There's a cool exhibit in the Oakland Museum of California about proposals for the shape of the eastern border of California!
Interestingly, some of the motivations for the proposals did involve something like gerrymandering, in terms of arguments about how many Mormons who had emigrated to the west would end up being included in California's territory.
Another interesting thing about the California-Nevada border that ended up getting adopted is where the northwest line turns north (where the bend is): it's inside of Lake Tahoe. That makes it a lot easier to remember!
Interestingly, some of the motivations for the proposals did involve something like gerrymandering, in terms of arguments about how many Mormons who had emigrated to the west would end up being included in California's territory.
Another interesting thing about the California-Nevada border that ended up getting adopted is where the northwest line turns north (where the bend is): it's inside of Lake Tahoe. That makes it a lot easier to remember!