About

Access California is a professionally guided entry point to California history for public audiences. For learning new topics and deepening understanding alike, Access California is a trustworthy, inclusive and accessible tool to find and explore credible sources and authentic, impactful locations for a reliable understanding of central topics in California’s story. 

Audiences are guided through California’s story by identifying quality sources and using professional historical analysis standards to understand them. Topics are accessed by:

Guided reading of two recent, significant books on each topic which are primary source based, with clear citations and published by trusted sources.

Identifying major themes and main arguments by leading historians for robust introductions to topics. 

Visiting culturally significant locations and appreciating their connections with historical events.

California’s thousands of miles, tens of millions of people, and multi-trillion dollar economy rank larger than most independent countries. Its history and popular culture are often nationally and globally impactful, and hundreds of millions of travelers visit annually. There is so much worth learning from California's story, and Access California’s improved guidance makes it as accessible as it should be with interesting, quality sources and analysis. 

Getting credible information is often harder than it should be. For curious individuals, building a reading list of quality sources can often be difficult and time consuming without a clear path for where to start. Primary and secondary school California history topics share a busy curriculum alongside other subjects and extracurriculars which can reduce students’ abilities to fully retain historical stories, and opportunities for multiple California-specific courses in universities are often limited. Museums and historical site visits require flexible travel and timing that many people unfortunately struggle to find without guidance. Curious learners too frequently find it more convenient to consult the flood of less reliable information online which lacks professional standards and sometimes fuels falsehoods and public history controversies.

Everyone interested in California’s story can benefit from meaningful, increased access to professional quality understanding of the state’s central identities. Access California addresses obstacles by providing an improved public entry point for professional quality connection with California history. A topic as historically significant and complex as California certainly deserves this.

Access California aims short term to increase access to ten of the biggest topics in California's history identified by university survey texts. The project strives to align with the highest academic and public history standards and engage collaboratively with relevant professionals and organizations. This content and outreach trajectory enable it to serve as the quality, respectable resource that audiences deserve. 

The core of this vision is presented in Access California’s sample release "The California Gold Rush” content, and inquiries or outreach are encouraged.