The Spanish consolidated power in California with 21 strategic missions

Ranchos were large land grants in California to Spanish, Mexican leading families

They were typically given to leading families or retired soldiers as means of settling the land with loyal people. The hundreds of ranchos have since shaped land-use policy in the area, determining plots of major cities and ranches today.

See the path Spanish conquistadors took to conquer the Aztecs

Spanish expeditions reached central Mexico as the Aztec Empire was expanding its influence. After securing bases in the Caribbean, they advanced west into Aztec territory, triggering a cascading conflict depicted in this interactive map and timeline.

The Indigenous people of the central Californian coast made many advancements

The Indigenous people of the central Californian coast made advancements in basketry, small stone tools, the use of shell beads as currency, and plank canoes for seafaring. In the years before European contact, their numbers reach 25,000 across 150 settlements.

A quick overview of Santa Barbara

The central California city with the year-round Mediterranean climate weaves a fascinating history of indigenous, Spanish, Mexican, and then US history. This three-minute overview touches on the city's layered story, distinct architecture, and many celebrities.

California is one of the world’s 35 biodiversity hotspots

The state comprises the hotspot known as the California Floristic Province, where roughly 3,000 species of vascular plants grow—roughly three-fifths of which are found nowhere else in the world (also known as endemic).

A 1927 map shows where Paramount shot its many productions

The skeleton key of California identified in-state locations that would substitute for shooting films abroad. It includes some interesting choices, like establishing Wales along the Los Angeles coast.

Cinco de Mayo holiday celebrations originated with California's Mexican Americans during the Civil War

California Latinos first celebrated Cinco de Mayo in 1862 through patriotic assemblies called Juntas Patrióticas. Ardent Union supporters, these individuals saw the Puebla victory as a win for democracy against both French imperialism and the Confederate cause.

The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo forced Mexico to surrender over half its territory

Signed in 1848, the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ended the war but came at a steep cost for Mexico—ceding 55% of its territory, including California and the Southwest, in exchange for $15 million and vague promises to protect Mexican residents.

The Geysers is the largest geothermal power complex in the world

Despite the Mayacamas Mountains area north of San Francisco lacking geysers, the name given by a grizzly bear hunter stuck after the construction of The Geysers Resort Hotel to accommodate tourists. Natural steam vents in the region are funneled into more than 12 geothermal plants, each capable of powering about 40,000 homes.

Spanish colonists celebrated alongside the Seloy tribe in Florida in 1565

Long before the 1621 meal between the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag, Pedro Menéndez de Avilés and 800 Spanish settlers founded the city of St. Augustine in Spanish la Florida. They celebrated the founding with a Mass of Thanksgiving with the Indigenous Seloy tribe.

San Francisco's Mission-style burritos were designed for firefighters

It first appeared in the Mission District in the 1960s. Mission burritos are often made in an assembly line so diners can choose their preferred fillings, then wrapped in foil for easy transportation. They’re also usually full to bursting––supposedly because they were originally intended to feed hungry firefighters.

Spanish Colonial Revival favors red clay roofs, white stucco, decorative ironwork

The style recalls the motifs of structures in both Europe and in colonial Spain. Beyond clay roofs and stucco, the design also showcases arches and arcades, painted tiles, towers, and more.

There's a legal loophole behind California Champagne

In the late 19th century, sparkling wine production took root in California before France began the fight to own the term “Champagne.” Many American winemakers already used it for easy recognition. The battle continued for over a century before reaching an agreement in 2005, stipulating that American sparkling wine couldn’t be labeled as Champagne unless the producer was already calling it such.

3 US maps illustrate transplants, donors, and organ waitlist additions—by state

National UNOS tracking data feeds into these US maps that record all the transplants, donors, and waitlist additions in the last 12 months. California, for example, had the most transplantations in 2025—totaling about 5,200—but it also has the longest waiting list, with more than 20,000 additions in that same period.

The United Nations was founded in San Francisco in 1945

The 1945 San Francisco Conference brought together delegates from 50 nations to draft the United Nations Charter, laying the foundation for the UN. This archival footage from the UN captures the event's atmosphere, showcasing firsthand reactions and the global hope for peace after World War II.

15 facts about the Cali Cartel

The Cali Cartel was a drug cartel based in southern Colombia. Originally founded by the Rodríguez Orejuela brothers in the early 1970s, the cartel changed the structure of drug trafficking, and is often considered “the most powerful crime...

The Monroe Doctrine helped lead to the American occupation of territory abroad

This podcast explores how the policy motivated a century of US military intervention throughout Latin America, the Caribbean, and the Pacific—covering the annexation of Hawaii, the Spanish-American War, and occupations of Cuba, Haiti, and Panama.

Jefferson sent Lewis and Clark to map, trade, and secure the West

Beyond seeking a water route to the Pacific, Jefferson tasked the Corps of Discovery with mapping the new Louisiana Territory, cataloging its resources, and establishing trade with Native nations.

17 cities have hosted a Super Bowl, with Miami and New Orleans tied for the most

The resource details where each Super Bowl has been played, listing every host city alongside its stadium, and shows how a small group of warm-weather and domed locations came to dominate hosting duties over time.

Explore the wineries of the Napa Valley

Plan your own Napa tour with this interactive map of the hundreds of wineries, vineyards, and tasting rooms in the valley. You can sort by a variety of different factors, including whether or not the location requires reservations, types of wine available, and even dog-friendliness. Once you’ve selected your stops, the site can also optimize your route so you spend less time in the car and more time at the wineries.

Medieval hospitals existed centuries before modern medicine

Long before modern healthcare, medieval Europe established hospitals that served multiple roles, including religious, social, and medical purposes. This podcast explores how institutions like Siena’s Ospedale di Santa Maria della Scala supported urban and rural communities for centuries.

A map of religious radio stations in the US

A Pew analysis of 440,000 hours of broadcasts found more than 4,000 faith-based AM/FM stations reach 98% of American adults (out of a total of 17,000 licensed stations). Ownership is highly concentrated, with the top 30% of stations belonging to large groups; Educational Media Foundation's K-LOVE and Air1 networks alone hold hundreds of licenses nationwide.

The first motel appeared in 1925

The Milestone Mo-Tel was designed by Arthur and Alfred Heneman. The two architect brothers in San Luis Obispo noticed Americans choosing road trip vacations—which grew in popularity in the 1920s—but had limited sleeping options outside of campgrounds. The Milestone Mo-Tel was later renamed the Motel Inn.

Sanctuary cities limit local cooperation with federal immigration enforcement

Sanctuary cities limit how local agencies help ICE—such as restricting detainers, jail transfers, or data sharing—while still enforcing criminal law, leaving immigration enforcement mostly to federal authorities.

Charting the countries with large Sikh populations

While the vast majority of contemporary Sikhs live in Punjab, India, millions have moved elsewhere in the world, especially in anglophone countries. This chart shows which countries host the largest communities of the Sikh diaspora in the world.

See a 3D reconstruction of Tenochtitlan, the Aztec capital that was home to an estimated population of 200,000 to 400,000.

Explore an interactive map of battles from the American Revolution, along with detailed summaries of each engagement

44% of Americans say they pray at least once a day—discover how your state's religiosity stacks up against the rest of the country.

Stanford built a Google Maps for the Roman Empire, revealing how much it cost to travel in the ancient world

The name 'Silicon Valley' arose from the founding of Shockley Semiconductor Laboratory in Fairchild Semiconductor in 1956-57, founded near Stanford University in Palo Alto

70 years ago today, city officials in Santa Cruz, California, banned rock 'n' roll to protect its youth from corruption after witnessing a 'provocative' concert the night before.

The United States is one of only around two dozen countries with a fully federal system of government, in which power is divided between national and state governments.

The use of fungi to detoxify land and water—a process known as mycoremediation—has been used to clean up natural resources affected by the 2025 California wildfires.

In 2018, 26-year-old missionary John Allen Chau was killed by tribesmen after attempting to reach and evangelize on India's isolated North Sentinel Island

While El Niño moves warm Pacific Ocean waters east along the equator, La Niña moves them west, shifting where rainfall will become more common for months.

'Shogun,' a 1980s TV series, helped popularize sushi in the US by stimulating an American interest in Japanese culture.

Visualize the path of every solar eclipse from 1900 to 2099 and see what each looks like when observed from different locations on Earth.

See photos of Meteora, a mountainous site in central Greece, home to 14th-century monasteries perched atop soaring outcroppings.

'Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone,' a work by American painter Thomas Moran, inspired Congress to establish Yellowstone National Park.

Hear about the 250-year history of the United States Postal Service, complete with some of its strangest deliveries, important innovations, and the figures that made it an American institution.

See 33 images that became central to huge scandals, including a young Charles and Camilla, Michael Jackson's baby on a hotel balcony, and Hugh Grant's mugshot.

Legendary architect Frank Lloyd Wright designed the SC Johnson headquarters in Wisconsin, aiming to make a cathedral-like workplace

Waves off the coast of Nazaré, Portugal, can reach over 100 feet and are caused by the area's deep underwater canyon geography

See how Budweiser's famous Clydesdales spend their days at Warm Springs Ranch, where roughly 70 to 80 of the beer brand's giant horses can be found at any given time.

The term 'algorithm' originated from the Latinized name of al-Khwārizmī, a 9th-century mathematician whose works introduced Arabic numerals and the decimal-based numeral system to Europe and whose treatise 'Al-Jabr' gave algebra its name.

The Nasdaq's 'Magnificent 7' companies are responsible for roughly 40% of the Nasdaq 100 index's gains, while the remaining 93 companies account for the other 60%.

In 1945, Surrealist artist Salvador Dalí and legendary animator Walt Disney began collaborating on a short film that was not completed until 2003, years after both men had died.

Volcanoes 'die' when their supply of magma runs out, if they are shifted away from their underlying magma reservoir, or if they get clogged by collapsing or their magma cooling back into rock.

Hotels in Cannes, the glamorous city on the French Riviera, hire hawks to ward off seagulls during the city's famous film festival.

The concept of phantom limbs, the perception that amputated limbs are still present, dates back to a French military surgeon in the 16th century.