Yes, and the engine of its growth -- the Central (and Southern) Pacific under the intendency of the Big Four -- was already in place. My great-grandfather was working for that railroad in 1893; his retirement gold watch ticks in my gun safe.
The railroad spurred the ag development and drainage of the San Joaquin Valley and made it boom. That, and the discovery of oil.
Wow, that goes way back! And people here consider themselves practically a native if they've been here 20 years.
Missing California is puzzling. If you look at the growth of cities around the world it's generally the coastal regions and port cities that have more population than interior regions. The predictions about Salt Lake and Denver are also strange. There just isn't enough agriculture and water around here to support a metropolis the size of New York. The prediction about Chicago is more understandable as in 1893 it has seen incredible growth in a short time.