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California in a World War II Security Campaign

California’s natural bounty has been a marvel for centuries, from the redwood forests to the waters and mountains. During World War II Californians saw one of the state’s natural gems in a new light, its rich array of oaks.

Specifically, cork oak trees. A few Californians had planted cork trees from the Mediterranean up the coast in the late 1800s. Suddenly in the 1940s, those oaks posed a possible solution to a security vulnerability. My research on that story continued last fall during a visit to Davis and Sacramento.

So I’m thrilled to have a paper in the gorgeous fall issue of California History, published with California Historical Society and the University of California Press. Many thanks to editor Josh Sides for producing a smart, beautiful issue. Download my spotlight article: CH_2019_96_3_spotlight.

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