The giveaway is meant to encourage Californians to explore places that tell the state\u2019s full, and often complicated, history.<\/p>\n
\u201cCalifornia is … inviting everyone to learn our country\u2019s history\u2014our real history\u2014for free in our state parks,\u201d Governor Gavin Newsom stated in announcing the program<\/a>. <\/p>\n The Historian Passport is one of California State Parks\u2019<\/a> lesser-known annual passes. Unlike the popular Golden Poppy Annual Pass<\/a>, which focuses on nature-filled recreation areas, this pass is specifically designed for the state\u2019s historic sites, spanning former missions, railroad landmarks, Native American cultural sites, military forts, and museums that trace California\u2019s history from Indigenous homelands through Spanish colonization, Mexican rule, the Gold Rush, and more.<\/p>\n Historic parks worth planning a trip around<\/p>\n In Colonel Allensworth State Historic Park, visitors can experience this recreation of a Black-founded California town.<\/p>\n Photo by Zack Frank\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n The passport covers admission to a wide range of sites. (The full list appears below.) Whether you get the pass for free or are simply interested in learning more about these pieces of living history, here are a few standouts among California\u2019s state historic parks.<\/p>\n Colonel Allensworth State Historic Park<\/p>\n On the western edge of the San Joaquin Valley, 150 miles north of Los Angeles, a grid of restored wooden homes, a schoolhouse, library, church, and hotel recreate the town of Allensworth much as it looked in the early 1900s. Founded in 1908, it remains the only California town established, financed, and governed by Black Americans.<\/p>\n Indian Grinding Rock State Historic Park<\/p>\n The park\u2019s namesake is a broad slab of volcanic rock pocked with more than 1,100 mortar holes, where generations of Miwok people ground acorns into flour. A reconstructed Miwok village and museum provide additional context on the Indigenous life that predates California statehood by thousands of years. This park is located about 140 miles east of San Francisco.<\/p>\n Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park<\/p>\n This is where James W. Marshall discovered gold in 1848, setting off the California Gold Rush. Today, visitors can walk the grounds of the former sawmill, tour Gold Rush\u2013era buildings, pan for gold, and follow trails along the American River in this state park that is located in the foothills of the Sierra between San Francisco and Lake Tahoe.<\/p>\n Weaverville Joss House State Historic Park<\/p>\n Set in the former Gold Rush town of Weaverville (located 250 miles north of San Francisco), this 1874 Taoist temple has been in continuous use for more than 150 years. Visitors can step inside to see intricately carved altars, hanging lanterns, ceremonial objects, and offerings in one of the oldest, still active Chinese temples in California.<\/p>\n You can explore the vineyard at Jack London State Historic Park in Northern California using the Historian Passport.<\/p>\n Photo by UVL\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n How to get the free Historian Passport<\/p>\n![\"Two-story](\"https:\/\/afar.brightspotcdn.com\/dims4\/default\/37d512a\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/3000x2001+0+0\/resize\/800x534!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fk3-prod-afar-media.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fd2%2Ff7%2Ffac25ad04301982dc86399829591%2Fshutterstock-2278972249.jpg\")
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