California Cemeteries
Find links and information on locating cemeteries in California...[More]
http://www.uscemeteries.net/california/cemeteries.htm

California Obituaries
Learn how and where to locate obituaries and death records in California...[More]
http://www.newspaperobituaries.net/california/obituaries.htm

Abstract of Graves of Revolutionary Patriots
This collection of abstracts of grave sites contains information originally published in the Senate documents of the National Society, Daughters of the American Revolution, as well as the Society magazine. Veterans and patriots of the Revolutionary War whose graves were found between 1900 and 1987 are included in this first volume. Included in eac...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4110

Albert S. Evans, Life in California
News of rugged California life was a regular part of some eastern newspapers in the 1860s and 1870s. This database is a collection of stories, anecdotes, and folklore as recorded by an eastern journalist and adventurer while living in the state. He provides a tour of the San Andreas Valley and other parts of northern California. Also included are s...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3807

Albert Williams, San Francisco, California Pastorate, 1849-54
Long-time pastor of a church in Clifton, New Jersey, Albert Williams was sent by the Presbyterian Board of Missions to California in February 1849. This database is a collection of his memories living in San Francisco between 1849 and 1854. In it he provides his experiences founding the First Presbyterian Church, commentary on missionary work among...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4378

Alexandre Dumas, Trip to California
Pursuing gold, immigrants came from around the world to settle on the West Coast of the United States. This database, promoted as non-fiction, is the transcription of a work by one of the most acclaimed French novelists of the nineteenth century, Alexandre Dumas. It recounts the travels of a young Frenchman to California during the Gold Rush. He in...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3985

Alonzo Delano, California Correspondence, 1849-52
Winning fame as an early California humorist, Alonzo Delano traveled from Ottawa, Illinois, to the West Coast in 1849. This database is a collection of his letters to the Ottawa Free Trader between his arrival in the territory and 1852. It includes accounts of his life in Sacramento, Marysville, and San Francisco. It also reveals his experiences as...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3979

Around the Horn in '49; Journal of the Hartford Union Mining and Trading Company
Linville John Hall, a Hartford, Connecticut printer, was a member of the Hartford Union Company, a joint venture that purchased the Henry Lee and outfitted the ship with supplies and equipment for gold prospecting in California. All but one of the passengers and crew on the vessel in January 1849 were members of the company. Hall remained in Cali...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=5120

Bayard Taylor, California Correspondence, 1849
A well-established writer, Bayard Taylor traveled to California as a correspondent for the New York Tribune in the summer of 1849. This database is a collection of his dispatches to the newspaper throughout that year. It contains accounts of his journey by ship to the West Coast, visiting mining camps, and his return to New York in 1850. He provide...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4285

Bayard Taylor, California Correspondence, 1850
Traveling to California in the summer of 1849 as a correspondent for the New York Tribune, Bayard Taylor was a respected East Coast writer. This database is a collection of dispatches to the newspaper in 1850, as Taylor returned from California. It contains accounts of his visits to mining camps and his return trip to New York. He provides detailed...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4290

Benjamin Avery, California Poetry and Prose, 1878
In addition to men seeking their fortune in the gold fields, California drew educated professionals seeking a new life on the West Coast. Benjamin Avery was a New York journalist who moved to California in the 1850s and became part owner of the Marysville Appeal. This database is a collection of "word-sketches" Avery wrote that details the scenery ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3774

Benjamin D. Wilson, Report on California Indians, 1852
Indian agents were an important part of the lives of many Native Americans in California after the Mexican-American War. This database is a report filed by one of these agents in the southern part of the territory. Written in 1851 by the mayor of Los Angeles, it outlines the major problems the white settlers were experiencing with the Indians who l...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3864

Benjamin F. Taylor, Trip to San Francisco, 1870s
During the American Civil War, Benjamin F. Taylor was a renowned Chicago newspaper correspondent. Following the war, he became a freelance writer. This database is an account of his trip from Chicago to San Francisco in the 1870s. In great detail, he describes his journey west and lengthy stay in San Francisco. Included are descriptions of Chinatow...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4164

CalGideon Lee Knapp, Extracts from Letters and Journals of Gideon Lee Knapp
Gideon Lee Knapp (d. 1875) married Augusta Murray Spring in 1842 in New York City. In January 1849, Knapp sailed for California, while his wife remained behind with their children. Knapp returned east in October and made New York his home for the rest of his life. This data set contains Gideon Knapp's shipboard letters from his voyage round the ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4753

California and Californians, Vol. 1
This database is the first of four volumes covering the history of California. Beginning with the first Spanish settlers and continuing up through the start of the 20th Century, these volumes include more than simply a narrative history of the state. This first volume gives an historical introduction and history of Spanish California. Other volumes...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3323

California and Californians, Vol. 2
This database is the second of four volumes covering the history of California. Beginning with the first Spanish settlers and continuing up through the start of the 20th Century, these volumes include more than simply a narrative history of the state. This second volume continues where Volume One left off, giving a history of American California. O...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3326

California and Californians, Vol. 3
This database is the third of four volumes covering the history of California. Beginning with the first Spanish settlers and continuing up through the start of the 20th Century, these volumes include more than simply a narrative history of the state. This third volume contains biographical information on important men and women in the history of Ca...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3335

California and Californians, Vol. 4
This database is the last of four volumes covering the history of California. Beginning with the first Spanish settlers and continuing up through the start of the 20th Century, these volumes include more than simply a narrative history of the state. This final volume continues the biographical information on important men and women in the history o...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3341

California Biographies Project
Volunteer project coordinates collection of biographies of Californians. Information is organized by county.
http://members.aol.com/califstateusa/

California Birth Index, 1905-10
Vital records in California have been kept by the state registrar of vital statistics since July 1905. This database is an index to the birth records in California from 1905 through 1910. The database provides such valuable information as first, last, and middle names of those born; birth dates; gender; mother's name; father's name; and the birthpl...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=5247

California Cemetery Inscription Sources
This database contains the cemetery inscription sources for the state of California. Organized by county and cemetery name, it provides the researcher an invaluable tool in finding headstone inscriptions when travel to the cemetery is not possible. Other finding aids included are death and mortuary records for some cemeteries. Periodicals are al...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3265

California Census, 1790-1890
This collection contains the following indexes: 1790 Census Substitute; 1850 Federal Census Index; 1860 Federal Census Index; 1870 Federal Census Index (excluding San Francisco County); 1870 San Francisco County Census Index; 1834 Census Index of Santa Barbara; 1890 Veterans Schedule; 1890 Naval Veterans Schedule. ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3535

California Deaths, 1940-97
Indexing death records in California between 1940 and 1997, this database is an invaluable tool for those researching in the state of California. Vital records in California have been kept by the state registrar of vital statistics since 01 July 1905. This database is an index to the death records in California from 1940 through 1997. The dat...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=5180

California Narratives: A Year of American Travel
Jessie Benton Fremont, the daughter of a Missouri Senator and wife of explorer John C. Fremont, first came to California in 1849, when she and her young daughter spent six months at her husband's newly-acquired ranch at Mariposas, 140 miles east of San Francisco. The Fremonts also spent the years 1851-1852 and 1857-1861 at the Mariposas ranch befo...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=5008

California Narratives: California for Health, Pleasure and Residence
Charles Nordhoff and his family came to America from Prussia when he was a boy and settled in Cincinnati, Ohio. Winning a reputation as a journalist and writer on the sea, Nordhoff was managing editor of the New York Evening Post, 1861-1871. He spent 1872-1873 travelling to California and Hawaii, and returned east to become the Washington corresp...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=5154

California Narratives: Early Voyages to California
Albert Peabody and John Eagleston were merchants in Salem, Massachusetts who sailed to California to capitalize on the needs of the mining industry. They made two separate trips to California, sailing around South America. Early Voyages to California consists of two pieces from the Historical Collections of the Essex Institute. Peabody's trip ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4739

California Narratives: Phoenixiana, or Sketches and Burlesques
George Horatio Derby of Massachusetts graduated from West Point in 1846 at age 23. He then served in the Army Topographical Engineers at Vera Cruz and Cerro Gordo before being sent to California in 1856. He remained there for seven years, leading three exploring expeditions and winning a place as one of the state's first humorists with pieces pub...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=5109

California Narratives: Recollections of a Long and Somewhat Uneventful Life
Stephen Allen Bemis (1828-1919) left Massachusetts in 1846 to live in Chicago. He lived in California from 1852-1854 and 1860-1867. Recollections of a Long and Somewhat Uneventful Life are Bemis' reminiscences of the 1852 journey to California with a Panama crossing. He provides more details of his second stay in California. These include an o...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4735

California Narratives: Summer Saunterings
Frank Harrison Gassaway used the pseudonym "Derrick Dogg" for his numerous writings in the San Francisco Evening Post. This database contains travel letters originally published in the Post. They report transportation routes, hotels and camping sites, natural wonders and manmade tourist attractions, and local lore in Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz, Mo...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=5142

California Narratives: The Adventures of a Forty-Niner
An Albany, New York physician, Daniel Knower, sailed for California in 1849 with twelve prefabricated frame houses for the San Francisco market. This database describes Knower's business and real estate speculations in San Francisco, as well as an extended visit to a mining camp near Coloma and the life of prospectors there. ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=5130

California Narratives: The Expedition of the Donner Party
Eliza Houghton was the youngest child of George Donner, one of two Springfield, Illinois, brothers who organized the ill-fated California-bound emigrant party that bore their name. Eliza and her older sisters were rescued by relief parties that made their way to the stranded travellers at Donner Lae, but their parents perished, and the girls were ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=5007

California Narratives: Fourth Thousand, Life on the Plains
Born in Aurora, New York, Alonzo Delano (1806-1874) moved on to the Midwest as a teenager. July 1848 found him a consumptive Ottawa, Illinois, storekeeper, and he joined a local California Company. He remained in the West after the Gold Rush, winning fame as an early California humorist. Life on the plains and among the diggings (1857) is based ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4709

California Narratives: Glimpses of Hungryland
W.S. Walker left Mason City, Illinois for New York City and his first trip to California (via the Isthmus) in 1864. This database describes his stay in the West in 1880. His stay included a series of odd jobs in Sonoma County, gold prospecting at Park's Bar on the Yuba River, and a revival camp meeting near Healdsburg. In 1879, he took his family f...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=5222

California Narratives: Los Angeles in the Sunny Seventies
Ludwig Salvator, Archduke of Austria, was the son of the Duke of Tuscany. Raised in Florence and Rome, Archduke Ludwig had already published several German-language travel books when he visited Los Angeles in the winter of 1876, not long after the city was linked directly by rail to the East. This database is an English translation of the archduke'...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=5212

California Narratives: Men and Memories of San Francisco
Theodore Augustus Barry and Benjamin Ada Patten established their credentials as California pioneers by arriving in their adopted state before 1 January 1850. This database gives later arrivals a detailed picture of the city as it existed a few months before California statehood. The men describe the streets and the residences and business ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=5196

California Pioneers Project
Directory of resources for genealogical research in California. Includes a pioneer list, links to lists and databases, historical societies, and information.
http://www.cagenweb.com/cpl/

California Pioneers, 1542-1848
This compilation was extracted from the monumental seven-volume History of California by Hubert Bancroft. The information extracted was done with the genealogist in mind and includes lists of inhabitants, lists of pioneers, and a pioneer register. The first section is a list of all male inhabitants from 1769 through 1800 and the number following th...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=1040

California State Roster, 1899 Government and Military records
"California Blue Book, or State Roster, 1899" compiled by Charles Forrest Curry, Secretary of State, Printed at the State Printing office, Sacramento, (no date given). This book contains a listing of over 13,000 state and municipal employees of the State of California for the year 1899. The listing include all governors (Spanish, Mexi...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=5733

California USGenWeb Project
Genealogy website with links to genealogy pages in each of California's 58 counties.
http://www.cagenweb.com/

Carl Meyer, Life in California
Traveling to California in 1849, Carl Meyer was a German-speaking immigrant from Switzerland. This database was originally published in 1938 and contains Meyer's account of his life in California. Researchers will find descriptions of his brief stay in New Orleans, his arrival in San Francisco and his life in Stockton. Additionally, he recounts his...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4039

Caroline Churchill, California Travel Letters, 1870-73
Moving from Chicago to California in 1870, Caroline Churchill traveled extensively throughout the state from 1870 to 1873. This database is a collection of letters penned by her about her experiences in the West. Originally published in 1874, it contains valuable descriptions of San Jose, San Francisco, Santa Rosa, and Los Angeles. She also include...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4104

Caroline Churchill, California Travel Letters, 1874-80
Moving from Chicago to California in 1870, Caroline Churchill traveled extensively throughout the state between her arrival and 1873. This database is a continuation of the California Narratives: Travel Letter, 1870-1873. It is a collection of letters penned by Churchill regarding her experiences in the West. Originally published in 1881, it contai...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4111

Charles Beebe Turrill , Notes
Charles Beebe Turrill was a California historian and promoter. He lived from 1854 to 1927. California Notes is a guide for travellers, offering details of the state's weather, geology, and vegetation, as well as recommended travel routes, historical notes, business statistics, and sightseeing tips for visitors to San Francisco, Stockton, Calavera...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4962

Charles Dowsett, California Land Sales Agent, 1891
In 1890, Charles Finch Dowsett, an English businessman, traveled across the United States by railroad and settled in Merced County, California to become an agent for land sales in the region. This database is a narrative he wrote regarding the West Coast and was originally published in 1891. In it he describes his journey across the country and his...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4697

Charles Holder, Life in California, early 1900s
Sport hunting became a favorite pastime of many of the more affluent settlers to California around the turn of the century. This narrative, written by Charles Holder, the son of a wealthy Massachusetts Quaker family, describes his hunting and fishing trips throughout southern California. Researchers will find vivid accounts of his travels in Santa ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3822

Charles Murdock, California Printing and Politics, 1855-1910
Leaving Massachusetts in 1855 bound for California, Charles Murdock became the editor of the Pacific Unitarian Magazine and one of the state's most distinguished printers. This database is a collection of his recollections of the trip west and his subsequent life in the Bay Area. It contains his account of settling in Arcata on the Humboldt River, ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4369

Charles Painter, Report on the Indian Territory and California
With the expansion of the United States increasing numbers of Native Americans found themselves administered by Indian agents. Reports written by these agents can be of great value to genealogists. This database is a report filed by Charles Painter, an agent of the Indian Rights Association. Traveling from his office in Philadelphia, Painter visite...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3868

Charles Peters, Autobiography, 1915
Shortly before his death, Charles Peters was believed to be the oldest living resident of California. This database contains his autobiography and was written in 1915, when he was over ninety years old. He draws his material from his own life and the lives of other gold miners who were his contemporaries. This intelligently written collection of st...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3756

Charles Stoddard, Footsteps of the Padres, 1856
Rich in Spanish-Mexican heritage, California became a part of the United States following the Mexican-American War. This database is a narrative account of one man retracing routes taken by many Catholic padres as they traveled from mission to mission throughout California. Part of a series provided by the Library of Congress, it illuminates the la...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3744

Charles Stoddard, Vacation Beyond the Rockies
In contrast to the hardy struggles of many early California pioneers, there were a number of travelers who came to the territory in relative luxury and ease. Written by Charles Stoddard, a Presbyterian clergyman, this narrative is an account of he and his wife's travels to California in 1893. Their vacation took them through New Orleans, San Antoni...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3767

Charles Warner, Southern California, 1890
Editor of the Hartford Courant in Connecticut, Charles Warner was also a contributing editor to Harper's Magazine in the late nineteenth century. This database is his account of a vacation to Southern California in 1890. In it, he describes conditions of the area after the real estate collapse of 1886-87 and the prospects for economic growth in the...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4679

Chauncey Canfield, Diary of a Forty-niner
The discovery of gold in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California brought thousands of prospectors to the new territory. This database, originally published in 1906, is a diary kept by a fictional miner created by Chauncey Canfield. Despite the invented stories and experiences in this collection, researchers will find actual accounts of Nevada Cit...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3954

Clifford Allen, Rail Trip to California, early 1900s
The construction of the transcontinental railroad across the United States transformed travel to and from California. This narrative describes the journey of one man from Philadelphia to San Francisco aboard the transcontinental railroad. In addition, it provides insight into the culture of California. Written by Clifford Allen, it describes his tr...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3813

Colonel L.A. Norton, Life and Adventures
Lewis Adelbert Norton grew up in Canada and western New York. Banished from Canada for taking the Patriot side in the Rebellion of 1837-1838, Norton settled in Illinois, where he raised a regiment for the Mexican War. On his return home, he led an overland party to California. This database describes Norton's early life and his journey west. Of...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=5021

Colusa, California Newspaper Records, 1876-84
Located about a hundred miles north of San Francisco, the quiet city of Colusa, California was home to nearly 9,000 residents in 1880. This database is an index of births, marriages and deaths from the local newspaper, the Weekly Colusa Sun. It covers issues published between 1876 and 1884 and includes the names of nearly 2800 persons. Each entry i...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3956

Constance Gordon-Cumming, Five Months in California
Sailing from Tahiti to San Francisco in April of 1878, Constance Gordon-Cumming was an Englishwoman who remained in California only five months. This database is a collection of her travel letters written while in the region. It includes detailed accounts of her visits to San Rafael, the redwood forests, San Joaquin Valley, Yosemite, Oakland, Tular...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4315

D.B. Bates, Trip from Massachusetts to California, 1850
Sea passage to California in the 1850s was an adventure about which many travelers have written. Mrs. D. B. Bates came to the West Coast from Massachusetts in 1850 with her ship captain husband. This database is a narrative of her adventures as a sailor's wife, managing a hotel in Marysville, and life raising children in the Sacramento Valley. Rese...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3938

Daniel Woods, Sixteen Months in California, 1849-50
Along with the many thousands who came to California in the 1840s, Daniel Woods sailed from Philadelphia in February 1849. This database is an account of his life in the new territory. It details his trip to the West Coast, his experiences as a prospector on the American River, and his return to the East in November of 1850. It offers an exceptiona...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4096

David A. Shaw, California As Seen by a Pioneer
Before the completion of the transcontinental railroad, two avenues lay open to the traveler to California, by wagon or by ship. This first person historical narrative was written by one of these overland pioneers. On his way to the coast, he offers anecdotes of Salt Lake City, the Mormons, trappers, mountain men, Placerville and the criminal justi...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3763

David Leeper, Life in California, 1849-54
Leaving South Bend, Indiana in February 1849, David Leeper traveled to California seeking his fortune as a gold miner. This database details his journey west and life in California between 1849 and 1854. It contains recounts his attempts to find gold at of Redding's Diggings, Hangtown, and the Trinity River. Additionally, it provides descriptions o...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3841

David Phillips, Life in California, 1876
Believing the California climate would help his son suffering from tuberculosis, David Phillips came to the state in 1876. This database, originally published a year later, is an account of his stay on the West Coast. It provides narratives journeying by rail to San Francisco, sailing to San Diego, and touring Southern California. It also includes ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4143

Don Janssens, Life and Adventures
In 1825, Victor Janssens (1817-1894) and his French-Belgian family sailed to Mexico. Nine years later he joined the Padres expedition of colonists in California, where he was part of the colony at Sonoma. A rancher at Santa Fe for many years, he moved to Santa Barbara in 1856. The life and adventures of Don Agustin Janssens (1953) is based on a ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4713

Dow Stephens, Jayhawker in California, 1849
Traveling to California in 1849, L. Dow Stephens was born in New Jersey and raised in Illinois. This database is a narrative of his journey west and life on the West Coast. In addition to recounting his travels across the U.S., including a visit to Salt Lake City, it describes prospecting on the Merced River and farming in the Santa Clara Valley. I...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4510

Dr. William McCollum, Trips to California, 1849-50
Dr. William McCollum was born in Pennsylvania, grew up in Niagara County, New York and traveled to California in 1849 and again in 1850. This database is a description of these trips to the West Coast as a physician for the Panama Railroad Company. It contains accounts of his journey to Stockton and Sacramento, prospecting near Jacksonville, and hi...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4018

Edward D. Holton, Rail Trip to California, 1879
A New Hampshire-born Milwaukee merchant and banker, Edward Holton toured California in November of 1879. This database is a collection of letters written on that trip describing the adventure. It contains vivid accounts of riding the rails to the West Coast, viewing the geography of the state from San Francisco to Los Angeles, and returning to Wisc...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4137

Edward G. Buffum, Three Years in California, 1847-49
The Mexican-American War brought California into the United States and brought a large number of soldiers to the West Coast. Edward Buffum, a New York journalist, came to the territory as an officer in the 7th Regiment of New York Volunteers. This database is his journal from 1847 until 1849 when he returned to the East and became Paris corresponde...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3950

Edward McGowan, Life in California, 1856
Leaving behind a controversial career as a Pennsylvania legislator and police superintendent, Edward McGowan traveled to San Francisco in 1849. This database is his account of living on the West Coast. It describes his life in politics, involvement in the killing of James King in 1856, and the creation of the Vigilance Committee after the shooting....[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4267

Edward McIlhany, Recollections of a '49er, 1908
Edward McIlhany, filled with the energy of youth, came to the gold fields of California in 1849, at the age of 21. He joined thousands of men, both young and old, seeking a future in the gold rush. His desire to break the confines of established society and find his fortune in the "Wild West" is illuminated in this narrative, written by him in 1908...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3765

Edward S. Parkinson, California Summer, 1892
Claimed for Spain by conquistadors in the 16th Century and transferred to Mexico nearly 300 years later, California became a part of the United States at the conclusion of the Mexican-American War. This database is a first hand narrative of one man's travels through the state of California and surrounding areas and sheds light on the area before th...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3742

Elisha Crosby, California Memoirs
Even before the discovery of gold at Sutter's Mill, many East Coast residents fell victim to "California fever." Elisha Crosby sailed to the West in December of 1848 via Panama and became a distinguished lawyer and politician in California. This database is a collection of his reminiscences prepared in his old age. Researchers will find description...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3966

Eliza and James Gregson, Life in California, 1840s
Natives of England and married in Rhode Island in 1843, Eliza and James Gregson set out for Oregon in 1845 only to find themselves in California later that year. This database is an account of their travels to the West. It provides a detailed look at life at Sutter's Fort in 1846 and 1847, prospecting for gold in Northern California, and raising a ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4252

Eliza Burhans Franham, How We Farm, Mine, and Live Generally in the Golden State
Eliza Burhans Franham tried to reform the Female Prison at Sing Sing during the three years she served as the matron. When she was discharged from the post, she learned that her husband, a lawyer in California, had died, leaving her with affairs to be settled. Eliza organized a partly of single, educated women to join her voyage around the Horn. ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4744

Emma Adams, Trips to California, 1880s
Visiting Southern California in 1884 and 1886, Emma Adams was a resident of Cleveland, Ohio. This database is a collection of travel letters penned by her and originally published in a Cleveland newspaper. Researchers will find detailed descriptions of area schools, agriculture, irrigation projects, and commentary on the social status of local wome...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4176

Encyclopedic History of the LDS Church
This reference work is a compilation of historical information, terminology, conference information, and church organization. Also included is a chronology of important events in church history and short biographies of key church members. This database is of significant importance to all who are interested in LDS Church development and history or w...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=2045

Enos Christman, Life in California, 1849-52
Enos Christman, a printer's apprentice in West Chester, Pennsylvania, left his home and traveled to the gold fields of California in June of 1849. He returned three years later in the fall of 1852. This database is his journal during those years and a collection of his letters written to his fiancee, who remained in the East. Researchers will find ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3960

Ernest de Massey, Life in California's Gold Rush
The son of a wealthy French family, Ernest de Massey sailed to California in 1849 seeking his fortune in the Gold Rush. This database is a collection of his journal entries during the time he lived in America. Translated and published by the California Historical Society in 1926, it reveals the struggles and success of this foreign immigrant. It in...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4034

Evelyn Hertslet, Ranch Life in California, 1885
Although she accompanied her husband to California in 1885, Evelyn Hertslet was an Englishwoman accustomed to city life. This database is a collection of letters written by her to family members still in England. Beginning with the Atlantic voyage, it provides descriptions of travelling to America, riding the Transcontinental to the West Coast, and...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4327

Felix Wierzbicki, California Guidebook, 1849
After participating in the failed Polish Revolution of 1830, former nobleman Felix Wierzbicki made his way to America. There he became a doctor, enlisted in the Army and traveled west during the Mexican War. This database is a guidebook he authored after leaving the military and settling in California. It was the first English book ever published i...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3766

Frank Leach, Early California Newspaperman
Working for the Vallejo Evening Chronicle and the Oakland Enquirer in the nineteenth century, Frank Leach retired from journalism in California and became superintendent of the San Francisco Mint in 1897. This database is his account of living on the West Coast between 1857 and 1917. It includes descriptions of his boyhood in Napa, his first job wi...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4321

Frank Marryat, California Mountains and Molehills, 1855
Americans were not the only persons who traveled to California seeking fortune and fame. This narrative, another in a series provided by the Library of Congress, offers the recollections of a well-to-do British adventurer. Traveling to the area with a manservant and three dogs in 1850, he hoped to find and record whatever his British audience would...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3759

Franklin Buck, Yankee Trader in the Gold Rush
In an experience similar to many other East Coast natives, when Franklin Buck heard the reports of a gold rush in California he decided to seek his fortune there. In January of 1849 he set out for the West Coast and became a trader among the miners. This database is a collection of letters written by the young man to his sister living in Maine. He ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3943

Franz Lecouvreur, From East Prussia to the Golden Gate
Franz Lecouvreur was born in Ortlesburg, Prussia in 1829. He was educated to be an engineer in Prussia, and he left for California in 1851. This data draws primarily on Lecouvreur's letters and journals to describe his journey from Prussia to California and his life in his new home. His letters from the gold mines on the Yuba River offer a very ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4801

Frederick Gay, Sketches of California, 1848
Proprietor of "Gay's Canchalagua" in New York City, Frederick Gay developed a patent medicine based on canchalagua, an herb found in California. This database, originally printed in 1848, is a tract promoting settlement in the West. It provides a variety of reasons for moving to the region, including the climate and agricultural potential. Not surp...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4562

Frederick Rindge, Life in California, Late 1800s
Buying a ranch in Malibu, Frederick Rindge traveled from Cambridge, Massachusetts to Los Angeles in 1882. This database is an account of his life in the seaside community during the last two decades of the nineteenth century. It opens with a history of the region followed by chapters dealing with the different lifestyles in the area. Additionally, ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4189

Fremont Older, My Own Story
Journalist Fremont Older, born in Appleton, Wisconsin, went to California in 1873 and became one of the state's most controversial newspapermen in his work at the San Francisco Call and Bulletin. This data first tells Older's story as the editor of the struggling Bulletin in 1895. He provides fascinating details of his fight against political cor...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=5028

Friedrich Gerstacker, A German Perspective
Americans were not the only people interested in California in the middle of the nineteenth century. This database contains the memoirs of a German national who was commissioned by the Frankfurt government to survey the prospects for immigrants to the new American territory. His descriptions include a bull fight, a legal proceeding, an ethnic dispu...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3768

Friedrich W. C. Gerstacker, Travels in America
Americans were not the only people interested in California in the middle of the nineteenth century. This database contains the memoirs of a German national who left his home in Frankfurt in 1849 and traveled to the West Coast. It contains descriptions of San Francisco, Sacramento, Stockton and the Mission Dolores. Additionally, Gerstacker includes...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4217

George W. Bryan, Recollections of a California Pioneer
George W. Bryan , a native of Indiana, traveled with his parents to California in 1853 and lived there for the rest of his life. This narrative was written in 1911 as he reflected back on his travels to the west and living on a ranch near Sacramento. This recollection, tinged with philosophical wandering, aspired to engage the imaginations of young...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3769

George Weeks, California Newspaperman
Still considered a part of the "Wild West" in the 1870's, California was home to a diverse culture composed of many people. This database, another in a series provided by the Library of Congress, is a narrative account of one man's relocation to the state for health reasons and his establishment of a small newspaper. Written by George Weeks, it beg...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3746

Hariet Harper, Six Months in California, 1888
As the nineteenth century drew to a close, California was quickly becoming a vacation destination for many Americans. This database is a collection of letters written by Hariet Harper, a Maine resident, while she vacationed on the West Coast. Researchers will find informative descriptions of her six-month visit to the state in 1888, including the a...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3857

Harris Newmark, Sixty Years in California
The city of Los Angeles has long been a center for many differing groups of people. This database is the narrative of Harris Newmark, a Jewish immigrant who came to the city in 1853. After his arrival, he earned his fortune in real estate and became an important leader in the local religious community. Researchers will find descriptions of local ju...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3776

Harvey Rice, Letters from California, 1870
As a tourist destination, California was rapidly gaining ground against other domestic locations in the late nineteenth century. This database is the account of a husband and wife who traveled to the state in 1870. Harvey Rice was a Cleveland lawyer who recounts their railroad journey west in this narrative originally published in 1870. It includes...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4158

Heinrich Lienhard, Life at Sutter's Fort, 1840s
The discovery of gold in northern California in 1849 radically changed the face of the territory. This database illustrates the many changes brought to the area by this one event. The author, Heinrich Lienhard, lived at Sutter's Fort for three years until returning to Switzerland to accompany Johann Sutter's family to America. When he returned in 1...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4014

Helen H. Jackson, Glimpses of California and the Missions
Helen H. Jackson of Amherst, Massachusetts, turned to writing after the death of her first husband in 1863. Her marriage to William Jackson, a wealthy Denver Quaker, brought her to the West in 1875, and she soon became a Native American rights activist. She was sent west as part of a federal commission to investigate conditions among the Mission ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4967

Henry Brewer, Surveying California, 1860-64
A professor of chemistry at Washington College in Pennsylvania, William Brewer joined the staff of California's State Geologist in 1860. This database is a collection of letters and journal entries by Brewer while living in the state, before returning to the East in 1864. It provides vivid accounts of taking part in a state survey that started in t...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4429

Henry Ellis, Trip from Maine to California, 1849
As the gold mines of California petered out thousands of miners turned to other professions in pursuit of a livelihood. This database is the narrative of the life of Henry Ellis, one of these miners who remained after the gold was gone. Born in Maine, he sailed around the Horn of South America and arrived in the port of San Francisco in 1849. In hi...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3896

Henry Huntley, California Gold, 1856
A former British naval officer and colonial administrator, Sir Henry Huntley was the San Francisco-based representative of an English gold mining company in the early 1850s. This database, originally published in 1856, is his recollection of living in the Bay Area. In it, he describes the business and social life of the area, including crime, polit...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4489

Henry Vizetelly, Four Months in the California Gold Fields
Henry Vizetelly, a pioneer in the publication of inexpensive illustrated books and magazines, was a London engraver who wrote about the California gold rush. This database is a well-researched, fictional account of one doctor's experiences in area in 1849. It was not until forty years after its publication in 1849 that the narrative was revealed to...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4303

Herman Scharmann, Journey to California
The California gold rush brought thousands of immigrants to the new territory, including a family of German immigrants. Another in a series of narratives, provided by the Library of Congress, this is the story of that German family's journey from New York to the new territory by wagon in 1849. It is a sobering counterpoint to the gold-fever enthusi...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3764

Hinton Helper, Life in California, 1850s
Originally from North Carolina, Hinton Helper was an outspoken critic of slavery who lived in California in the 1850s. This narrative is the account of his life on the West Coast and includes his commentary on the economy and living conditions of the area. He also includes descriptions of the morals and intelligence of the populace, along with desc...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3991

Hiram Dwight Pierce, A Forty-Niner Speaks
Hiram Dwight Pierce was a successful blacksmith in Troy, New York, when news arrived of gold discoveries in California. Leaving his wife and seven children behind, Pierce set out in March 1849, crossing the Isthmus to reach San Francisco. This database includes the contents of notebooks kept by Pierce from the day he left Troy until his return in...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4809

History of the LDS Church, 1830-1930
This seven volume set, written by one of the most eloquent church leaders was commissioned by the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It was intended to commemorate the one hundredth anniversary of the organization of the church in 1830. It provides a wealth of information regarding the persons who helped bring abou...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3133

Horace Bell, More Reminiscences, 1860s
Leaving Indiana for the gold fields of California, Horace Bell arrived in Los Angeles in 1852. This database is a collection of reminiscences originally published in 1930. It contains an account of his experiences as a Los Angeles Ranger pursuing Joaquin Murietta in 1853 and a Union officer in the Civil War. Researchers will also find lively anecdo...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4660

Horace Bell, Reminiscences, 1850s
Leaving Indiana for the gold fields of California, Horace Bell arrived in Los Angeles in 1852. This database is a collection of reminiscences originally published in 1881. It contains an account of his experiences as a Los Angeles Ranger pursuing Joaquin Murietta in 1853 and a Union officer in the Civil War. Researchers will also find lively anecdo...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4181

Hubert Howe Bancroft, Literary Industries: A Memoir
Hubert Howe Bancroft moved to California from Buffalo, New York, in 1852. After a brief exposure to gold mining, he returned to the profession of bookselling, setting up shop in Crescent City. In 1856, he moved to San Francisco, where he founded H.H. Bancroft & Co., which soon became the state's premier bookseller and publisher. From 1871 to 188...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=5029

Hugo Reid, Indians of Los Angeles County
Often overlooked by researchers of California, Native Americans lived in the area long before white explorers came to the land. This database contains the letters written by Hugo Reid, and describes the living conditions of the Indians near the San Gabriel mission. Reid, a Scotsman who settled in the area in 1832, married a woman of the Gabrielino ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3755

Isaac Mylar, San Juan Bautista Mission, California, 1860s
Traveling with his family to California in 1852, Isaac Mylar lived three years at Shaw's Flat before settling near the San Juan Bautista Mission in San Benito County. This database is a history of the mission and memories of Mylar's boyhood in the area. Included in the narrative are short sketches of the priests who administered the mission and imp...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4347

J. W. Linkins, California Book Agent, 1868-74
Mrs. James Likins and her family left Akron, Ohio in 1868 to start a new life in California. This database is her account of life on the West Coast as a book sales representative. It recounts her adventures selling engravings and such books as Mark Twain's Innocents Abroad. It also describes the cities of San Jose, Santa Clara, Gilroy, Stockton, Sa...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4442

J.G. Player-Frowd, Six Months in California, 1870s
As the nineteenth century began to wane, California was quickly becoming a travel destination for a number of Europeans. This database is a collection of travel writings by J.G. Player-Frowd, an Englishman, while visiting the state in the 1870s. While discussing such topics as climate, agriculture, mining, and lumbering, he also describes Sacrament...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4149

Jackson Graves, Seventy Years in California
Leaving Iowa with his family in 1857, Jackson Graves settled in San Mateo, California. This database is his autobiography, first published in 1927. In it, he describes his boyhood and education in Northern California and his professional life in Los Angeles. Moving south in 1875, he became involved in politics and banking. In this section of his na...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4131

Jacob Barzilla, Camping Out in California
Mrs. Jacob Rideout of California was a member of an 1888 camping party in northern California. This database describes the adventures at the redwood foresets, the coast near Mendocino, Sonoma, the Santa Clara Valley, a G.A.R. conclave in Santa Cruz, Mount St. Helena, and a side trip to San Francisco. ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4822

Jacob Harlan, Wagon Trip to California, 1846
Jacob Harlan grew up in Indiana and moved to Michigan where, in 1845, he and an uncle organized a wagon train to California. This database is a collection of memories by Harlan regarding his preparations and travels to the West Coast in 1846. It contains his encounters with the doomed Donner party, and Fremont's battalion during his overland journe...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3914

James Abbey, A Trip Across the Plains, 1850
Leaving New Albany, Indiana in the spring of 1850, James Abbey traveled with a party of settlers to California. This database is a transcription of a day-by-day diary of the trip across the plains. In addition to providing a daily chronology of the journey, it also contains letters that Abbey sent to his friends who remained in the East. It contain...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4538

James Brown, Finding Gold at Sutter's Mill, 1848
One of the most important events in California history, the discovery of gold at Sutter's Mill in 1848 radically changed the culture and character of life in the new territory. This database, reprinted from a narrative published in 1933, is the account of one man who was involved in the discovery. It contains a lucid retelling of the discovery in t...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4559

James Carson, California Mining Life, 1848-52
Following the Mexican-American war, California increasingly drew thousands of men and women seeking a life in the new territory. James Carson was one such settler. This database, purported to be the first book printed in Stockton, is a collection of his memoirs while mining gold in the area. In it, Carson offers a lively narrative of early Californ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4534

James Hamilton, Life in California
After the gold rush of the early 1850s, California drew a number of visitors who remained in the state for only a short time. This narrative is a collection of notebooks written by James Hamilton, who journeyed to the West Coast in the spring of 1858. This native of Missouri describes his travels around Santa Barbara, Laguna, Los Angeles and San Fr...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3853

James J. Ayers, Journalist, 1849-90
The development of California from territory to state was an exciting time for many residents of the area. This database, another in a series provided by the Library of Congress, contains the writings of journalist James J. Ayers. Ayers left St. Louis in 1849, traveling to Calveras County, and established a newspaper in the new territory. His writi...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3752

James Steele, Sketch of California History, 1889
Visiting the California in the 1880s, James Steele, after returning to the East Coast, wrote a book based on his adventures in the state. This database, originally published in 1889, is a transcription of that narrative. It provides a sketch of California's history before the Gold Rush and includes descriptions of the remnants of that history which...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4466

James Tyson, California Physician, 1849
As with many travelers to California, Baltimore doctor James Tyson sailed to the Panama Isthmus, traveled overland to the Pacific Ocean, and then on to San Francisco. This database is an account of his adventures in Northern California attempting to establish a medical practice among the gold miners. Additionally, it contains his adventures as a sh...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4297

James Woods, Church Work in California, 1850-60
Born in Massachusetts, James Woods was serving in an Alabama church in 1849 when the Presbyterian mission board called him to serve in California. This database is his account of life on the West Coast in the 1850s. In it, Woods describes his voyage around the Horn of South America, his early stay in San Francisco, and his ministry in Stockton. It ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4629

Jessie Benton Fremont, Far-West Sketches
Jessie Benton Fremont, the daughter of a Missouri Senator and wife of explorer John Charles Fremont, first came to California in 1849, when she and her young daughter spent six months at her husband's newly-acquired ranch at Mariposas, 140 miles east of San Francisco. The Fremonts also spent the years 1851-1852 and 1857-1861 at the Mariposas ranch...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=5024

Johann Sutter, Diary
Owner of perhaps the most famous historical location in California, Johann Sutter died in bitter poverty despite the discovery of gold at his mill in 1848. This database is a narrative written in 1856 by Sutter detailing his life since coming to the West Coast in 1838. Researchers will find an account of his journey west from Missouri, settling on ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4054

John Bidwell, Life in California
A number of men were propelled to fame and influence with the 1849 discovery of gold at Sutter's Mill in California. This database is a collection of addresses and reminiscences by one of these men, John C. Bidwell. It recounts his journey to northern California in 1841, service in the U. S. House of Representatives, and his unsuccessful run for th...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3849

John Bidwell, Living in California, 1841-89
Born in Chautaugua County, New York, John Bidwell was living in Ohio when he decided to seek his fortune in California. This database is his account of living in the West between 1841 and 1889. It chronicles his journey overland from Missouri to Fort Sutter in Northern California and his adventures in the Bear Flag rebellion in 1846. Additionally, ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4406

John Borthwick, Three Years in California, 1851-54
After living in America for over a decade, John Borthwick returned to Britain in 1860. Originally published in London in 1857, this database recounts his life in California between 1851 and 1854. It provides detailed descriptions of mining gold and quartz in the towns of Hangtown, Foster's Bar, Downieville, Mississippi Bar, Jacksonville, and Carson...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4258

John Brown, Reminiscences of San Francisco, 1886
Becoming a sailor as an adolescent, John Brown arrived on the Pacific Coast of America in 1843. This database, originally published in 1886, describes his life in San Francisco between his arrival and compiling these reminiscences. In it, he provides a vivid picture of San Francisco, particularly during its transformation from a small port town to ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4580

John Letts, Life in California
As the allure of California grew among residents of the eastern United States, thousands of settlers boarded ships and traveled to the new territory. One of these, John Letts, sailed from New York in January 1849. This database is an account of his travels and his life on the West Coast. He provides helpful descriptions of Sacramento, politics in t...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4005

John Muir in the Sierras
Famed naturalist John Muir (1838-1914) came to Wisconsin as a boy and studied at the University of Wisconsin. He first came to California in 1868 and devoted six years to the study of the Yosemite Valley. After work in Nevada, Utah, and Colorado, he returned to California in 1880 and made the state his home. One of the heroes of America's conservat...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3899

John Palmer, San Francisco Medicine, 1849
John Palmer was a Maryland physician who traveled to California in 1849 only to leave the next year. This database, originally published in 1859, is a collection of anecdotes written by him while practicing medicine in San Francisco. Along with a large number of colorful tales about friends and patients, it includes descriptions of the medical comm...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4451

John Ross Browne, Crusoe's Island
John Ross Browne of Kentucky, the official reporter for the California State Constitutional Convention of 1849, came to California in 1849 as an employee of the government revenue service. He traveled widely in the next two decades, including a stay in China as U.S. minister, before settling down in Oakland in 1870. This database contains four sho...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=5022

John Ross Browne, The Debates of the Convention of California
John Ross Browne of Kentucky, the official reporter for the California State Constitutional Convention of September-October 1849, came to California in 1849 as an employee of the government revenue service. He traveled widely in the next two decades before settling down in Oakland. This database comprises the official records of the convention. ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=5031

John Swan, Life in California, 1848
An English sailor who settled in Monterey in 1843, John Swan joined other Californians in the rush to the gold fields in July 1848. This database is his personal account of living in the northern part of the territory for about six months. It provides descriptions of his ride north to Log Cabin Ravine, daily life as a prospector on the American Riv...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4130

John Todd, The Sunset Land or The Great Pacific Slope
John Todd, a Congregationalist clergyman in Pittsfield, Massachuesetts, wrote widely and published several religious magazines. This database contains Todd's experiences as a visitor to California in the mid 1860s, with essays on the state's history, climate, agricultural products, and geology; gold mining; the Calaveras redwoods; and Yosemite Val...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4826

Joseph Heco, From Japan to California, 1850, Part 2
A native of Sanyodo Province in Japan, Joseph Heco arrived in America after being rescued at sea in 1852. This database is an account of his life on the West Coast in the 1850s. It contains his reminiscences of life in the new state before his return to Japan in 1859. Descriptions of his boyhood and the voyage to the United States are included alon...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4229

Joseph Heco, Life in California
Born in the Japanese province of Sanyodo, Joseph Heco was rescued at sea by an American ship that brought the young man to California. This database is an account of his life on the West Coast in the 1860s. Containing his commentary on the Asian communities in the area at the time, it also provides insight into the "Revolution of 1862."After spendi...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4235

Joseph Le Conte, Travels through the High Sierra
As the American Civil War ended, another wave of pioneers traveled overland to California seeking a new life on the West Coast. Joseph Le Conte, one of these pioneers, came to northern California to work at the University of California as a Professor of Geology and Physical Science. This database is a journal he kept while traveling through the Sie...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3792

Joseph W. Hines, Pacific Coast Pioneer
Joseph Wilkinson Hines (b. ca. 1824) left New York State in 1853 as a Methodist missionary to Ohio. He later settled in Santa Clara County, California, where he was a prominent Republican and anti-slavery advocate. Touching incidents in the life and labors of a pioneer (1911) is a collection of unrelated papers by Hines: speeches and poems touching...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3887

Judge Benjamin Hayes, California Diary
The rush to mine gold from the hills of northern California brought many professionals to the new territory in addition to the prospectors. Benjamin Hayes was a lawyer living in Missouri in 1849 when he decided to move to the coast. This database is a collection of his journal writings, including his trip west, experiences riding circuit, and a few...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3804

Kimball Webster, Seeking Gold in California, 1849-54
A farmer in New Hampshire until 1849, Kimball Webster left the farm to seek gold in California in April of that year. This database is his account of life in the West, where he remained for five years. It reprints sections of his diary recounting the journey by wagon train across the plains. The narrative also recounts his career as a goldseeker on...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4612

LDS Biographical Encyclopedia
The biographies in this database, collected around 1900, detail the lives of many men and women who played a role in the organization of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The information for some is more complete than for others, church leaders being among the more detailed. However, most biographies include birth and death dates, ma...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=2028

Lee Whipple-Haslam, Life in California
The daughter of Franklin Summers, Lee Whipple-Haslam came to California from Missouri in 1852. This database is a narrative of her life while in the new state. In it she includes vivid descriptions of Shaw's Flat, Sonora, and many other Tuolumne County towns. She also provides colorful stories of entertaining guests at a boardinghouse while her hus...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4082

Lell Woolley, Sixty-four Years in California
Coming from the Green Mountains of Vermont, Lell Woolley crossed the plains in a mule train bound for California in 1849. There he tried gold mining in Weaverville and hotelkeeping in Frass Valley. This database is a collection of anecdotes of his adventures in the area from his arrival until 1913. It includes descriptions of life in San Francisco ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3932

Leonard Kip, Gold Mine Sketches
Perhaps no other dream brought more men to California in the 1850's than that of striking it rich by finding gold. This narrative, provided by the Library of Congress, is the account of a young New York lawyer who spent two months mining for gold in northern California. His stories were originally intended for newspaper publication. While misjudgin...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3761

Lewis and Elizabeth Stickney, Records of a Calfornia Family
Few people write personal letters or keep a journal intending them to be published. The letters and journals of this database have a particularly intimate feel because the author never wrote them for publication. Compiled and placed in context by the daughter of Lewis Carstairs Gunn, this collection was meant as a gift for the posterity of this ear...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3772

Lilian Cross, Life in California
Daughter of a carpenter and a schoolteacher, Lilian Cross came with her family to California from Maine in the 1852. This database is an autobiographical account of her life in the West. It provides descriptions of growing up in Sacramento County, particularly Cross' life on various farms in the area for more than thirty years. In 1892, she moved w...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4116

Lloyd Briggs, Trips to California
Although a destination for countless settlers, California has also been a stopover for persons traveling to and from the Pacific Islands. The author of this narrative was one of these travelers who spent considerable time during his many stopovers exploring the state. This database recounts the travels of Lloyd Briggs as he traveled to and from the...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3818

Loraine Pratt Immen, CaliforniaTravel Letters, 1896
As the 19th Century drew to a close, California increasingly drew vacationers from wealthy families. The letters in this collection were written by Loraine Pratt Immen, a well-to-do visitor to the West Coast. Her letters describe visits to Echo Mountain, San Diego, greater Los Angeles, Yosemite, Oakland, Santa Clara, San Jos‚, and San Francisco. Th...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3773

Los Angeles City and County Census, 1850
This database not only includes the 1850 Census of the City and County of Los Angeles, but it also includes an analysis of the Census, and excerpts of early California History. This original 1850 Census was miraculously saved from a fire in June 1915. Information in the Census includes, where available, the family surname, all the names, ages, se...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3116

Los Angeles, California City Directories, 1888-90
One of the oldest Spanish settlements in California, Los Angeles has grown into the largest metropolis in western North America. This database is a collection of three directories for Los Angeles and Pasadena in 1888 and 1890. In addition to providing the resident's name, it provides their address and occupational information. It includes the names...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4415

Louise Clappe, Letters from California, 1851-52
Louise Clappe, educated in Amherst, Massachusetts, accompanied her husband to California in 1849, where he intended to practice medicine. This database is a series of twenty-three letters by Clappe to her sister on the East Coast. First published serially in 1855, the letters were written in 1851 and 1852. They recount experiences in San Francisco ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4485

Lucius Fairchild, California Letters, 1849-55
With the discovery of gold at Sutter's Mill, California became the destination of choice in the 1850's for thousands of men and women seeking a piece of the gold rush. This database, another in a series provided by the Library of Congress, is a collection of letters written by one young prospector. Lucius Fairchild came to the state 1849, before hi...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3748

Luther Schaeffer, Sketches of California, 1860
Born in Frederick, Maryland, Luther Schaeffer sailed to California in 1849 and spent nearly three years in the gold fields. This database is a collection of his sketches drawn during his sojourn on the West Coast. It provides descriptions of mining conditions on the Feather River, Deer Creek, and at Grass Valley. Additionally, it contains his comme...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4589

Luzena Wilson, Life in California
Arriving in California from Missouri in 1849, Luzena Wilson, her husband, and two children settled in Sacramento. This database is a collection of reminiscences of her life in the region. She describes their overland journey, managing a hotel, living in a mining camp near Vacaville, and pioneering in Vaca Valley. Additionally, she chronicles the li...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4089

Mary Carroll, Ten Years in San Jose, 1892-1903
Leaving Otsego County, New York in 1892, Mary Bowden settled in San Jose, California. This database is a narrative of ten years living in the area at the end of the nineteenth century. It provides a social history of Santa Clara, descriptions of local towns, and a list of attractions for home seekers. A large portion of the narrative is comprised o...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4693

Mary Cone, Two Years in California, 1873-75
A resident of Marietta, Ohio, Mary Cone traveled to California in 1873 to spend two years traveling throughout the state. This database, originally published in 1876, is a narrative of her experiences in the West. In it, she provides commentary on the geography, climate, agriculture, and history of the state. Additionally, she includes descriptions...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4309

Mary Vail, Southern California Settlement, 1888
A resident of Southern California in the 1880s, Mary Vail was an astute observer of nature and society. This database is a pamphlet she wrote, and published in 1888, designed to provide an accurate description of the region. In it she warns of the sandstorms and dust in the area and readily admits it is not a paradise. She describes the unrealistic...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4675

Mary Wills, Winter in California, 1888
Attracting an increasing number of vacationers in addition to new settlers, California was home to about one million residents in the mid-1880s. This database is an account of one East Coast vacationer who came to Southern California in 1888. Traveling from Norristown, Pennsylvania, Mary Wills describes the highlights of her stay. She includes desc...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4171

Merced County, California Deaths, 1852-1999
Formed in 1855 from nearby Mariposa County, Merced County is located just east of San Jose in California. This database is an index to deaths in the county between 1852 and December 1999. In addition to revealing the decedent's name, it provides the date of death. Page and book numbers are included to aid the researcher in obtaining a copy of the o...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4390

Michael White, Life in Mexican California, early 1800s
Arriving at San Jose del Cabo in 1817, Michael White was an English sailor who left the sea to settle in California. This database is a collection of reminiscences originally written in 1877. It details the life of this early settler and includes descriptions of San Francisco, Santa Barbara, and San Pedro in the 1820s and 1830s. White also includes...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4024

Mina Deane Halsey, A Tenderfoot in Southern California
Mina Deane Halsey was a New York writer. This database is her spoof of accounts of California travel and recounts a "tenderfoot's" rail journey west, stays in Los Angeles and Pasadena, Mount Lowe, Hollywood, and Catalina. ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=5026

Miriam Squier, Trip to San Francisco, 1877
Miriam Squier, an actress turned journalist, traveled with her wealthy husband Frank Leslie to California in 1877. This database, originally published in the same year, is her account of their West Coast vacation. It chronicles their route by rail, describes their reception in San Francisco, and their visits to Chinatown, Los Angeles, and Yosemite....[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4246

Monterey, California Census, 1850-60
Situated in central California south of San Jose, Monterey County was formed when the territory became a state in 1850. This database is a collection of state and federal census records from the county in 1850, 1852 and 1860. It also contains state census information for San Diego County in 1852. Information provided, in addition to the resident's ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4141

Nevada State Journal, 1870-1900
The Nevada State Journal was the leading newspaper in Nevada for more than a hundred years. It was headquartered in Reno. Beginning in 1870, it told the stories that Nevadans wanted to hear. It also reported the everyday lives of its readers. In addition, when news of far-off relatives reached Reno, it was often published in the newspaper. Thi...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4768

Oakhill Cemetery Inscriptions, Oakhurst, California
Located in central California, fifty miles north of Fresno, Oakhurst is a small community near Yosemite National Park. This database is an index of headstone inscriptions from the Oakhill cemetery. Names are listed of the deceased along with headstone location within the cemetery, date of birth, date of death, and, in many cases, age. In a few inst...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3463

Oscar Fitzgerald, 20 Years in California
In 1855, Oscar Fitzgerald, a Southern Methodist minister, was sent by his North Carolina church to labor among the residents of California. This database is a narrative account of his twenty years living in the state. It includes descriptions of his appointment as state superintendent of public education in 1867, life in educational circles, editin...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3901

Oscar Fitzgerald, 20 Years in California, 2nd Edition
In 1855, Oscar Fitzgerald, a Southern Methodist minister, was sent by his North Carolina church to labor among the residents of California. This database is the second edition of the author's narrative recounting his twenty-year residence in the state. This new edition includes descriptions of the clergy in California, rivalry with Northern Methodi...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3907

Pacific Coast Directory, 1867
Containing the name & address of each merchant, manufacturer and professional residing in the states of California, Oregon & Nevada, territories of Washington, Idaho and Utah and the colony of British Columbia. Compiled by Henry G. Langley ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4727

Peter Burnett, Life in California
Men and women from all backgrounds came to California in the 1840s, many seeking the gold of the Sierra Nevadas. Peter Burnett was a district attorney from Missouri who came to the area in 1848 attempting to find his fortune. This database contains recollections of his early life in Missouri, his travels west, and his adventures as a gold prospecto...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3879

Prentice Mulford, Life in California
In addition to the thousands who came to California overland, many pioneers arrived in the area aboard clipper ships. This database is a collection of writings by one of these pioneers. Prentice Mulford arrived in 1856 at the port of San Francisco aboard one of these majestic vessels. These writings describe his adventures while at sea, gold prospe...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3861

Pringle Shaw, California Mining, 1857
After spending five years in California in the 1850s, Pringle Shaw returned to his native Canada in 1857. This database is both an analytical study of the region and a collection of anecdotes characterizing life on the West Coast. The analytical study provides a description of the history of mining, evolution of frontier law and society, and prospe...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4607

Richard Dana, Two Years in California, 1834-36
A student at Harvard University, Richard Dana sailed for California in 1834 in an attempt to improve his health. This database is his story of traveling to the West Coast and living there for two years. Based on his diary, it was first published in 1841. It contains a rare and detailed account of life in the area a decade before the Gold Rush revol...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4388

Robert Louis Stevenson, Silverado, California, 1880s
Pursuing Fanny Van de Grift to California from France in 1879, Robert Louis Stevenson married the Oakland woman and honeymooned in a cabin in Silverado. This database is a narrative account the newlyweds' life in the mining ghost town on Mt. St. Helena. It contains Stevenson's descriptions of the region, including many of their colorful neighbors. ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4339

Sacramento California, <I>Sacramento Bee</I>newspaper 1859, Obituaries, Marriages, Births
Early in California, the Sacramento Bee newspaper reported marriages, deaths, and births for not only Sacramento but also for surrounding areas like San Francisco, Roseville, Yolo County, etc. The index for 1859 contains those births, deaths, and marriages that were published in the paper during 1859 and some from late in 1858. The printed ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=5724

Sacramento California, Sacramento Bee Newspaper 1889 - 1890: vital records
California Births, Deaths, Marriages and Divorces from 1889-1890. This database indexes the events as reported and published in the 1890 Sacramento Bee, Sacramento California. The Bee had specific columns for births, deaths and marriages, but other areas of the paper also reported area deaths, divorces and marriages, and those have also been...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=6098

Samuel H. Willey, Thirty Years in California
Samuel Hopkins Willey (1821-1914), a Presbyterian seminarian in Massachusetts, sailed to California as a home missionary in December 1848. He was a chaplain of the 1849 constitutional convention and served churches in San Francisco, Monterey, Santa Cruz, and Benecia. From 1862 to 1869 he headed the College of California at Berkeley, which was turne...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3891

Samuel Langhorne Clemens, Roughing It
Samuel Langhorne Clemens, better known as "Mark Twain," left Missouri in 1861 to work with his brother, the newly appointed Secretary of the Nevada Territory. Once settled in Nevada, Clemens fell victim to gold fever and went to the Humboldt mines. When prospecting lost its attractions, Clemens found work as a reporter in Virginia City. In 1864, ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=5032

Samuel McNeil, Trip to California, 1849
A shoemaker in the central Ohio community of Lancaster, Samuel McNeil left his business in January 1849 seeking his fortune in the gold fields of California. He returned home the next year, with his accumulated gold. This database was published in 1850 and recounts his travels throughout 1849. He describes the shipwreck that forced McNeil and his c...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4029

Samuel Upham, Voyage to California, 1848
A merchant house clerk in Philadelphia in 1848, Samuel Upham traveled by ship to California in January of 1849. This database is an account of his journey and life on the West Coast. It recounts sailing around the Horn, his visit to Rio de Janeiro and his arrival in San Francisco. Originally published in 1878, it describes his attempt to mine gold ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4515

San Diego Union-Tribune (California) Obituaries, 1993-94
The San Diego Union-Tribune is the oldest business in the county and one of the oldest newspapers in the state. This database is a collection of obituaries from the newspaper in 1993 & 1994. Each record provides the individual's name, death date, death location, name of spouse and children, if any. It also reveals the person's birth place and birth...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4109

San Francisco Chinese Exclusion List
This is an index to over 5000 "Chinese Exclusion" case files among the immigration investigation files created by the San Francisco District Office of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, ca. 1903-1944. Most of the case files document the arrival into San Francisco from the U.S. mainland or foreign ports of Chinese aliens and the reentry ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3378

San Francisco, California Directories, 1889-91
The largest metropolitan area in Northern California, San Francisco was home to nearly 200,000 people in 1890. This database is a transcription of a city directories originally published in that year. In addition to providing the resident's name, it provides information regarding their address and occupation. This collection includes the names of o...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4436

Santa Barbara Travel Guide, late 1800s
In addition to the travel narrative, the travel guide written for travelers can reveal a wealth of information regarding a particular area. This database is a travel guide written by a resident of Santa Barbara and includes information on the area, including hotels and railroad routes. Researchers will find descriptions of nearby Santa Ynez, Ojai V...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3845

Sarah Smith, Raised On a California Sheep Ranch, 1870s
Sarah Smith was born in 1871 and raised on the family sheep ranch near San Jaun Bautista in Southern California. Originally published in 1925, this database is her account of growing up in the area. In it, she provides descriptions of visits to ranches in Los Cerritos and Los Alamitos, attending Los Angeles public schools, enrolling at Pomona and W...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4333

Semi-Tropical California, Its Climate, Healthfulness, Productiveness and Scenery
Benjamin Cummings Truman of Providence, Rhode Island, was a Civil War Union officer and newspaper correspondent before coming to California in 1866 as a special agent of the Post Office. In 1870 he was sent to Washington as correspondent for the New York Times and the San Francisco Bulletin but soon returned to become editor of the Los Angeles Eve...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=5179

Shasta County, California Marriages, 1852-1904
Because of the California Gold Rush and later extensive hard rock mining enterprises, Shasta County was a major center of immigration. If you want to find Northern European and Scottish, English, and Irish immigrants, this is a good place to start. This book was first published by the Shasta Genealogical Society in 1977and updated in 2000. ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3862

Shasta county, California, Naturalization Records: 1852 - 1932
Shasta County, California is located in the foothills at the head of the Sacramento Valley. In the 1850's this County was a center for Gold mining and later &quot;Hard Rock &quot; mining, lumber production and cattle ranching. The incomplete index was copyrighted & published in the Society's Jan/Apr/Jul 1982 Shasta County Diggings. The Index ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=6099

Sim Moak,The Last of the Mill Creeks, and Early Life in Northern California
Sim Moak left Albany, New York, to join his older brothers in California in 1863 at age 18. He settled in Chico. The last of the Mill Creeks offers Moak's stories of life in California during the Civil War, with special details given to hostile relations with Native Americans, the Chinese immigrants, and incidents of crime and hangings through th...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4724

Solomon Mead, Notes of Two Trips to California and Return
Solomon Mead of Greenwich, Connecticut, first visited California in 1883 as part of a Cook's railroad tour, the "Continental Excursion Party," and he returned with one of his sons in 1886 by steamship via Panama. This database first recounts the 1883 luxury tour to the Far West, with stops in California at Los Angeles, Madera, Yosemite Valley, the...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4820

Sons of the American Revolution
This work contains the entire list (thousands of members) of the membership of the National Society Sons of the American Revolution to December 31, 1901, including deceased members, with their line of descent from their Revolutionary ancestors. Search this database if you have ancestors who participated in the Revolution or who were members of the...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3072

StateGenSites - California
Links to about two dozen categories of sites that provide genealogical information about some portion of California.
http://www.genealogytoday.com/genealogy/states/california.html

Stephen Davis, Gold Rush Merchant, 1850-54
Prospective miners were not the only immigrants to California following the discovery of gold at Sutter's Mill. Stephen Davis and his brother left their homes in Nashua, New Hampshire, and traveled to Northern California to act as agents for local merchants. This database is a collection of Davis' journal entries between 1850 and 1854. The original...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3971

Stephen Field, Practicing Law in California, 1850
Practicing law in New York City when gold was discovered at Sutter's Mill, Stephen Field sailed to California in 1849. This database is a collection of personal reminiscences by him recounting his life in the new territory. Centering on his experiences as an attorney, it contains his experiences as the first magistrate of Marysville, a member of th...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4241

Sue Sanders, Journey to San Francisco, 1886
Traveling by rail from Delevan, Illinois to San Francisco in 1886, Sue Sanders was part of the state's delegation to the Grand Army of the Republic encampment. This database is the narrative of her trip. It provides her chronicle of the leisurely trip west, the encampment and convention, a tour of Chinatown, and the return journey. Along the way it...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4657

Susie Clark, From Boston to California, 1890
A Boston area matron, Susie Clark joined an organized rail tour of California forty years after the Gold Rush. This database is her account of the trip, originally published in 1890. In it she recounts the passage west, including her stops in Chicago and Salt Lake City. It provides descriptions of such West Coast cities as Pasadena, Riverside, San ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4395

Territorial Enterprise (Virginia City, Nevada), 1866-67
The Territorial Enterprise was published in Virginia City, Nevada and perhaps its greatest claim to fame is the young journalist, Mark Twain, who wrote for the paper early in his career as a writer. The newspaper, however, printed more than just the colorful articles of this American icon. This database is a collection of notices of births, marriag...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3515

Thaddeus Kenderdine, California Travels, 1858-59
After California became a part of the United States many Americans traveled west to experience this beautiful new territory. This database, another in a series provided by the Library of Congress, contains the travel writings of Thaddeus Kenderdine as he made his way from Philadelphia to the California and back to New York between 1858 and 1859. It...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3750

Thaddeus Kenderdine, Return to California, 1898
Traveling from Philadelphia to California in 1858, Thaddeus Kenderdine remained on the West Coast for only a year. This database recounts his return to the region forty years later. Originally published in 1898, it recounts the rail trip across the United States, including descriptions of Salt Lake City, San Francisco, Monterey, and Los Angeles. Co...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4643

Theodore Johnson, Life in California, 1849
Sailing from New Jersey to California in February 1849, Theodore Johnson spent less than three months in the territory before returning home in June. This database is the first published book to narrate personal experiences in the gold fields of California. In it, Johnson recounts his voyage to the West Coast, gold hunting in the Culomma Valley, an...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4002

Thomas Chard, California Sketches, 1888
Traveling by rail from Chicago to California in 1888, Thomas Chard remained only five weeks on the West Coast of the United States. This database is a narrative of his journey and adventures. It includes descriptions of San Francisco, Monterey, San Jose, Los Angeles, and San Diego. It also provides detailed accounts of his visits to Yosemite and th...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4633

Travel Guide to Southern California, 1893
A teacher at Smith College in New England, Kate Sanborn was a well-known humorist in the early twentieth century. This database, another in a series, is a reprint of her advice to tourists planning a rail trip to Southern California. Containing recommendations about necessary wardrobe and travel itinerary, it provides helpful descriptions of Corona...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4196

USGenWeb Project - California
The USGenWeb Project State web sites are your starting points for finding genealogical and historical information. Each state site features state information and also provides you with links to each county web site within the state....[More]
http://www.cagenweb.com

Walter Colton, Three Years in California, 1846-49
Following the Mexican-American war, California increasingly drew thousands of men and women seeking a life in the new territory. This database is the published journal of Walter Colton (1797-1851), who lived in California from 1846-1849. A distinguished member of California's high society in the period, his florid prose recounts a number of promine...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3757

Walter Fisher, Life in California, 1870s
Living in California for four years in the 1870s, Walter Fisher was a writer who traveled to North America from Great Britain. This database, published in 1876, is an account of his stay in the state. Focusing largely on the society of area residents, it provides a short account of early California settlers, a brief history of Hispanic California, ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4123

William Chambliss, San Francisco Society, 1895
Traveling to California as a member of the crew of the U.S.S. Essex in 1886, William Chambliss settled in San Francisco. This database is a reprint of his autobiography first published in 1895. Researchers will find anecdotal accounts from his life in the Bay Area, including his attempts to become an advertiser. It also contains his commentary on t...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4208

William Francis White, A Picture of Pioneer Times in California
William Francis White and his young wife sailed from New York in 1849 round the Horn to San Francisco, where he set up an import business. He later represented Santa Cruz in the state constitutional convention and served as a bank commissioner. His story was compiled under the pseudonym "William Grey," and it presents a revisionist version of Cal...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4812

William H. Davis, Seventy-Five Years in California
Apart from Los Angeles, San Francisco is perhaps the most important metropolitan area in California. Written by the son of a ship captain and spanning over seventy-five years, this narrative details the political, military and social events of northern California between 1838 and 1920. Researchers will find informative descriptions of the Mexican r...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3800

William Hutton, Glances at California, 1847-53
William Hutton left Washington, D.C. for California in 1847, at age 21. He was a clerk to his uncle, an army paymaster. He remained for six years, returning east to a distinguished career in civil engineering. This data chronicles his six years in the state, beginning with his voyage via Panama and life with the U.S. Army occupation forces, 1847...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4751

William Kelly, Excursion to California, Vol. 1, 1849
In addition to the many Americans who either settled or vacationed in California in the nineteenth century, the area also drew Britons. Englishman William Kelly (1791-1855) visited California in 1849 and 1850, and his account of that trip was widely read. This database is the first volume of his delightful narrative. The volume takes him from Engla...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3873

William Kelly, Excursion to California, Vol. 2, 1849-50
As an international traveler, Englishman William Kelly (7191-1855) visited California in 1849 and 1850, and wrote a stirring account of his trip. An Excursion to California is the two-volume account of that journey. This second volume was published separately in 1852 under the title "A Stroll Through the Diggings of California." Researchers will fi...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3874

William Kip, Early Days of My Episcopate
William Kip left New York in December 1853 to become a missionary bishop and later the first diocesan bishop of the Protestant Episcopal Church of California. This database is a collection of his reminiscences as rector of the Grace Church in San Francisco. It contains descriptions of his visits to Sacramento, Stockton, San Jose, Monterey, and Los ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3920

William Manley, Life in Death Valley, California, 1849
Moving with his family from Vermont to Michigan in 1828, William Manly set out for California in 1849 in search of gold. This database is his account of the journey west and life in the territory. It provides detailed descriptions of the Sierra Mountains of California, Stockton, Sacramento, and Death Valley. Researchers will find helpful informatio...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4201

William Pond, Calfornia Congregationalism, 1833-1920
Sailing to California in 1853, William Pond was the son of a prominent Congregational Church leader in Maine. Originally published by him in 1921, this database is a brief history of the Congregational movement in California between 1833 and 1920. It presents highlights of his career in the west as a "home missionary," including his ministry in the...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4223

William Ryan, Adventures in California, Vol. 1
After enlisting in the U.S. Army, William Ryan sailed around the Horn enroute to the West Coast in 1847. Part of a two volume collection originally published in 1850, this database is an account of his life in California. It describes his voyage, life in the military during the Mexican War, and the events surrounding the discovery of gold in the ne...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4273

William Ryan, Adventures in California, Vol. 2
Sailing to California in 1847, William Ryan was an Englishman who enlisted in the U.S. Army the same year. This database, the second of a two-volume collection, is an account of his life as a trader in the area. It chronicles his life at Stanislaus Mine, and later traveling through Stockton, Monterey, and Sacramento. It also provides his descriptio...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4277

William Shaw, Trip from Australia to California, 1849
With the discovery of gold in California, William Shaw, an Englishman living in South Australia, left his home and sailed for America. This database is an account of his journey from Adelaide in 1849 and his life in the territory. Researchers will find a detailed description of his voyage, a visit to San Diego, and his landing in San Francisco. It ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4043

William Sherman, Recollections of California, 1846-61
One of the most famous Union generals of the Civil War, William T. Sherman lived in California between 1846 and 1861. This database is a collection of memoirs by the general, many penned while he was an aide to Generals Philip Kearny and Richard Mason. In 1850 he resigned his commission and became a bank manager. Researchers will find his commentar...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4048

William Taylor, Life in California, 1849-55
In addition to the countless seekers of gold and fortune, the California gold rush brought a number of Christian missionaries to the area. This database is a collection of reminiscences by William Taylor, a Methodist minister who specialized in "street preaching." Traveling by ship to San Francisco in 1849, he remained for seven years to aid the me...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3926

William Taylor, Preaching in California, 1849-56
In addition to the countless seekers of gold and fortune, the California gold rush brought a number of Christian missionaries to the area. This database is a reprint of the memoirs of William Taylor, a Methodist minister, originally published in 1857. Traveling by ship to San Francisco in 1849, he remained for seven years to aid the members of his ...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4211

WWI Civilian Draft Registrations
http://www.ancestry.com?db=3172

Yahoo! Groups: California Genealogy
Message board for beginning and advanced fans of genealogy.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/californiagenealogy/

Yuba County, California History, 1850-1900
Serving in public office in Marysville, California for forty years, William Ellis knew the Yuba County region extremely well. This database is a brief history of the county from 1850 through 1900 as told by this longtime resident. It provides accounts of important historical events, including local floods. Additionally, Ellis recounts his boyhood i...[More]
http://www.ancestry.com?db=4362