Today we have an interview with Dr. Iris H. W. Engstrand. is a native Californian and indispensable historian of Southern California .
Engstrand’s academic honors include USD’s distinguished University Professorship; the Davies Award for Faculty Achievement; Awards of Merit from the San Diego, Southern California, and California Historical Societies, Western History Association, and Orange Coast College; fellowships from the Fulbright Commission, American Philosophical Society and Huntington Library; and the California Design Award in Historic Preservation.
She is a trustee of the San Diego Natural History Museum and the San Diego Maritime Museum, past president of the American Historical Association Pacific Coast Branch and of the Western History Association. Engstrand has lived and traveled extensively in Spain and Mexico and lectures widely in both English and Spanish. She has degrees in history, with maors and minors in the fields of California, Mexico, Latin America and the Spanish Southwest history, biology and Spanish
Engstrand has recently been awarded the prestigious medal of the Order of Isabel la Catolica (Isabel the Catholic -- ruler of Spain in 1492) by Juan Carlos, King of Spain, for outstanding contributions to the history of Spain in the Americas.
We explore in this episode how the first people arrived to California.
In this episode, we jump into the background of the transcontinental railroad and the companies and government initiatives designed to complete this monumental infrastructure...
In today's episode, we explore the first few major battles in the Mexican American War in the Alta California theater. Our Patreon Page: www.patreon.com/historyofcalifornia...