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DEEP ROOTS STRONG STALKS
T H E H I S T O R Y of C A N N A B I S i n C A L I F O R N I A
1865 Samuel Clemens, AKA Mark Twain, was “seen walking up Clay Street under the influence” of hashish, according to a report in
The San Francisco Dramatic Chronicle, now known as The Chronicle. At this stage, Cannabis-based tinctures and edibles were becoming a sort of curiosity among the artistic community in the U.S. - particularly in California.
California has always walked its own path - and the world has often followed. The Wild West, the Gold Rush, the Golden Era of Hollywood - and, for the past 100 years and beyond, the Cannabis movement. Let’s take a moment to look back at California’s rich history and the state’s significant impact on Cannabis globally.
1913
22
Cannabis is added to the list of banned substances in California’s Poison and Pharmacy Act, which required prescriptions for the purchase of a number of substances, including cocaine and opiates.
1914 The first major event in a drawn-out assault on Cannabis occurs when two
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dozen ‘Indian hemp’ plants are cut down and seized in the Sonoratown barrio of Los Angeles, according to a report by the L.A. Times. According to the report, “The toxic effect of the plant’s use sometimes induces mental exileration (sic) but at other times incides (sic) to murder.” The cost per ounce at the time? $1.
1937 The Marihuana Tax Act launched Cannabis prohibition in the United States.
1967
1969
Jack Herer moves from New York to Los Angeles, where he experiences Cannabis for the first time. Jack would go on to become one of the most recognizable figures in Cannabis, inspiring people all over the world into advocacy with his 1985 book, “The Emperor Wears No Clothes.”
may 2020
Dr. Timothy Leary challenges the Marihuana Tax Act, leading to the revocation of the law by the U.S. Supreme Court.
