1971
- Two Standard Oil tankers collide in the San Francisco Bay, spilling 800,000 gallons of oil
- Annadel State Park (pictured) is established in the Sonoma Valley
- Erhard Seminars Training is founded in San Francisco
- Eugene O'Neill's Tao House (pictured), in unincorporated Contra Costa County, is declared a National Historic Landmark
- Chez Panisse restaurant (pictured) is established in Berkeley
- Filmmaker George Lucas founds Lucasfilm in San Rafael, the same year he releases THX 1138, filmed in the San Francisco Bay Area
- Japanese American city councilman Norman Mineta is elected Mayor of San Jose
- The Palo Alto Community Cultural Center is founded in Palo Alto