In May 2003, History Day in California celebrated its 20th anniversary. There were many outstanding projects focusing on the theme “Rights and Responsibilities in History.” Congratulations to everyone for their superior efforts! We were pleased to offer again the Heilbron Award, sponsored by CHS president emeritus Louis Heilbron, for an outstanding research paper on a California history topic and the California Historical Society Multimedia Award. 2003 CHS Award Winners: Stephanie Rosa from Sacramento won the Heilbron Award, for her essay “The Indian Occupation of Alcatraz: Native Americans Take a Stand”. Stephanie was intrigued by “The struggle the Indian People endured for the sake of this property [Alcatraz].” The most challenging part of her project was “not to make this paper a one-sided argument.” Stephanie found it “amazing to learn how all the different cultures that have been a part of California history since the beginning of is statehood relate to rules and laws.” ** Paul Wozniak from San Diego won the California Historical Society Multimedia award for his documentary “The Right to Learn: Alvarez vs. The Lemon Grove Board of Education.” His work explored an early civil rights trial in California. :: View documentary ::

2002 CHS Award Winners: In May 2002 CHS presented two students prestigious awards at the “History Day in California” State Finals in San Jose. Over 45,000 California students researched and prepared entries for their local History Day competitions. The state finals showcased 1,000 of California’s finest students representing thirty-one different counties throughout the state. The theme was “Revolution, Reaction, and Reform in History.” Twelfth-grader Nora Matell from Bridgeport received the Heilbron Award for her essay “The Revolution that Saved a Lake,” which tells the story of the successful efforts made by environmental activists to preserve Mono Lake. The award, sponsored by CHS President Emeritus Louis Heilbron, is for an outstanding research paper on a California history topic. Eighth-grader Eric Clow from Middletown received the CHS Multimedia Award for his sophisticated documentary “Thunder and Wolves: The Story of Bloody Island,” which discusses the Bloody Island tragedy during the Gold Rush era. This award honors an outstanding website or documentary film on a California history topic.

2001 CHS Award Winners: In May 2001, the California Historical Society gave out two awards for outstanding California history projects at History Day in California, the State Finals competition for the National History Day project. The 2001 theme, Frontiers in History: People, Places, Ideas, inspired thousands of students in grades 6-12 to submit projects about local, national, and world history. Congratulations to all the students who participated and the teachers and parents who inspired such excellence in history education!

Carly Prather received the Louis Heilbron award for her paper "From Dreams to Nightmares On A New Frontier: The Donner Party." Carly is an 8th grade student in Middletown, California. The award sponsored by CHS President Emeritus Louis Heilbron is for an outstanding research paper on a California history topic.

** A new award this year, the California Historical Society Multimedia Award, honored an outstanding website or documentary film on a California history topic. The first recipient of this award is John Laue, a 6th grade student at Christa McCauliffe School in Bakersfield, for his documentary film on Dr. Edwin Hubble. His film "In the Eye of the Beholder: Edwin Powell Hubble" also won an award at the National History Day Finals competition. ** Quicktime 6.2 or later required available free for Mac & PC