Question 1

San Francisco is presently the

a.   2nd largest city in California

b.   3rd largest

c.   4th largest

d.   5th largest

Question 2

Metropolitan Los Angeles (L.A., Orange Counties, and neighboring portions of Ventura, Riverside, and San Bernardino Counties) is the

a.   largest English-speaking city in the world.

b.   2nd largest

c.   3rd largest

d.   4th largest

Question 3

Metropolitan Los Angeles has the

a.   2nd largest Mexican population in the world after Mexico City.

b.   3rd largest

c.   4th largest

d.   5th largest

Question 4

Sir Francis Drake

a.   discovered San Francisco Bay.

b.   named Point Concepcion.

c.   anchored at present-day Point Fermin.

d.   none of the above

Question 5

In Two Years Before the Mast, Richard Henry Dana makes repeated references to a natural harbor near a place he calls Campestrano (Mission San Juan Capistrano). This place is now called

a.   San Pedro

b.   Dana Point

c.   Los Angeles

d.   San Buenvaventura

Question 6

The last Mexican colonial capital was located at

a.   Sacramento

b.   Los Angeles

c.   Yerba Buena

d.   Monterey

Question 7

Yerba Buena is now more popularly known as

a.   San Jose

b.   Oakland

c.   San Francisco

d.   San Diego

Question 8

El Camino Real was a road that connected 21 of the 22 missions built by Franciscan monks under the direction of Junipero Serra. The modern highway that follows most of this route is

a.   California Route 1

b.   U.S. 101

c.   U.S. 66

d.   Interstate 5

Question 9

The Interstate highway also known as the Junipero Serra Freeway is located in

a.   Los Angeles County

b.   Mendocino County

c.   Alameda County

d.   San Mateo County

Question 10

Redwood City is

a.   north of San Francisco in the Redwood Forest

b.   on the San Francisco Peninsula

c.   in the Central Valley

d.   a West Coast chain of lumber supply stores

Question 11

The University of Southern California and University of San Francisco are

a.   private institutions

b.   public institutions owned by the cities where they are located

c.   state institutions

d.   public junior colleges

Question 12

Buttonwillow is named for a(n)

a.   oak tree

b.   willow tree

c.   palm tree

d.   lemon tree

Question 13

The New Almaden Mine which at one time was the largest producer of mercury in the world is located near what city?

a.   San Diego

b.   Santa Barbara

c.   San Luis Obispo

d.   San Jose

Question 14

The New Almaden Mine is the setting for a major part of

a.   Angle of Repose by Wallace Stegner

b.   Tortilla Flat by John Steinbeck

c.   Subterraneans by Jack Kerouac

d.   The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler

Question 15

The European who named the San Joaquin Valley was

a.   Junipero Serra

b.   Pio Pico

c.   Gabriel Moraga

d.   Juan Cabrillo

Question 16

The Central Valley

a.   is synonymous with the San Joaquin Valley.

b.   encompasses the Sacramento and San Joaquin Valleys.

c.   includes Redding but not Susanville.

d.   is entered from Cajon Pass.

e.   (b) and (c)

Question 17

In the first edition of Places Rated Almanac, Yuba City was rated

a.   near the top of most desirable places to live

b.   in the middle

c.   near the bottom

Question 18

A date shake is

a.   a form of physical stimulation

b.   a milkshake

c.   a mild earthquake

d.   a kind of speed bump used on California roads

Question 19

According to its director George Lucas, the 1973 film "American Graffiti" is set in

a.   Reseda

b.   Petaluma

c.   Modesto

d.   San Bruno

Question 20

The actual Mel's Drive-in featured in "American Graffiti" no longer exists. It was located in

a.   Berkeley

b.   North Hollywood

c.   Stockton

d.   San Francisco