United States Censuses, reports on forests; United States Biological
Survey, North American Fauna, No. 16, 1899, C. H. Merriam,
“Biological Survey of Mt. Shasta”; United States Department
Agriculture, Contributions from United States National Herbarium,
iv., 1893, F. V. Coville, “Botany of Death Valley Expedition”;
State Board of Fish Commissioners, Reports, from 1877; United
States Fish Commissioners, Annual Reports, from 1871, and Bulletins
from 1882; J. le Conte, “Flora of the Coast Islands” (1887), being
Bulletin No. 8 of California Academy of Sciences; consult also its
Proceedings, Memoirs, and Occasional Papers; G. J. Peirce, Studies
on the Coast Redwood (publication of Leland Stanford jr. University,
1901).
Agriculture.—California Agricultural Experiment Station, Bulletins from 1884; Reports of the State Dairy Bureau, from 1898; State Board of Horticulture, Reports, 1889–1894; United States Censuses, 1890 and 1900, reports on irrigation.
Industries.—J. S. Hittell, Resources of California (7th ed., San Francisco, 1879); J. S. Hittell, Commerce and Industries of the Pacific Coast (San Francisco, 1882); T. F. Cronise, Natural Wealth of California (San Francisco, 1868); E. W. Maslin, Resources of California, prepared by order of Governor H. H. Markham (Sacramento, 1893); United States Treasury, Bureau of Statistics, report by T. J. Vivian on “Commercial, Industrial, Agricultural, Transportation and Other Industries of California” (Washington 1890, valuable for whole period before 1890); United States Censuses, 1890 and 1900, reports on agriculture, manufactures, mines and fisheries; California State Board of Trade (San Francisco), Annual Report from 1890. On Mineral Industries:—J. R. Browne, Report on “Mineral Resources of the States and Territories west of the Rocky Mountains” (United States Treasury, 2 vols., Washington, 1867–1868); United States Geological Survey, Annual Reports, Mineral Resources; consult also the bibliographies of publications of the Survey, issued as Bulletins; California State Mining Bureau, Bulletins from 1888, note especially No. 30, 1904, by A. W. Vodges, “Bibliography relating to the Geology, Palaeontology and Mineral Resources of California” (2nd ed., the 1st being Bulletin No. 10, 1896); California Débris Commission, Reports (in Annual Reports Chief of Engineers, United States Army, from 1893).
Government.—E. F. Treadwell, The Constitution of the State of California . . . Annotated (San Francisco, 1902); Johns Hopkins University, Studies in History and Political Science, xiii., R. D. Hunt, “Genesis of California’s First Constitution”; Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, xii., R. D. Hunt, “Legal Status of California, 1846–1849”; Reports of the various officers, departments and administrative boards of the state government (Sacramento), and also the Appendix to the Journals of the Senate and Assembly, which contains, especially in the earlier decades of the state’s history, many of these state official reports along with valuable legislative reports of varied character.
History.—Accounts of the valuable archives in Bancroft, and by Z. E. Eldridge in California Genealogical Society (1901); elaborate bibliographies in Bancroft with analyses and appreciations of many works. Of general scope and fundamental importance is the work of two men, Hubert H. Bancroft and Theodore H. Hittell. The former has published a History of California, 1542–1890 (7 vols., San Francisco, 1884–1890), also California Pastoral, 1769–1848 (San Francisco, 1888), California Inter-Pocula, 1848–1856 (San Francisco, 1888), and Popular Tribunals (2 vols., San Francisco, 1887). These volumes were largely written under Mr. Bancroft’s direction and control by an office staff, and are of very unequal value; they are a vast storehouse of detailed material which is of great usefulness, although their judgments of men are often inadequate and prejudiced. As regards events the histories are of substantial accuracy and adequacy. Written by one hand and more uniform in treatment and good judgment, is T. H. Hittell’s History of California (4 vols., San Francisco, 1885–1897). The older historian of the state was Francisco Palou, a Franciscan, the friend and biographer of Serra; his “Noticias de la Nueva California” (Mexico, 1857, in the Doc. Hist. Mex., ser. iv., tom. vi.-viii.; also San Francisco, 1874, 4 vols.) is no longer of importance save for its historical interest. Of the contemporary material on the period of Mexican domination the best is afforded by R. H. Dana’s Two Years Before the Mast (New York, 1840, many later and foreign editions); also A. Robinson, Life in California (New York, 1846); and Alexander Forbes, California: A History of Upper and Lower California from their First Discovery to the Present Time (London, 1839); see also F. W. Blackmar, “Spanish Institutions of the Southwest” (Johns Hopkins University Studies, 1891). A beautiful, vivid and reputedly very accurate picture of the old society is given in Helen Hunt Jackson’s novel, Ramona (New York, 1884). There is no really scientific separate account of mission history; there are books by Father Z. Engelhart, The Franciscans in California (Harbor Springs, Michigan, 1899), written entirely from a Franciscan standpoint; C. F. Carter, Missions of Nueva California (San Francisco, 1900); Bryan J. Clinch, California and its Missions: Their History to the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (2 vols., San Francisco, 1904); Francisco Palou, Relacion Historica de la Vida . . . del Fray Junipero Serra (Mexico, 1787), the standard contemporary source; the Craftsman (Syracuse, N.Y., vol. v.), a series of articles on “Mission Buildings,” by G. W. James. On the case of the Pious Fund of the missions see J. F. Doyle, History of the Pious Fund (San Francisco, 1887); United States Department of State, “United States v. Mexico. Report of J. H. Ralston, agent of the United States and of counsel in the matter of the Pious Fund of the Californias” (Washington, 1902). On the “flush” mining years the best books of the time are J. Q. Thornton’s Oregon and California (2 vols., New York, 1849); Edward Bryant’s What I Saw in California (New York, 1848); W. Shaw’s Golden Dreams (London, 1851); Bayard Taylor’s Eldorado (2 vols., New York, 1850); W. Colton’s Three Years in California (New York, 1850); E. G. Buffum’s Six Months in the Gold Mines; from a Journal of Three Years’ Residence in Upper and Lower California (London, 1850); J. T. Brooks’ Four Months among the Gold Finders (London, 1849); G. G. Foster, Gold Regions of California (New York, 1884). On this same period consult Bancroft’s Popular Tribunals; D. Y. Thomas, “A History of Military Government in Newly Acquired Territory of the United States,” in vol. xx. No. 2 (New York, 1904) of Columbia University Studies in History, Economics, and Public Law; C. H. Shinn’s Mining Camps: A Study in American Frontier Government (New York, 1885); J. Royce, California . . . A Study of American Character, 1846–1856 (Boston, 1886); and, for varied pictures of mining and frontier life, the novels and sketches and poems of Bret Harte. See also P. H. Burnet, Recollections and Opinions of an Old Pioneer (New York, 1880); S. J. Field, Personal Reminiscences of Early Days in California (privately published, copyright 1893).
CALIFORNIA, LOWER (Baja California), a long narrow peninsula between the Gulf of California and the Pacific Ocean, forming a territory of the republic of Mexico. Pop. (1895), 42,245; (1900) 47,624. Lower California is a southward extension of the State of California, United States, and is touched by only one of the Mexican states, that of Sonora on the E. The peninsula is about 760 m. long and from 30 to 150 m. wide, and has an area of 58,328 sq. m. It is traversed throughout its entire length by an irregular range of barren mountains, which slopes toward the Pacific in a succession of low hills, but breaks down abruptly toward the Gulf. The coast has two or three good sheltered bays, that of La Paz on the Gulf side and of Magdalena on the Pacific side being best known. The coast is bordered by numerous islands, especially on the eastern side. The general appearance of the surface is arid and desolate, partly because of the volcanic remains, and partly because of the scanty rainfall, which is insufficient to support vegetation other than that of the desert except in the deeper mountain valleys. The northern part is hot and dry, like southern California, but the southern part receives more rain and has some fertile tracts, with a mild and pleasant climate. The principal natural product in this region is orchil, or Spanish moss, but by means of irrigation the soil produces a considerable variety of products, including sugar cane, cotton, cassava, cereals, tobacco and grapes. Horses, sheep and cattle are raised in the fertile valleys, but only to a limited extent. The territory is rich in minerals, among which are gold, silver, copper, lead, gypsum, coal and salt. The silver mines near La Paz were worked by the Jesuits as early as 1700. There are also extensive pearl fisheries in the Gulf, La Paz being the headquarters of the industry, and whale fisheries on the W. coast in the vicinity of Magdalena Bay. The development of mining and other industries in the territory has led to an extension of the California railway system southward into the peninsula, with the Mexican government’s permission, the first section of 37 m. from the northern frontier being completed and opened to traffic in 1907. The territory is divided into two districts, the northern having its capital at the insignificant little village of La Ensenada, on Todos Santos Bay, and the southern having its capital at La Paz, at the head of a deep bay opening into the Gulf. La Paz is a port of call for steamships running between Mazatlan and San Francisco, and had a population of 5056 in 1900. La Ensenada (pop. in 1906, about 1500), 65 m. by sea S. of San Diego, Cal., is the only port for the northern part of the territory, and supplies a district extending 250 m. along the coast and 60 m. inland, including the mining camps of the north; it manufactures and exports flour and leather.
By orders of Cortés the coast of Lower California was explored in 1539 by Francisco de Ulloa, but no settlement resulted. It was called California, the name (according to E. E. Hale) being derived from a popular Spanish romance of that time, entitled Sergas de Esplandian, in which an island named California was mentioned and situated “on the right hand of the Indies, very
