California is a fascinating place. There are many entertaining and interesting facts that make this remarkable state truly unique. Discover a selection of fun facts about California!
Fun Facts About California's Size and Impact
No matter how you look at it, there's nothing small about California! From the state's population to its size and economy, there's a lot to explore about California's impact.
- With nearly 40 million residents, the population of California is enormous. More people live there than in any other state in the United States of America (U.S.).
- Even though California has the most people, it's only the third biggest state in terms of land. California takes up 155,973 square miles. Alaska is more than three times the size of California, and Texas is nearly double.
- Where do all the billionaires live? Most of them call California home. As of March 2020, more billionaires lived in California than any other U.S. state.
- Silicon Valley has the highest concentration of millionaires (13.6% as of 2020) of any U.S. metro. This metro includes San Jose, Sunnyvale and Santa Clara.
- California's enormity is so big that it's actually larger than most other countries. On its own, the state of California has the sixth-largest economy in the entire world.
- California is the almond capital of the world. More almonds are grown in California than anywhere else on Earth.
Entertaining Facts About California Activities
There are a lot of great activities and attractions to explore throughout California. Whether you live there or plan to visit, there is no shortage of fun to be had!
- Love the great outdoors? With a total of nine national parks, California is home to more national parks than any other U.S. state.
- California also has more than 300 state parks! In this extensive state park system, you'll find opportunities for camping, hiking, water activities, and wildlife viewing.
- Do you dream of knowing what it's like to be on a movie set? California's major movie studios offer tours that are open to the public.
- Want to get up close and personal with a whale? There are amazing whale watching opportunities along the California coastline.
- Relive California's gold rush history and the early days of the Wild West by visiting Bodie State historic park. Be sure to check out some other gold rush towns as well.
- The Disney theme park empire began in California. When Disneyland opened in 1955, the Anaheim attraction became the first Disney park in the world.
- Disneyland isn't the only must-visit theme park in California. The state is home to Universal Studios, Legoland, Six Flags, Sea World, and several others.
Fascinating Facts About California's History
California has a rich and storied history to explore. Its history began long before becoming a U.S. state and continues with every passing day.
- At the time San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge opened in 1937, it was the longest suspension bridge in the world. Even now, the engineering marvel is still the second-largest bridge of its kind.
- Californa hasn't been part of America since the country began. Prior to becoming a state, the land that is now California was under Spanish rule, then Mexican rule.
- California is the 31st state. It received statehood in 1850. It was admitted between Wisconsin (the 30th state) and Minnesota (the 32nd).
- California entered the United States as a free state, which means that slavery was never legal in the state.
- Sacramento has been California's capital city since 1854, but the state went through two other capital cities (San Jose and Vallejo) before settling on Sacramento.
- California's state flag relates to the Bear Flag Revolt, an incident that occurred in 1846 while California was under Mexican rule. Some settlers staged a revolt, declaring California to be an independent republic. The flag those settlers used became the state flag in 1911.
Get to Know the U.S. States
If you love learning about California, check out some Southern California slang words. Now that you've had fun getting to know some fascinating facts about this West Coast state, explore more facts about North America. Then, learn about another warm state with some Hawaii fun facts.