California National MonumentsTHE DUNSMUIR-HELLMAN HISTORIC ESTATE dunsmuir-hellman.org
2960 Peralta Oaks Court
Oakland, CA 94605
City of Oakland

Parks

Alcatraz Island
San Francisco, CA

Alcatraz Island offers a close-up look at the site of the first lighthouse and US built fort on the West Coast, the infamous federal penitentiary long off-limits to the public, and the 18 month occupation by Indians of All Tribes which saved the tribes. Rich in history, there is also a natural side to the Rock - gardens, tide pools, bird colonies, and bay views beyond compare.
Alcatraz Is Indian LandNational Historic Trail
California
Various States, CA,CO,ID,KS,MO,NE,NV,OR,UT,WY

The road to California carried over 250,000 gold-seekers and farmers to the gold fields and rich farmlands of California during the 1840s and 1850s--the greatest mass migration in American history. More than 1,000 miles of trail ruts and traces can still be seen in the vast undeveloped west--reminders of the sacrifices, struggles, and triumphs of early American travelers and settlers.
Paradise Springs Hotel near South Pass, Wyoming

National Park
Channel Islands
Ventura, CA

Close to the California mainland, yet worlds apart, Channel Islands National Park encompasses five remarkable islands (Anacapa, Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa, San Miguel, and Santa Barbara) and their ocean environment, preserving and protecting a wealth of natural and cultural resources. Isolation over thousands of years has created unique animals, plants, and archeological resources found nowhere ...
Western gulls

National Park
Death Valley
Death Valley, CA,NV

Hottest, Driest, Lowest: A superlative desert of streaming sand dunes, snow-capped mountains, multicolored rock layers, water-fluted canyons and 3 million acres of wilderness. Home to the Timbisha Shoshone people and to plants and animals unique to the harshest desert. Temporary visitor center OPEN at Furnace Creek MORNING REPORT
Badwater Basin salt flats
National Historic Site
Eugene O'Neill
Danville, CA

America's only Nobel Prize winning playwright, Eugene O'Neill, chose to live in Northern California at the climax of his writing career. Isolated from the world and within the walls of his home, O'Neill wrote his final and most memorable plays; The Iceman Cometh, Long Day's Journey Into Night, and A Moon for the Misbegotten. Reservations are required to visit this site.
Eugene O'Neill in his Tao House study in 1941 - Yale Beinecke Library Photo

National Historic Site
Fort Point
Presidio of San Francisco, CA

From its vantage point overlooking the spectacular Golden Gate, Fort Point protected San Francisco harbor from Confederate & foreign attack during & after the U.S. Civil War. Its beautifully arched casemates display the art of the master brick mason from the Civil War period.
Fort Point National Historic Site is located at the south anchorage of the Golden Gate Bridge.

National Recreation Area
Golden Gate
San Francisco, CA

Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA) chronicles two hundred years of history, from the Native American culture, the Spanish Empire frontier and the Mexican Republic, to maritime history, the California Gold Rush, the evolution of American coastal fortifications, and the growth of urban San Francisco.
Travel decal of Diamond Head mountain on Oahu, Hawai'i.

National Historic Site
John Muir
Martinez, CA

John Muir was many things, inventor, immigrant, botanist, glaciologist, writer, co-founder of the Sierra Club, fruit rancher. But it was John Muir's love of nature, and the preservation of it, that we can thank him for today. Muir convinced President Teddy Roosevelt to protect Yosemite (including Yosemite Valley), Sequoia, Grand Canyon and Mt. Rainier as National Parks.
John Muir's desk in his Scribble Den.

National Park
Joshua Tree
Southern California between I-10 and Hwy 62; headquarters in Twentynine Palms, CA

Viewed from the road, this desert park only hints at its vitality. Closer examination reveals a fascinating variety of plants and animals that make their home in this land shaped by strong winds, unpredictable torrents of rain, and climatic extremes. Dark night skies, a rich cultural history, and surreal geologic features add to the attraction of this place. Come see for yourself!
Rockscape

National Historic Trail
Juan Bautista de Anza
Nogales, AZ to San Francisco, CA, AZ,CA

"Everyone mount up!" This became a familiar call from Spanish Captain Juan Bautista de Anza. In 1776, as Americans fought for their independence in the East, Anza led almost 300 people over 1200 miles to settle Alta California. It was the first overland route established to connect New Spain with San Francisco. Walk in their footsteps from Nogales, Arizona to San Francisco, California.
Los Angeles River mural representing the Anza expedition

National Park
Kings Canyon
In the southern Sierra Nevada in Tulare and Fresno counties, CA

This landscape testifies to nature's size, beauty, and diversity - huge mountains, rugged foothills, deep canyons, vast caverns, and the world's largest trees! These two parks lie side by side in the southern Sierra Nevada, east of the San Joaquin Valley. Visitor activities vary by season and elevation (1,300' to 14,494').
Cave formation in Sequoia National Park.

National Park
Lassen Volcanic
Mineral, CA

Come witness a brief moment in the ancient battle between the earth shaping forces of creation and destruction. Nestled within Lassen's peaceful mountain forests you will find that hissing fumaroles and boiling mud pots still shape and change the land.

National Historic Site
Manzanar
Independence, CA

In 1942, the United States government ordered more than 110,000 men, women, and children to leave their homes and detained them in remote, military-style camps. Manzanar War Relocation Center was one of ten camps where Japanese American citizens and resident Japanese aliens were interned during World War II.
Cemetery Monument with snow covered sierra

National Preserve
Mojave
Southern California between I-15 and I-40; headquarters in Barstow, CA

Singing sand dunes, volcanic cinder cones, Joshua tree forests, and carpets of wildflowers are all found at this 1.6 million acre park. A visit to its canyons, mountains and mesas will reveal long-abandoned mines, homesteads, and rock-walled military outposts. Located between Los Angeles and Las Vegas, Mojave provides serenity and solitude from major metropolitan areas.
photo of sunset

National Historic Trail
Old Spanish
AZ,CA,CO,NV,NM,UT

Take a journey across the Southwest on the Old Spanish National Historic Trail between Santa Fe and Los Angeles for history, culture, and scenic beauty.
A muddy Virgin River flows past red rock cliffs in Arizona.National Seashore
Point Reyes
Point Reyes, CA

From its thunderous ocean breakers crashing against rocky headlands and expansive sand beaches to its open grasslands, brushy hillsides and forested ridges, Point Reyes offers visitors over 1000 species of plants and animals to discover. Home to several cultures over thousands of years, the Seashore preserves a tapestry of stories and interactions of people. Point Reyes awaits your exploration.

National Historic Trail
Pony Express
Various States, CA,CO,KS,MO,NE,NV,UT,WY

The Pony Express NHT was used by young men on fast horses to carry the nation's mail from Missouri to California in the unprecedented time of only ten days. The relay system became the nation's most direct and practical means of east-west communications before the telegraph, and it played a vital role in aligning California with the Union in the years just before the Civil War.
Historians disagree whether Cold Springs station in western Nevada served as a home station or a relay station for the Pony Express.

National Memorial
Port Chicago Naval Magazine
Concord Naval Weapons Station, CA

On the evening of July 17, 1944, residents in the San Francisco east bay area were jolted awake by a massive explosion that cracked windows and lit up the night sky. At Port Chicago Naval Magazine, 320 men were instantly killed when the munitions ships they were loading with ammunition for the Pacific theatre troops blew up. Reservations are required to visit this site.
Wharf loading operations at Port Chicago in the 1940's - Navy Photo

Presidio of San Francisco
San Francisco, CA

For 218 years, the Presidio served as an army post for three nations. World and local events, from military campaigns to the rise of aviation, from World Fairs to earthquakes, left their mark. Come enjoy the history and beauty of the Presidio. Explore centuries of architecture. Reflect in a national cemetery. Walk through an historic airfield, forests, or to beaches, and admire spectacular vistas.
Flowers at Crissy Field

National and State Parks
Redwood
Del Norte & Humboldt counties , CA

Most visitors know Redwood National and State Parks as home to the world's tallest trees--icons that inspire visions of mist-laden primeval forests bordering crystal-clear streams. But did you know that the parks also protect vast prairies, oak woodlands, and nearly 40 miles of wild coastline, all of which support a rich mosaic of wildlife diversity and cultural traditions? more...
foggy coast redwood forest

National Historical Park
Rosie the Riveter WWII Home Front
Richmond , CA

Rosie the Riveter/World War II Home Front National Historical Park, located in the wartime boomtown of Richmond, California, preserves and interprets the stories and places of our nation's home front response to World War II.
World War II Kaiser Shipyard Workers, Richmond California

National Historical Park
San Francisco Maritime
San Francisco, CA

Stand on the stern of Balclutha, face west to feel the fresh wind blowing in from the Pacific Ocean. Located in the Fisherman's Wharf neighborhood, San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park offers the sights, sounds, smells and stories of Pacific Coast maritime history.
Sailors aloft furling a sail on a square rigged ship.

National Recreation Area
Santa Monica Mountains
Thousand Oaks, CA

Spring is upon us and a new season brings new life back to the Santa Monica Mountains. Cool rains and sunshine revitalize our hills as they become green once again and lay the foundation for wildflowers to return. Explore this unique place. Plus, you can always find something to do and plan your visit by learning more...
Photo: Circle X Ranch provides mountain and ocean views from the highest points in the Santa Monica Mountains.

National Parks
Sequoia & Kings Canyon
In the southern Sierra Nevada in Tulare and Fresno counties, CA

This landscape testifies to nature's size, beauty, and diversity - huge mountains, rugged foothills, deep canyons, vast caverns, and the world's largest trees! These two parks lie side by side in the southern Sierra Nevada, east of the San Joaquin Valley. Visitor activities vary by season and elevation (1,300' to 14,494').
Cave formation in Sequoia National Park.

National Recreation Area
Whiskeytown
Whiskeytown, CA

Located 8 miles west of Redding, Whiskeytown National Recreation Area is geographically situated at the juncture of the Klamath Mountain Range and the northern edge of the Central Valley, making it home to a diverse collection of animal and plant life. The park provides outdoor enthusiasts with excellent opportunities for water recreation, hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding, and camping.
Whiskeytown Lake with clouds reflecting in the lakeNational Park
Yosemite
the Sierra Nevada, CA

but a shrine to human foresight, strength of granite, power of glaciers, the persistence of life, and the tranquility of the High Sierra. Yosemite National Park, one of the first wilderness parks in the United States, is best known for its waterfalls, but within its nearly 1,200 square miles, you can find deep valleys, grand meadows, ancient giant sequoias, a vast wilderness area, and much more.

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