The California Frontier Project

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Native Americans of the San Francisco Bay Area: The Ohlone Tribe, Part 1

By Damian Bacich

The Ohlone people occupied  the San Francisco and Monterey Bay regions for thousands of years. Part 1 of a 2 part series. In the first part of this series, we will discuss the Ohlone name, their traditional territory, Ohlone languages, housing, food and clothes.

Filed Under: California Indians Tagged With: Anza, Bay Area, California Indians (Standard 1), Costanoan, Ohlone

Settlers on the California Frontier (Part 1)

By Damian Bacich

Who settled California? What was their life like? What were the first towns?

Filed Under: Californios, Daily Lives, European Settlements, Spanish Exploration and Colonization Tagged With: Anza, Branciforte, Californios, Daily lives, Frontier, Hijar-Padrés, King Carlos III, Los Angeles, Pueblos, San Francisco

Soldiers and Presidios in Alta California (with video)

By Damian Bacich

Who were the soldiers that came to Alta California? What was their life like? What were the presidios and what was their role on the frontier?

Filed Under: European Settlements, Soldiers and Presidios, Spanish Exploration and Colonization Tagged With: Anza, leatherjacket, Military, Monterey, Presidios, San Diego, San Francisco, Santa Barbara, solados de cuera, Soldiers, Sonoma

Podcast Episode 002 — “You Have to Carry This On”: What it Means to Be a Californio

By Damian Bacich

What it Means to be a Californio

In this episode, I speak with Greg Bernal-Mendoza Smestad, a direct descendant of the families who settled Alta California over 200 years ago.  Greg talks to us about their journey, the character of those people who risked their lives to come to come north, and the legacy they passed on.

Filed Under: Daily Lives, European Settlements, Podcast Episodes, Spanish Exploration and Colonization Tagged With: Anza, Bay Area, Californios, genealogy, living history, National Park Service, San José

Beyond Clichés

By Damian Bacich

  Recently I began recording a series of interviews for a new podcast I will be launching as part of California Frontier. For one of the first interviews, I had the pleasure of visiting Greg Bernal Smestad. Greg has made it his mission to preserve and maintain the heritage his ancestors, who came to California […]

Filed Under: European Settlements, Spanish Exploration and Colonization Tagged With: Anza, Californios, Virgin of Guadalupe

Saving Our Stories

By Damian Bacich

A few nights ago I attended a community meeting aimed at designating my county as a National Heritage Area. Throughout the United States, from Alaska to West Virginia, there are over 60 National Heritage Areas. Not one is in California. 

Filed Under: News Tagged With: Anza, National Park Service

Exploration and Settlement of California (Part 2 of 2)

By Damian Bacich

Juan Bautista de Anza

For most of the 17th and 18th centuries, Spanish ships dominated the Pacific. But her rivals Russia and England were busy contesting that dominance. Who would be the first to settle California?

Filed Under: Early Land and Sea Routes, European Settlements, Spanish Exploration and Colonization Tagged With: Anza, Bering, Cook, Gálvez, Junipero Serra, Portolá

I’m Dr. Damian Bacich, and I started the California Frontier Project. Learn more about me and the project here.

Teaching Materials for the Whole Year

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