California City: The Largest City Never Built | Tom Scott Has a Field Day

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In the middle of the Mojave desert lies California City, the largest city never built. It is now a vast network of roads carved into the sand for miles and miles with nothing but tumbleweeds and cacti to inhabit them. Tom Scott is a man on a mission to explore interesting places and share them with the world. He explains why this city didn’t grow to fill its vast scope, and how it has evolved over the years into the small, thriving and growing community it is today.
Field Day is a place to meet and see KZbin’s most inspired filmmakers, dynamic entertainers, and exciting personalities. Each week, one of these inspired creators tries something new and creates their own unique, imaginative, dream video. Whether they’re investigating far-off places, dancing with remote control cars, or stunt flying with Star Fox, you won’t want to miss these creators #HaveAFieldDay
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WATCH MORE FIELD DAY:
Tom Scott Explores California City: bit.ly/1Xvg5hs
The Brothers Riedell Fall in Love With Greyhound Dogs: bit.ly/1RjPZJo
Everything You Need To Know About Hot Peppers: bit.ly/1HDO2Fu
The Slowest Rube Goldberg Ever: bit.ly/1RdfJos
2 CRAZY Tinder Dates: bit.ly/1NylCf4
Love Wins in All 50 States: bit.ly/1MRpsNw
Happiness Around the World: bit.ly/1GuOSyh
Hollywood Solves Sexism: bit.ly/1goVmaI
“Cat Hospital” Soap Opera: bit.ly/1fCmLpp
Icelandic Pun Battle: bit.ly/1eQ9Qj0
Colin Furze Rides a Motorhorse: bit.ly/1NsrbuQ
Dinosaur Extinction in Slow Mo: bit.ly/1ECuCd0
Video Game Paintball!!!: bit.ly/1g1KvEy
Vsauce Investigates World’s Smallest Town: bit.ly/1QKKcuo
MatPat Tests Star Fox IRL: bit.ly/PLAYStar...
Zombies Attack!: bit.ly/1GCcC8y
Vsauce2 After the Upload: bit.ly/1S5ZOay
Dancers Prank New York: bit.ly/1STAKHc
Amymarie Gaertner Dances with 100’s of Mini Cars : bit.ly/PLAYAmyM...
Cut Ages Newlyweds 100 Years: bit.ly/PLAY100Y...
Newlyweds Watch For 1st Time = Feelz: bit.ly/1cYabjc
Watch NUN FUN: goo.gl/PoLKhY
LOTR vs GoT: bit.ly/1ffakA9
BEHIND THE SCENES:
The Secret To Tom Scott’s Red Shirt: bit.ly/1NG0VRU
The Brothers Riedell on Their First Doc: bit.ly/1jxh5yP
Hot Pepper Gaming in a Hot Tub: bit.ly/1jxeBk3
Bob’s Inventive Process: bit.ly/1idvHTj
Yulin’s Love For Love: bit.ly/1ie8Jvt
Swoozie’s Animation Imagination: bit.ly/1N5qTfG
Just Between Us Comedy Gold: bit.ly/1UTfVK4
Colin on his Mental channel: bit.ly/1FNUeCJ
Behind Directing Cats: bit.ly/1hDl8tf
Hilarious Behind Puns: bit.ly/1Dq3pPt
Blind Paintbal BTS: bit.ly/1gMacsP
Vsauce’s Michael on the trek to Alaska: bit.ly/1EEkiB0
MatPat on facing his fear of flying for the sake of science: bit.ly/1PHBta0
How The 3-Part Prank Started: bit.ly/1HIAxD8
Mike Relm and the Slow Motion Zombies: bit.ly/1Kn0msj
Action Movie Dad Shows His VFX Magic: bit.ly/1HMsS5W
Amymarie on the set of her 1st music video: bit.ly/1PHBhHH
Cut on the amazing makeup artists who aged the couple: bit.ly/1H4oqKZ
Help us caption & translate this video!
amara.org/v/H37e/

[@mysteriouskazakh]

Looks like every major project I ever started on Minecraft.

[@eliad6543]

Ohh yes...

[@1224chrisng]

Modded Ender Quarrys with Dirt Fill on

[@_tsiatsiaros.k]

True same here

[@quinnkids177]

Yeah lol back in like 2013

[@munmilks]

yas omg so tru

[@romanr9883]

1. buy desert 2. build roads 3. ???? 4. profit

[@jaapjochemlankman3390]

Roman R Wow hahahaha you made my fucking day😂😂😂

[@薛陳月美-r6f]

Jaap Jochem Lankman dislike due to overuse of emojis

[@madmallett]

Roman R 3.The end

[@DaVince21]

薛陳月美 😆🙂😊😍😋😘😉😎😴😝😴😯🤐😪😟😱😬😧😟😳😩😢😤😞😧😧🤠😈👺👽👽💀🤓🤥👿🤠🤧🙉😿🙉😽😾😿🙊👧👴👵🙉😺🙈🤵💁🤵🙋👲🤵🎅👸🙎🎅👰👸👱👰🕺🕴️👥🏂🛌👯🗣️💃🏌️🛀👬🤾🤸🤽👩‍❤️‍💋‍👩🏎️🤹🏍️🤽👨‍👨‍👧‍👦👉👨‍👨‍👧👈👨‍👨‍👧‍👦👉👨‍👨‍👧👉👨‍👨‍👧👩‍👩‍👧🖐️👍👋🖐️👌🖐️👎💕👣❣️🗨️❣️🗯️💢🗨️👙👜👙👡👘👜💍⛑️⛑️🐯🦁🐵🐅🦁🐃?

[@supamonkey25]

3. Make a racetrack

[@P98D]

when you are bad at sim city

[@FieldDay]

+Pietro Deligios HAHA

[@Petr75661]

you can still have riots there though

[@Joeink100]

+Evi1M4chine you haven't tried sim city 4000 wich a actually Yano good

[@joshmo1672]

funny

[@THX--nn5bu]

You beat me to it, the exact same thing that I was going to post, I did this a few times in SimCity 4 Rush hour, build slow and develop slow.

[@normalminecraftletsplay]

I like how McDonalds see a city and just grabs it.

[@FranklyWatchingYoutube]

I live in some really small town and there is 3 McDonald's and 5 subways

[@FranklyWatchingYoutube]

The subways are usually empty

[@freeopinion2140]

@@FranklyWatchingKZbin that's because uRsULA the sandwich crusher has ruined their reputation

[@modestoca25]

@@FranklyWatchingKZbin you must be near some major highways or other towns nearby? otherwise that does not make sense.

[@FranklyWatchingYoutube]

@@modestoca25 ik I'm right next to a big city but so I guess it makes sense

[@bobbobson2061]

The world's first Kickstarter campaign

[@BlackPixelLP]

Quick, get iDubbz on this

[@mindmaster_osu]

wow

[@pingpong1138]

and like most Kickstarter campaigns it was never finished

[@reactedtugboat7943]

Nah, that was the Statue of Liberty.

[@metalavenger23]

but the guy who started it walked away with the money

[@GamingTaylor]

Looks like someone was playing Cities Skylines, spent too much, ran out of money, taxes were too high so everyone left. The end.

[@josephgreen1051]

GamingTaylor Spends all 75,000 dollars on dirt roads

[@mumblic]

exactly my first reaction! ;-))

[@yh2917]

he only connect 1 side of the highway.

[@twone0445]

GamingTaylor and i live here

[@jaouenvezin7355]

GamingTaylor At first I thought t was a video for cities skyline

[@emilyblack7342]

Ooh, this is going to confuse archaeologists 3000 years from now

[@ianism3]

lol that's where my brain went too

[@rachelcookie321]

Is it? How?

[@emilyblack7342]

@@rachelcookie321 a sprawling grid of roads and associated infrastructure. Yet, there are no remnants of houses, no signs of a disaster, no middens of discarded chicken bones and broken dishes, no archeological evidence to be found. Why would a culture create such a place and then abandon it? Was this a monument to their gods? The whim of a crazed and despotic ruler? Punishment for enslaved prisoners? A new capitol abandoned at the start of a forgotten war? Our digital records probably won’t last that long, in the end. My guess is it’s going to be a mystery.

[@rachelcookie321]

@@emilyblack7342 well A. They would probably assume that it was a planned city that was all built out but then the economy went down and it never got finished. And B. Unless a massive disaster wipes out the internet and all our documentation, they will easily be able to find out the actual reason.

[@emilyblack7342]

@@rachelcookie321 I won’t argue point A, maybe they could figure that out. But regarding point B, the internet is one of the least permanent means of communication humans have used. Anything digital doesn’t just require discovery and understanding of the language, like a stone tablet would; it requires the technology (hardware and software) to parse it. The internet is not as permanent as you think.

[@AlqGo]

What? He managed to sell a wasteland and make profit? Fucking genius.

[@iam_tenko1213]

That's what Las Vegas once was, look at it now.

[@AlqGo]

iAM_TeNKo How many cities have developed like Las Vegas?...Yep, just one.

[@iam_tenko1213]

Wrong... Adelanto California UTC−8 City 31,765 Apple Valley California UTC−8 City 69,135 Barstow California UTC−8 City 22,639 Boulder City Nevada UTC−8 City 15,023 Bullhead City Arizona UTC−7 City 39,540 California City California UTC−8 City 14,120 Henderson Nevada UTC−8 City 257,729 Hesperia California UTC−8 City 90,173 Hurricane Utah UTC−7 City 13,748 Ivins Utah UTC−7 City 6,753 Kingman Arizona UTC−7 City 28,068 Lake Havasu City Arizona UTC−7 City 52,527 Lancaster California UTC−8 City 156,633 Las Vegas Nevada UTC−8 City 583,756 La Verkin Utah UTC−7 City 4,719 Leeds Utah UTC−7 Town 820 Mesquite Nevada UTC−8 City 15,276 Needles California UTC−8 City 4,844 North Las Vegas Nevada UTC−8 City 216,961 Pahrump Nevada UTC- 8 Town 43,000 Palmdale California UTC−8 City 152,750 Ridgecrest California UTC−8 City 27,616 Santa Clara Utah UTC−7 City 6,003 St. George Utah UTC−7 City 72,897 Tehachapi California UTC−8 City 14,414 Twentynine Palms California UTC−8 City 25,048 Victorville California UTC−8 City 115,903 Washington Utah UTC−7 City 18,761 Yucca Valley California UTC−8 City 20,70... And that's just in the Mojave.

[@AlqGo]

iAM_TeNKo What makes you think cities like Pahrump, Ridgecrest, Tehachapi and many others are comparable to Las Vegas? No offence to people living there but this list is laughable.

[@iam_tenko1213]

Cairo, Egypt pop - 9 million...also in a desert

[@samuelskillern7365]

Why does this seem like a SimCity template?

[@properjuicytv7458]

becuase ur name is samuel

[@TackKeyNack]

Huuuuuuuh?

[@CoffeeSuccubus]

build it in simcity 3000

[@FreekyFreezer]

why refer to simcity when there is a godlike city builder made by paradox?

[@CoffeeSuccubus]

***** Paradox is the king of games.

[@easymac79]

3:50 If California City became the super metropolis they dreamed, there wouldn't be any stars, so I'm not sure that's a selling point.

[@childhoodshows7895]

There's stars in Cali rn actors

[@denimchicken104]

It’s a selling point until it isn’t. By then, it won’t matter. Getting the ball rolling is all that matters. Once people actually fill it out and the star go away, it’ll be developed enough that people will have reason to move there, just no stars.

[@jakefelty]

If enough YT, TikTok people move there, they could. Sounds like a plan to make the dream come true!

[@ih82r8]

Agreed. And once the place is covered in cement and asphalt and every last inch of desert is bulldozed under, you can forget about the nights cooling down too. People are such fools when it comes to city planning. I hope this never gets any bigger.

[@DavidKnowles0]

@@ih82r8 This is where city should be planning all ready, they should be planting trees, building lakes, and designing the planning code so buildings have to incorporate garden roofs, that only certain plants can be grown in the gardens.

[@scanjett]

you don't actually realize how many stars there are if you live in a big city or near one.

[@FieldDay]

+scanjett As our teams are in LA and NYC, we second that!

[@audience2]

As the world replaces all its lights with LEDs it should use light fittings that direct the light downwards.

[@chrism1516]

It would be nice, but everything we do in the roads would probably be harder with red light, imagine trying to drive with a dim red light. One city that does use the red light idea is San Diego (maybe) but they use a red phosphorus burning light that is more orange than red, as it is a bit more useful for the roads.

[@kreeperkiller3223]

+Herbert Grabbottom Yes because everyone who comments on a video on youtube is automatically a Westerner, you ignorant piece of shit.

[@DR-54]

and you do if you live in the middle of no where trust me they're everywhere

[@Krezmick]

Imagine how confused the pizza delivery guy would be if you ordered a pizza there.

[@choppersworld5094]

If you can get pizza there I’m going. I live 10 minutes northwest from nearest pizza shop and they won’t come to me

[@kimgkomg]

@@choppersworld5094 can't have shit in Detroit

[@GarrettB06]

I live here and there is a pizza place in the town it’s not all empty

[@joshuaa.kennedy8837]

Without a dwelling they will not give you a address.

[@stellarae8257]

It’s actually not a problem at all! We’ve got a pizza place or two and they both deliver to anywhere in town :)

[@BillyTubememe]

in da future ppl are going to think aliens bult those "glyphs" (roads i mean)

[@FieldDay]

+Guy Kazemeka SOOO TRUE!

[@sharpe3698]

out that, "they appear to have had a religious purpose"

[@MrMrMaran]

+Guy Kazemeka Probably not, because they follow the same pattern with lots, streets, boulevards and cul de sacs as any other american city. The city is well recorded in many documents all over the world, and if there is a big disaster where all of known history is forgotten, humanity would likely go with it as well.

[@BillyTubememe]

MrMrMaran Yeah but maybe a fire may break out and destroy documents and maybe cities would be different in the future...

[@MrMrMaran]

+Guy Kazemeka Except a fire isn't going to happen all at once all over the world. And even if cities look different in the future, we will still have some old cities around. We constantly discover old cities like the one near Angkor Vat in Cambodia, I'm pretty sure we aren't going to be confused about it's usage. Not 100 years from now, or 10000 years from now.

[@MannyN420]

Basically a real life Sim City account that has been abandoned. LOL

[@robert3302]

When I was a kid in the 60's, my family used to go to the State Fair in Sacramento every year. California City had a big exhibit with a scale model and artists pictures showing what it was going to look like when it was finished. It was very exciting. It was a big disappointment when it didn't happen.

[@punker4Real]

@Ticky Tocky it's a Flood Zone see google maps satellite mode you can see the scars from water from space

[@strayboi]

punker4Real the wash is what floods when theres rain

[@davidrossington9756]

If you build it, they MAY come.

[@speedy01247]

If you build it they will come, buy most of it, then do nothing with it and let the land fall back into the government's hand's.

[@davidrossington9756]

speedy01247 Sounds accurate.

[@tange-lq5jg]

TheLyingTruthTeller untrue

[@JackC11111]

The Field of Dreams movie was good

[@Ragnar6000]

they built Detroit too.........and its rotting away!

[@ThePoptartster]

I lived in the next town over for half my life.. the Mojave is beautiful, but it's dead. Kids end up doing drugs and getting into trouble because there is nothing happening out there. "The only thing to do in a desert is leave."

[@fooshfoosh]

+ThePoptartster Ya, kinda sad that a place called California City was made in a land locked part of Ca. No ocean, trees, rivers, etc. Not a great location really...

[@ThePoptartster]

fooshfoosh Well there is the Mojave river. It's landlocked and flows inland... when it flows. And Death Valley is nearby. Also the air is really quite good.

[@Reziac]

+ThePoptartster There's "nothing happening" in much of the flyover midwest either, yet kids there don't get into more trouble than average (if anything, less). The real problem is that Los Angeles uses their north county area as a dumping ground for perps and early-releases, so lowlife have kinda tended to congregate around these desert communities -- far enough from civilization that no one can see what they're up to, close enough to L.A. to have an easy market for drugs and stolen property. Kids copy their peers, and if that's what they're seeing around them -- well, yeah, it's not a good thing. And the desert itself isn't dead. It's loaded with life, all of it HUNGRY!!

[@ThePoptartster]

Rez Zircon The High Desert was nicer until the economy tanked. So many houses were abandoned, and the banks rented them out to lower income families fleeing the inner cities.

[@Reziac]

+ThePoptartster Yep, that's for sure. :( Got to where it was tough to find good tenants, too.

[@sirnate9065]

If this is not well documented it will be one of the big mysteries in a few hundred years.

[@max2themax]

Well now it´s on the youtube.... It will live FOREVER.

[@arkalbin7408]

Someone quick report this until it's removed

[@salemsaberhagen8390]

lol as if youtube or the internet will last hundreds of years

[@jamesbond9975]

+David Frigault Will the Internet survive though? I highly suggest you familiarize yourself with European hate speech laws because they're coming to the Internet. ec.europa.eu/justice/fundamental-rights/files/hate_speech_code_of_conduct_en.pdf

[@jamesbond9975]

David Frigault Oh little buddy it's already happening in Europe. www.theverge.com/2016/7/13/12170590/facebook-hate-speech-germany-police-raid Americans don't have to worry about getting arrested just having videos and comments censored and deleted.

[@LoganAllec]

True Story: I flipped a house here a few years back.

[@dragonman1871]

Has it landed yet?

[@davidskidmore8612]

Your really strong wow 👏

[@FlyingJournalism]

I want to build my own airstrip there, who wants a free flight up there?👍👍✈

[@brentricci9063]

I am currently in the process of doing this also

[@snoozz336]

I immediately think this would be an amazing place to host a race.

[@IntenzBeatz]

True... I like the way you think

[@garykuyper4669]

There's a lot of them actually. Generally just for CA state, there must be a dozen. Here in the desert, it's mostly off road which is fine. I saw a few guys try to ditch the cops out there, but copters make it look hopeless at that point lol.

[@thomas.r344]

Years from now on TV: On the next episode of Ancient Aliens Season 19 we see first evidence that the extraterrestrials visited California. Could these carvings in the earth be a landing zone for spaceships? Or is it part of an interstellar map they used to navigate space?

[@Mikewee777]

Thomas Reichpietsch , funny because it is true.

[@oneplussixelectricflame2471]

ancient aliens actually show lots of important information and ancient sites, you exaggerate too much

[@hotpockets2224]

@@oneplussixelectricflame2471 you take things too seriously

[@roguishpaladin]

Funny thing is that it's like one town over from Mojave, CA, which is an actual landing zone for spaceships.

[@iguanapete3809]

Like the Nazca Plains.

[@CC-ts2se]

Haha, my Grandmother purchased a plot there. Someone in the family still owns the plot. We went out and visited it a few times.

[@CC-ts2se]

She lived across the valley on the mountain in Phelan!

[@haydenknapp8521]

A few times?? why did you need to go more than once?

[@CC-ts2se]

@@haydenknapp8521 I was a child. It was not choice. Hahah

[@CC-ts2se]

@@haydenknapp8521 I think they might have been trying to figure out who was going to pay the taxes. Ahhahah

[@jeffreyruiz21]

@@navjotsingh8800 ha I bought one at auction 2 1/2 acres for 5k

[@motofoto11]

This location has a drastic problem that will doom it... NO WATER

[@ryandonahue5141]

the next great wars will be for water

[@gamalielgoodman]

+Ryan Donahue mad max much

[@tokahontas9990]

+Ryan Donahue no, I 100% promise they won't, we care more about resources that don't cover our entire planet

[@edofluit7026]

no it wont xD

[@jluehring]

The rest of Southern California where people actually live is already in enough of a water crisis, they are not going to spend billions to pipe precious water out to the middle of the Mojave

[@JerryRigEverything]

This is absolutely fascinating. Thank you!

[@llll-lk2mm]

I like your taste jerry!

[@Artuar3CRaFT]

Fr

[@PurpleRanger69]

Give me an electric car plz. Thx

[@TomsBackyardWorkshop]

I live near Cal city. You couldn't pay me to live there. They have a terrible crime rate and a huge drug problem.

[@crapper1]

that sums up most of the state

[@new06enc]

+crapper1 have you ever been to California LA is bad but Northern California is the best

[@pjdillon7982]

I live near there too I've heard of it but didn't know anything about it kinda like zyzzx

[@MrYouarethecancer]

Sums up most of minority America.

[@hissoldier2002]

I also live near there.... they have a terrible football team

[@samA-qr9ru]

I used to ride my dirt bike out there for days! I miss it.

[@xboboax1]

same I live up in the mountains behind CA city now cause we hated the dessert, but i still miss my bikes :(

[@MrPROGAMER56]

still go there except the riding fees keep going up

[@mehdibouchaffra868]

Lmaooo

[@mehdibouchaffra868]

I just responded to a comment from 1 year ago.

[@FieldDay]

Ever heard of California City? Well by land it's the 3rd largest city in California, only no one came to build! Tom Scott is the best!

[@Steamrick]

+Field Day Too bad that the North American Southwest is likely going to experience more and worse droughts in the next century, so California City is going to ultimately fail due to one huge showstopper: lack of water.

[@Reziac]

+Steamrick Municpall water for desert communities doesn't rely on rainfall; it relies on wells drilled into deep aquifers (the ones I'm familiar with in the area go down 1500+ feet). But I agree, it's a limiting factor. And not because of drought, but because California's water management is sheer lunacy -- even in drought years, FOUR TIMES as much precipitation flows downhill into the sea as is used by Californians, but since no reservoirs have been constructed since the 1970s, water use relative to water storage capacity has become massively lopsided. For that you can thank "green" activists who are less concerned with the fact that every living thing uses that stored water (every reservoir built by man becomes a haven for wildlife), than with driving California into water bankruptcy.

[@seigeengine]

+Steamrick Unlikely. We already rely on massive distribution chains for resources, and with rising populations, there's only so much land with direct availability of water. If something causes the city to fail, it's unlikely to be droughts.

[@Steamrick]

seigeengine Except that those resources are being used up increasingly rapidly and the massive distribution chain is barely a fraction of what's really needed once groundwater dries up. It's already happening - just take a look at the Hoover Dam water level, it tells you everything you need to know about the water system in the entire region.

[@seigeengine]

Steamrick Except that those are problems we already solve,

[@Shmozone]

He should have played City Skylines. Never start big, rip.

[@girlsdrinkfeck]

fuck skylines ,simcity is OG

[@twisted9285]

girlsdrinkfeck simcity is garbage

[@girlsdrinkfeck]

@dark zeratul i disagree, its dumb city skylines makes u lay down power cables like its the 1930s again and water pipes ? thats so sim ciity 2000 ... so glad simcity 5 got rid of that nuisance ,also the rate people die in the game is unrealistic

[@Randze]

@@girlsdrinkfeck I'm pretty sure theres a big difference between a $30 game and a free game

[@girlsdrinkfeck]

@@Randze free what?

[@crazypeepsbrosk1]

you won't see any more stars when people move there.

[@lucaswvargas3826]

I thought the same.

[@youvegotmail9205]

to letters XD

[@guywhite667]

The mayor says there is plenty of space. Well, that's pretty common in the desert. Is there any water?

[@fartfarmer4951]

Was gonna say go grab a cactus but I didn't see any... lol bet they are stingy as hell with the water atleast towards homeowners who don't make large contributions...

[@Senaihh]

Plan was to build a dam there

[@continental1970]

no water but the scorpions are the size of my 12 inch running shoes, no bull...a lot of snakes too.

[@jackmoore3499]

There is a water cleaning facility nearby many aqueducts and a lake which was supposedly to be what the city was built around.

[@jackmoore3499]

The lake is at a park though and it’s not like you could go in it or just use it, you wouldn’t want to anyways it is kind of gross.

[@kct9967]

I remember going out there as a kid, my parents were actually thinking of moving out there back in the 60's. I believe they also had model homes to look at back then.

[@EvilAnomaly]

Actually grew up partially in this empty town in my teen years, glad I did too compared to the ghettos of L.A at that time which I was originally from. Would I live there as an adult, not a chance in hell but I'm glad I spent my teen years there!

[@57thorns]

A step up from the ghetto, a few steps down from where you ended up? Seems like congratulations to a job well done is in place.

[@golubhimself]

When you make a lot of roads in Cities Skylines

[@JoeBob79569]

_"You can see all the stars here"_ is maybe a bit misleading. I mean, now you probably can, but when thousands of people come to live there, with all their light pollution, you won't be able to. It's like a self unfulfilling prophecy.

[@chrisishereo2434]

3:50 "More stars in California City than in Hollywood". Just another way to say how empty your city is.

[@Rapture582]

lol that woman was such a shill

[@iliatchaplinski]

Well, she was the mayor. If your mayor does not speak well of your city, it is time to get a new mayor.

[@cassiedurbin4059]

Ay tho. It’s good for a small town BUT the nights in cal city in the middle of nowhere is beautiful. Seeing all the stars. But we have more abandoned houses than filled houses. And people just ride the dirt roads 🤷‍♀️ it works.

[@hegeliandetective1034]

I'd enjoy seeing the stars at night

[@Pcarnevaaa]

Or... or... wait for it. Realizing how shitty hollywood and the elites have become today. With all of them pretending to know what is best for the masses but completely disconnected from reality.

[@MysteryBlokHed]

I might be overly sensitive, but I feel really bad for the guy who built the city.

[@snatched.8135]

Dont be. Like the guy says at the end, the dude made his money. Everyone may have laughed at his failed city, but he laughed all the way to the bank.

[@idkdrew]

Adam Thompson-Sharpe he made money

[@snatched.8135]

Nothing in Particular Well he was a business man. What he was interested in was money. If he had been some kind of politician or wanted to create a specific type of city different than anything else then perhaps he could've been sad about it. But I dont think that was the case here. I think he was happy with his money.

[@FunkSoulBrother7]

He was a piece of shit scammer. fuck him

[@ShaunCheah]

Well, his city just hasn't fully blossomed yet. World population isn't stopping at 8 billion, and California is going to be relevant for a long while. I think there are better odds for California City filling out the remaining lots before the year of our Lord 2300 rolls around than there are for it failing completely. China's got similar plans; they've built entire actual cities, not just the roads. They're very vacant and kinda spooky but they're well-maintained and just waiting for a population to make the move from the provincial areas into the 21st century. This sort of generational-based forward-thinking is the reason why China has been so successful lately and why I believe they'll continue being successful in the future. Wish they were better about human rights, but we've got Scandinavia for that, I suppose.

[@raterbeast]

I really want to hoon my impreza there now.

[@blazers12369]

i was legit thinking the exact same thing😂

[@ChargerHouse]

That'd be cool, so badly want to do a flaming burnout in my scraping low Bumer.

[@sadrobokiller4]

If you can get there you totally should man!

[@scottcarlson9265]

I seriously was thinking about the same thing in my WRX

[@faisal3398]

If I can get there, I'll make my own rally course

[@rahkinrah1963]

I remember going through that area numerous time with my parents "way back when"...and seeing what appeared to be road cuts (like for a new subdivision). We always figured it was someone's plan for a "development. So this is it.

[@alibarron7558]

The land was obtained from the U.S. Government through the "mining claim" process in which one had to do a certain amount of improvements on a claim and then the Government would give you the almost free deed to the land. After obtaining the deed one could do anything you wanted with the land. I was working with the land surveying firm that laid out the mining claims in the early 1960s. The Government actually gives you a "patent" and not a "deed" in verbage.

[@tesmith47]

Another example of how the government helped to make SOME people rich white males

[@kylefowler5082]

this is an underrated comment

[@nathanielpillar8012]

Just tell the Chinese about this. They will fill it up in no time.

[@briansammond7801]

The Chinese have plenty of ghost cities of their own.

[@kellenanthoney4588]

The Chinese send workers to CC to set up drug houses, where they do everything from grow cannabis to cook meth.

[@abbers0737]

Dude. They did. There was a whole cartel XD

[@voli293]

No. We want the city to actually look good

[@european-one]

You should watch some documentaries about these Chinese city's. Essentially the local governments are funding these to artificially boost short term economic growth. If they stopped their economy would suffer. The buildings they construct cut so many corners to get up wuickly and you can see buildings only 3 years old where the concrete is already crumbling because it wasn't build correctly/ bribes were taken etc. In the dessert they would collapse in about 4 months

[@jcxxmotoxx]

It's a great place to stage to go dirt biking into the Mojave desert. I've also used it as a gas stop making a big 90ish mile loop from Ridgecrest toward Paiute Peak, fun ride.

[@shaneware2939]

I wonder how many of these post-war desert oasis planned communities were platted and never built. I recently discovered that my family owns a plot in the middle of the Chihuahua Desert in NM, exactly like this.. huge planned community platted and laid out with streets, but never built upon.

[@AaronOfMpls]

There've been some of those in Florida too -- platted during the land boom of the 1920s but never really built on before it went bust. Heck, there were also some "paper towns" here in Minnesota -- platted in the 1850s, but never developed due to the Panic of 1857 (financial crash/recession) killing off demand, and/or railroads bypassing them in the 1860s and later.

[@TheEastside661]

I used to visit my grandma here in the late 90’s. We’d drive up from Los Angeles. Good memories & yes it is indeed the epitome of “The Middle of Nowhere”

[@speedwolf]

That spaceport will be the city's eventual success.

[@HammaneggsAirborne]

All that needs to happen is have Elon Musk's rockets become rated for launching over land, and that would be a great place.

[@jackmorris303]

or Virgin Galatic run their tourist space flights from there. That'll be one way to bring in huge investment.

[@PunchMyPriest]

A spaceport in the desert? It will become a wretched hive of scum and villainy.

[@HammaneggsAirborne]

Look who's talking.

[@stormcloudtheory]

You had best be cautious.

[@Herrcampzalot]

Well this explains The Nasca Lines of peru! Now I get it!!! lool

[@petroshagos6149]

lolol

[@pak3ton]

Hisotry of nasca lines Inca emperor: i want pyramids, as aztecas, mayas, egytians. Builder: i cant do that.... i have a better idea. Inca emperor: well not bad. :v

[@DasIllu]

Ok, what i learned from SimCity: 1. Build a town hall 2. Build a PD and a FD 3. Depending on version build some other stuff 4. designate commercial and industrial area nearby 5. Profit !

[@GamesFromSpace]

They probably forgot to place roads leading to other regions.

[@AnarchistMetalhead]

+DasIllu while that is the way to do it in simcity, it is precisely the opposite of what you need to do in real life government leeches off the productive people in society, so creating all the government buildings without a population to leech off you just created a dead weight at a loss of whatever it cost you

[@aceman0000099]

but more people will invest in a place with good security

[@conorjamesmahoney5941]

2:15 OMG I just noticed that the map says "City of California city" LMAO

[@stevenvanhulle7242]

"City of California City, California"

[@geothon]

@@stevenvanhulle7242 COCCC

[@dolst]

For the naming process, they consulted with the Department of Redundancy Department. Surf Wisely.

[@maggiejetson7904]

Because if you don't say that it could mean a County of California, you know, a city called YouKnowWhat in the County of California.

[@dinahmyte3749]

That's name of a lot cities. My college town was City of Iowa City, Iowa.

[@SuperReviews4you]

Once of my favorite places to dirtbike.

[@Dive-Bar-Casanova]

Have you ridden to the Husky memorial?

[@moto5513]

@@Dive-Bar-Casanova Been there several times.

[@LordSandwichII]

Anyone else thinking what I'm thinking? DRAG STRIPS!!! :D :D :D

[@LordSandwichII]

***** Or a rally circuit? Anyways, my car is British and eat any American car around corners... ...right after I've sorted out the problem with the carburetor, that is! XD

[@DannyMinick]

not everything has to be rally. drag racing is quite popular.

[@chrism1516]

Just go out there Thanksgiving weekend!!!!! :D

[@thewiirocks]

Very true once upon a time. Not so much anymore. My Camaro has little trouble hanging with "the big boys" and in the upper models can easily eat their dinner. Invoke the 'Vette and the cornering value for your money is pretty damn good. (Especially if they've finally got the Z06 problems sorted.)

[@operator8014]

Well, we make the Corvette as well, which will CRUSH nearly anything costing even twice as much around the Nurburgring.

[@alonknaan4536]

I would highly recommend the podcast "California City" from LAist studios for the WAY more thorough story about the past of this city.

[@tekoeko]

Thank you just want I was looking for

[@Darkyahweh]

If they build solar panels on every other lot and make me pay zero on power I would consider it.

[@thebeststooge]

I saw water so it could be done.

[@tonystroemsnaes554]

but why not just a powerplant? Faster, cheaper and more efficient

[@Darkyahweh]

That works too if I don't get charged...

[@waaey4925]

Tony Stroemsnaes Bad for the environment I suppose.

[@DeJayHank]

Aaaand now I want to play Sim City..

[@ender_scythe2879]

+DeJayHank ew, here's $20 go buy Cities Skylines.

[@tntiscool54]

+ender_scythe he probably means to say "Sim city 4"

[@DeJayHank]

+ender_scythe Haha, yeah I've already played Cities Skylines a lot and prefer it to Sim City, but I just wanted to make a more relatable comment =)

[@ender_scythe2879]

DeJayHank lol

[@aceman0000099]

SimCity 4000!

[@George_Azeria]

More Tom Scott plz

[@FieldDay]

+George Jordan Go check out his channel! He put up some other really interesting looks into California while he was here!

[@George_Azeria]

Field Day That's where I came from, I didn't know you lot had uploaded! :D

[@roy04]

Is it just me or I actually like that the desert (and the city) the way it is?

[@jeffmurray4627]

I love the way it is too.

[@x.moon_cat.001]

As someone whose lived here for the past 7 years, it has its own beauty

[@mihaim3587]

Those are the Lion Estates, when Marty came back to 1955 :))

[@paulleckner8235]

Funny!

[@saraeskelson5614]

when you live in California city lol. This video makes it seem like there's no houses or businesses there lol.

[@8NCLI8]

You guys should really watch the whole video before commenting.

[@saraeskelson5614]

+Seph I did. You should really read a comment before you reply. I said it made it SEEM, because most of the video it talked about how there were huge open spaces and empty lots. I didn't say this video said it was an ghost town or something.

[@8NCLI8]

I... don't even know how to respond to that. You and I seem to have a different understanding of the phrase "makes it seem".

[@PhaseGamer]

i was born there lol

[@someone-ji2zb]

Go look at any video that mentions Bakersfield.. they make it sound like a hick town that is dying when in reality it is the fastest growing city in California right now that has a huge amount of middle aged white people in the upper middle class. Any city that doesn't fit into the LA county way of life is made to look pointless to many people.

[@chrisguy95]

We just call it cal city and use it for dirt bike races.

[@dustojnikhummer]

Yeah, they could be renting it to dirt races, build an actual racetrack etc

[@irvin295]

Wanna see it really grow? Build a Walmart.

[@irvin295]

Brandon Boyer idiota I'm talking about the place where there's already a town

[@junkyardnewsjunyardnews8623]

Irvin Gomez (Right on! Let's do it.

[@tijeraslack3]

Irvin Gomez Boom! The city council ran out Walmart. The small businesses didn't want Walmart here. Smh...

[@NukelearFallout]

Tijera Slack You're shaking your head because a small town didn't want a large corporation ruining everything they worked for. Yeah, how would you feel? Dumb bitch.

[@tijeraslack3]

Cristian C It’s that serious!

[@R_P_K]

The same thing happened outside of surprise AZ. They even poured asphalt roads for the huge neighborhoods that where planned. But the housing bubble burst and nothing was built.

[@FieldDay]

+reed petchnick Facinating

[@DeaconG1959]

Also see Palm Bay, Florida...the entire southwest quadrant of the city is absolutely empty except for hunters and joyriders, with the original gravel roadways still in place (though crumbling away badly). There's already 100k folks there and they could drop another 25k in the SW area (called by the locals "the Menagerie") and not fill it. They're building a road called the St. John's Heritage Parkway in an attempt to get folks to move in here, but the construction has been slow and they've reduced the footprint from a 4-lane expressway to a two-lane road.

[@TEAMCREAM_96]

free race tracks

[@cityofcaliforniacity6060]

Come by and visit anytime!

[@jjthomas2297]

I did..It's a shithole..

[@colormedubious4747]

I eventually will, depending on your drone ordinances!

[@toomanythings]

I just checked out the listings on the Realtor site and the homes are selling almost as fast as they come onto the market. Building lots up to an acre with water at the street and electric nearby are less than $3k. Some lots allow camping/RVs. Somebody's discovered California City. I'd consider it!

[@sazhawk]

Where can you see all the stars? Guess what As it gets more populated you'll see less stars So eventually you'll see none, just like in every other big city Just too much light

[@jayaybe1]

.........and in other news, bear shits in woods.

[@voli293]

No not really. Newer cities have implented new lights and systems to fix this problem. If this were to become a major city then im sure there will still be plenty stars to see.

[@yoshster0612]

that's why there are more stars in California City XD

[@hegeliandetective1034]

Not unless you design the street lights better. Idiot.

[@acasualescapedscp4418]

This has all the charm of Tom Scott's videos with some more, amazing! And a huge, open area with nothing for miles? Sign me the hell up! I'd move there in a heartbeat, oh, the stars you could see.

[@42luke93]

4:12 Never realized my street sign was the oldest object built first.

[@dommorris8163]

holy shit this is so cool I cant believe I havent heard of this

[@kenny.h1]

me too

[@TeaMMatE11]

Perfect scene to shoot a Western movie.

[@Ricky40369]

Try living there. Not so cool....

[@CIubDuck]

+Rick Flaherty Yeah I imagine it being quite hot.

[@harryboberson4851]

*Less than 15,000 people living in the city* Me, an introvert: *Packing bags intensifies*

[@maythesciencebewithyou]

A big city is better for introverts than a small town or a village where everybody knows everyone. In the big City everybody ignores everybody.

[@harryboberson4851]

@Sam Erens I do live in Canada, weirdly enough...

[@gordonsumner2085]

I lived nearby in Pearblossom and never realized this back story of California City. Very interesting.

[@jeffmurray4627]

i am in Rosamond. Go check it out Robert. The dirt road grids are great.

[@hannahe7935]

I live in California city no joke😂💀well where the city and houses are

[@noahwilliams8996]

What about where those huge roads are? Have you been there?

[@Herbie11]

My condolences

[@asmrearthsounds]

Better than Lancaster,Palmdale,Rosamond,and Mojave! I don't see trash and homeless people roaming every gd street.

[@gregbert1037]

@@asmrearthsounds You forgot Trona...

[@brandell4638]

Poor Trona. The quakes were the last straw for me.

[@jansen7640]

This is the desert where that guy tripped over a rock and woke up in a new dimension where the desert turned into a city and met a guy who had that everyday chemistry tape from the Beatles.

[@whenwhen2284]

I once went here, and it was quite pleasant! The houses there are all small and cute, which is what I love about California

[@wilfredz]

I used to live in Cal city. Nothing but meth

[@sweetiejunebug4642]

well now there's tons of grow houses lol

[@southernboy2446]

True that. I lived there in 04-07.

[@NESherv]

Why am I not surprised?

[@18jiggaboo]

Same

[@kevinmoore4887]

The jobs are in cities. Small towns have become METHtropolis. We looked around Lake Isabella. Nice rich houses and trailer parks.

[@jd8631]

Fallout New Vegas

[@tensonstar7641]

Its were wastelandweekend is held every year

[@tijeraslack3]

LavawolfJD 😂😂😂😂

[@gguff1061]

I lived there and worked at Edwards AFB for 9 years. I loved Cal City and the Mojave desert. Endless ATV and dirt bike riding.😃

[@Soldier842]

[Insert Cities: Skylines joke]

[@Chosenhunter77]

I just wanna drift around those empty roads.

[@johnnyc.5979]

I always like your videos, interesting, easily digestable, straight to the point, and not overly long. Thanks.

[@adrianarias2731]

The fact I had to live there for 4 years was terrible

[@fireballninja01]

how was it

[@YurandX]

Emily! Terrible

[@brownskinbeauty.]

I've been here for 11 years 😩

[@thedavidboyd]

Brown Skin Beauty I was there a week ago... has it changed much in 11 years, like slowly getting more developed? Or is it pretty much the same as when you first moved there?

[@brownskinbeauty.]

David Boyd where did you visit from? It's still the same as when I first got here and I'm 23 now. The only 'advancements' made is that we have two new dollar stores. We gain a lot of people because it's so cheap but since there isn't much here many don't stay here long. Within a year or so they're gone

[@Wardell43]

Home of Hyundai Proving Grounds and the California City Correctional Facility.

[@luisderivas6005]

And Edwards AFB nearby, too.

[@CaseyJPS]

I guess that accounts for the Best Western

[@duncanidaho2097]

I remember back in the 1960’s a front man named Don Adams( not the actor in “Get Smart”) used to run tv commercials selling a plot of land with a “You finish A frame house”meaning the buyer had to build and furnish the interior, plumbing, etc for $29,000. I don’t know if or where they brought water or electricity from.

[@rodolfomorales635]

I'm moving to California City! 15,001th resident

[@portaltaker]

Rem Cyclonic congrats...

[@thebusterdog6358]

Rodolfo Morales I wonder if they'll change the population on Wikipedia when you move there?

[@jacobwalcott5299]

Read that again.. slowly..

[@artypyrec4186]

@@jacobwalcott5299 hahahaha

[@ioannispolemarkhos7364]

1,000 years from now, on Space History Channel: "What are these mysterious lines in the desert of Southern California? Who built these lines? Some say, they are a map of the stars, built by visitors from another galaxy- such a thing could never have been built by our ancestors, who sat in front of primitive holoscreens all day to the point where they could not even move their hindlegs. "

[@ag-bk5wf]

Eric Estrada from CHPs use to have commericals selling real estate there in the early 2000s. Anyone from LA remembers that?

[@fartamplifer]

I like the “City of California City” poster behind the old guy.

[@nate_storm]

@ಠ_ಠ *CoCC

[@KasultyZu]

This was a very well-made documentary, with just one factual issue - Mendelsohn was actually bankrupted I believe after this failed project.

[@taviokagame9305]

The ending is perfect!!

[@souravzzz]

We need more cities, not less. I hope more people move to smaller cities like this from places like LA and SF.

[@vidwatcher3001]

1:56 "City of California City, California"

[@brianwingo6472]

In the early sixties my grandfather drove out to see if this was something he was interested in. Let's just say that one look was all it took to say no. I have spent some time in the area and the heat an the wind are not to be believed.

[@Michelle-iz5bh]

Found this after listening to the recent podcast California City - a good listen

[@TheThreatenedSwan]

We built this city, on dirt and dreams!

[@seahawk124]

What texture pack for 'Cities Skylines' is this and where can I download it?

[@KK-eg3em]

I used to be stationed at Edwards AFB which is right next to California City. I almost rented a trailer in the desert after I got out but I couldn't find a job. I loved just driving around out there.

[@user-yv2cz8oj1k]

So in a hundred thousand years when everyone has forgotten why, will some con artist write a book claiming it proves ancient aliens built it. 🤣

[@macromicrodragon]

Lived there the first 8 years of my life. Walking home from school at 120 degrees, no fun!

[@MrLuckylilly]

I was stationed T Edwards AFB in 1971 and lived in the next town over called N.Edwards. There was the restaurant called The Red Barn and that was our big nite out. The walls were filled with signed photos of celebs who stopped there on the way to vegas and that made it interesting. In may of1972 got out of the military and went home to Long Island. We lived in the Bloomingdale apartments and the rent was $70, not bad !

[@SomeThrillingHeroics]

Now, you see, he forgot the part of the plan to kill Superman and set off a nuclear warhead in the San Andreas fault.

[@wordsmith451]

“You can see stars here” Yeah, because it’s not built up. When people move in and street lights are everywhere, you won’t be able to.

[@samiam619]

What is amazing to me is that all the roads are still clear of vegetation. But being a desert, maybe not so amazing. Once they cleared out the roots...

[@spikespa5208]

Took decades upon decades for the creosote bushes that are there to grow. Rip 'em up and all you get is mobile real estate (dust).

[@raydai9541]

“In the 1960’s, everyone dreamed of flying cars” 2020 me: Hmmm, so the jokes are based on real things

[@gp3328]

Whats scary is 2015 was 6 years ago