara. As Vingboons drew from incomplete information, a great deal of inference and conjecture was also needed, which unwittingly perpetuated the myth of California as an island.

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CONTENTS

PREFACE

INTRO

MY CITY 1916

MAIN ST.

TODAY

LESSONS