The initial burst of wealth began with the gold rush and was extended with the transcontinental railroad, but the basis for California’s modern wealth, all the

The initial burst of wealth began with the gold rush and was extended with the transcontinental railroad, but the basis for California’s modern wealth, all the way from San Diego to San Francisco, was the military industrial complex. Hollywood is a major industry in Southern California for sure, but Hollywood didn’t turn California into an economic juggernaut, the Pentagon did. That same defense contract money and influx of tech talent is largely responsible for the foundations of Silicon Valley as we know it today.