About California Past

This website is created by Dr. Ea Madrigal, Ph.D. of Nineteenth Century U.S. and California History. The creation of the site was made possible by Rio Hondo College. The website aims to share largely forgotten or unheard stories from Californians who lived primarily before the early 20th century with an emphasis in sharing stories from underrepresented communities. It also hopes to illuminate life in California particularly in the Spanish, Mexican, and early American periods.

Many thanks and gratitude go to Rio Hondo College who made the creation of this website possible. Also, thank you to the librarians and staff at the University of California, Riverside and the Huntington Research Library in San Marino for access to invaluable resources. Thank you to the scholars and historians who gave their time to participate in our audio section of this website as well as the scholars of early California history who offered important insights for this site. And thank you to all the voices from California’s past who overcame often significant obstacles and attempted to find ways to share their vital stories for future generations. May this site serve as a humble memorial to them.