California Uncovered: A Journey Through Time, Place, and Identity

Fri., April 10-May 15, 12-1:30 p.m.

Time: 12-1:30 p.m.

Location: Online

Cost: $70

With Anthony Antonucci, Ph.D., Historian & Fullbright Fellow

California is more than a state. It is an idea, a dream, and a contradiction. It is where snow-capped peaks rise above sun-drenched deserts, and where misty coastlines and ancient forests stand alongside cities built on myth, ambition, and reinvention.

In this immersive course, we will journey through California’s sweeping history - from its earliest Indigenous cultures and diverse ecosystems to its transformation under Spanish, Mexican, and American rule.

We will uncover the people, events, and forces that shaped the Golden State into a global icon of migration, innovation, and cultural change.

We will explore the missions, the Gold Rush, the railroad, Hollywood’s allure, and Silicon Valley’s disruptive genius, while also challenging myths and amplifying voices too often left out of mainstream narratives.

We will gain a deeper understanding of what it has meant to be Californian across eras, enriching how we experience the state today.

Anthony Antonucci, Ph.D., is a historian whose teaching and scholarship explore the intersections of foreign relations, nationalism, race, and immigration policy in U.S. history since 1750. A Fulbright fellow, Antonucci has also held research appointments at the Massachusetts Historical Society, the American Antiquarian Society, and the University of Connecticut Humanities Institute. He teaches courses in U.S., world, and California history, as well as African American, Latinx, and women’s studies at colleges across Southern California, including Cal Poly Pomona, the University of La Verne, and Citrus College.

This class will not be recorded.

Class #: 24010

Registration opens for OLLI members on Feb. 3. Non-members may register starting Feb. 9.