Our final mission-focused episode, including the environmental effects of unleashing European pack animals onto the environment, the demographic effects of unleashing disease epidemics on native cultures, and how the consequent specter of death also threatened to kill the colonial economy in Alta California.
30 Apr 2022
Appendix #1: The 1812 Assassination of Father Andres Quintana
In the first appendix episode, we detail Lorenzo Asisara's narrative of the death of Andres Quintana at Mission Santa Cruz, question its accuracy, and then wonder whether that accuracy matters at all. Also: death by castration.
23 Dec 2021
Revolt, Embrace, Flight: Indigenous Agency in the Mission Era
What to do when a foreign power sets up colony-outposts in your land with the intent of converting your people to their new God? This episode we look at how various indigenous peoples up and down the California coast answered that question.
1 Sept 2021
The "Sweet Yoke" Under Serra
This episode we track the early growth of the Franciscan missions under Junípero Serra until his 1784 death, what daily life was like inside for the indigenous people who lived there, and attempt to keep track of all the military governors Serra got into feuds with.
24 Jun 2021
The Cursed/Sacred Expedition
On this episode, we watch the Spaniards get paranoid over the Russians and order the Sacred Expedition to occupy Monterey, which it finally does two years later after finding about half a dozen different ways to almost completely fail. And thus the missions at San Diego and Monterey are born.
26 May 2021
Consequences of Contact
On this episode, we discuss the potential ramifications of Spanish contact with indigenous Californians, focusing on exchange on the short-term, ecological shift and the possibilities of disease spread in the mid-term, and the slow creep of Catholic missions northward in the long-term.
16 Apr 2021
The Island of Queen Calafía
This episode we discuss the early years of colonialism as Spanish ship captains attempt to make sense of the California coastline while having to deal with political rivals, English pirates, destructive storms, and indigenous peoples who may or may not have been happy to see the Spanish arrive on their doorstep. Also, if you're a Spanish ship captain, steer clear of Point Reyes.
24 Mar 2021
California Before Colonization: Eastern & Southern California
We continue our tour of indigenous ethno-linguistic groups inside California prior to the arrival of the Spanish, this time covering the eastern desert cultures and the native peoples of Southern California.
4 Mar 2021
California Before Colonization: Northern & Central California
This episode we go on a winding tour of the indigenous language groups that existed in northern and central sections of California, and discuss whether those linguistic groupings really meant anything to the Native Californians who spoke those languages.
16 Feb 2021
Hunter-Gatherer-Burners in California
In this episode we take a look at food resources, land management strategies, and how intentionally setting their lands on fire all contributed to building indigenous Californian cultures.
9 Feb 2021
An Indigenous Prehistory of California
On this episode we discuss who were the first humans to reach California, blast through 12,000 years of cultural development, and investigate how indigenous Californians dealt with the Medieval Climatic Anomaly. Also possibly involving visitors from Polynesia.
1 Feb 2021
What Is A California?
Welcome to the show! This is a basic introduction to California, in which we ask and attempt to answer What Is A California, and then go on a brief and probably insultingly simplifying tour of the Golden State.
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
Apple Podcasts (US)
4.5 / 5
32 ratings
Spotify
4.9 / 5
18 ratings
Contact A History of California
Guest appearances
Does not typically book guests
Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.
Host of A History of California?
Claim your podcast to manage its listing and keep your show details accurate.
Pod Engine is an independent podcast discovery and analytics service and is not affiliated with or endorsed by this podcast. Artwork and show content belong to their owners. Full legal notice.
Explore this show Podcast research with Pod Engine
