California's Sesquicentennial Celebration
September 9, 2000
Celebrating 150 years of California History
A Gold Country Tour
Gold Discovery
"Eureka! I found it!" Those are words every child in a 4th grade classroom in California will hear; 4th grade is when school children study California History.
Imagine... what it must have been like in those days. From our windows we can look out at the Cosumnes River or the rolling foothills and almost picture "what it must have been like". The rushing water of the river; is there still gold? The hills; are there still mines? Yes! On both accounts. Abandoned mines are everywhere in the surrounding counties of Sacramento. Amador, Calaveras, El Dorado, Placer, Nevada, Tuolumne...
Sit back, relax and journey, with us, back 150 years ago; the days of the Gold Rush. A 'story book' tour of the surrounding Gold Country, remnants of yesteryear and sites of today. (A
map of where we'll go and where we''ve been...)From Sloughhouse - Heading East South/East on Highway 16 (Jackson Road) toward Amador County Heading east on State Highway 16, toward
Amador County, begins the trek into areas once populated by bandits, Indians, cowboys and miners of the Gold Rush. Making the turn on to Highway 49, Drytown is the first old mining town you come upon. Drytown is the oldest town in Amador County and some historians believe Drytown was the first gold camp established in the area sometime in 1848.A lone creek, Dry Creek, runs through the small town. In the summer the creek is but a trickle, but in the winter or spring thaw the creek can become a raging river.
Back in the saddle, we continue our trip to the small town of Amador City. Today, Amador City is a quaint little town full of shops, antiques and good food.
As we continue our journey the hills are lined with ruins of old mines and stamp mills. We head down the hill to Sutter Creek. Sutter Creek was named for John A. Sutter who visited there in 1846. Sutter Creek is a bustling weekend get-a-away for Northern Californians. Her streets are lined with shops, antiques, 100 year old buildings, cozy Victorian homes and plenty of places just to stop and rest. Original iron 'horse' poles still exist; tie up that buggy!
Continuing on Highway 49 toward Jackson. A look to right, just past, Sutter Hill, a beautiful view of the San Joaquin and Sacramento Valley's can be seen by all (on a clear day); rumor has it you can see five counties. Kennedy Mine is on the left as we near the City of Jackson. In operation until 1942, Kennedy Mine has a vertical shaft of 5,912 feet. Jackson soon appears under the morning mist and fog in the tiny valley. Gold Rush and turn of the century buildings line Main Street. Antiques, specialty shops and plenty of places to grab some grub are some of the things you see. Be sure and take a walk up to the Museum. The curbs are high in some places, so watch your step.
From Jackson - Heading East South/East on Highway 49 toward Calaveras and Tuolumne Counties Making our way back on to Highway 49 we continue east toward more mining towns such as San Andreas (home of Black Bart), Angels Camp and Murphys (Murphy's is east of Angels Camp on Highway 4) in Calaveras County. Angels Camp is the home of the Jumping Frog Jubilee and is featured in the writings of Mark Twain. However, today, we are going to take you toward Tuolumne County and the towns of Columbia, Sonora, Jamestown and Chinese Camp. Columbia, today, is a California State Park and makes a wonderful day trip. "Inhabitants" or docents of Columbia dress the part of the Gold Rush days. You can freely roam the streets of the old town as no vehicles are allowed. However, stage coaches are...so beware! Museums, old fashioned candy, brick buildings with huge iron doors and mining cemeteries keep you busy the whole day.
Chinese Camp was once the home of thousands of Chinese that were much a part of California's Gold Rush. Many Chinese miners were employed for mere pennies a day to carry tailings, dig trenches, water and just about anything having to do with mining. Chinese Camp is a living mining town; many of the town building have architecture reflective of the Chinese culture. Visit this wonderful little town when you have a chance.
We hope you have enjoyed your trip through some of California's Gold Rush country that lies East and Southeast of our area. These towns are no more than 90 minutes from Sloughhouse and make grand day or weekend trips. There are many quaint hotels in most of these towns. The Sonora Inn (now the Sonora Days Inn), located in Sonora looks much like it did during the Gold Rush. Though, we don't believe you can still get a room for $1.50 or a meal for 25 cents, be sure to stop by if you are in the area.
From Sloughhouse - Heading North North/East on country roads toward Folsom
Folsom is nearly due east of Sloughhouse and is also an old mining town. Folsom lies near the American River and was the site of "some advanced technical engineering" in gold mining. Huge dredgers scooped out tons of rock searching for gold at the bottom of the river. Even today mine tailings, better known as: huge piles of rocks, can be seen throughout the town. Old Town Folsom is much like it was a century ago; the old buildings are still standing. While visiting Folsom be sure and visit the Folsom Museum and Folsom Powerhouse. The Powerhouse is a California State Historic Landmark. Also located in Folsom is Folsom Prison which has been a part of Folsom since construction began in 1878. There is a musuem with artifacts on display, some dating from the 1800's. The prison in east of Folsom City Hall, north off Natoma Street.
Another great day trip is a leisurely drive up to Nevada County. From Folsom we head east to Auburn straight through town across the Historic Rainbow Bridge and out toward the old Folsom-Auburn Road. Auburn actually lies off I-80 east of Sacramento, but the trip from Folsom on the back roads is lovely. Catching Highway 49 (east) we begin our trip toward our final destination, Nevada City. There are many towns that were also bustling centers in the Gold Rush including Auburn and Grass Valley. Nevada City is a quaint little town with plenty of shops, a horse drawn carriage and many great restaurants. The town is slightly hilly, but is a great walking tour in the evenings; take a sweater or light jacket even in the summer.
Leaving Nevada City we return back toward Auburn. Our trip, this time, will take us through historic Auburn and back down old Highway 49 toward Coloma and Placerville.
Coloma is where gold was first discovered at Sutter's Mill; Coloma is now a registered Historic Site of California. The road to Coloma, El Dorado County, is windy (not as 'wind' but as in 'curves'), so be prepared. Our trip will finally take us into Placerville (Old Hangtown) and then home. Placerville is a great day trip especially in the fall when Apple Hill is bustling with fresh cider, hot apple pie and everything imaginable made from apples! Our circle trip is nearly complete; we make a final journey back out Highway 49 toward Sloughhouse. The Cosumnes River rushes along the side of the highway. We hope you have enjoyed your tour of the surrounding Gold Country and someday you will be able to make the trip in person.
Thank you for sharing a little bit of California's local history and help us celebrate our State's Sesquicentennial Celebration!
More on the California Gold Rush
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The California Sesquicentennial Celebration A Three-Years Long Series of Special Event
Welcome to the Gold Rush!
California State Parks, truly the Heart and Soul of California’s Sesquicentennial Commemoration
Explore and see the places throughout California's State Parks where history-making events happened.
The West - Episode 3 1848-1856 Speck of the Future "The Diggings"
The Way West
Take the Virtual Tour
Amador County
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The California Gold Country Highway 49 Revisited
Sutter Creek
More Tales From The Mines
Coloma, El Dorado County
California Gold Discovery To Statehood Sesquicentennial (1998 - 2000)
The Gold Discovery
Historic Sites in Coloma
Nevada County
Nevada County Area
Nevada Co Sesquicentennial
Nevada Co Gold Online Magazine (with a picture of Donner Lake)
The Spirit of Christmas past is alive and well ... Nevada City and Grass Valley host a pair of unique holiday celebrations.
The 38th Annual Nevada City Bicycle Classic...Jun. 12-14, 1998
Calaveras County
Gold Rush Sesquicentennials/ Calaveras County
Tuolumne County
Twain Harte to Sacramento Wagon Train Aug. 9th - Aug. 19th, 1998
Historic Jamestown
Columbia State Historic Park
Chinese Camp
Welcome to Historic Sonora
More Interesting Sites
The Women/ Women in The Gold Rush
Gold Discovery Report of Colonel Mason Museum of the City of San Francisco
Discovery of Gold by John A. Sutter
Art in the U.S. Capitol "Discovery of Gold in California"
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INFO ON GOLD COUNTRY ATTRACTIONS
PLACERVILLE AND COLOMA - EL DORADO COUNTY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE(800)457-6279
AUBURN VISITOR CENTER
(530) 887-2111
GRASS VALLEY - NEVADA COUNTY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
(800) 655-4667
NEVADA CITY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
(800) 655-6569
GOLD BUG MINE IN PLACERVILLE - SELF GUIDED TOURS DAILY 10-4 (admission charge)
(530) 642-5232
MARSHALL GOLD DISCOVERY - COLOMA SHP
OPEN DAILY 8-DUSK. MUSEUM OPEN DAILY 10-5. ( per vehicle admission charge)
(530)622-3470
EMPIRE MINE SHP
DATES AND HOURS OF OPERATION VARY (admission charge)
(530) 273-8522
MALAKOFF DIGGINS SHP
OPEN JUNE-SEPTEMBER, DAILY 9-4:30. OCTOBER -MAY, WEEKENDS 10-4. (per vehicle admission charge)
(530) 265-2740
(SHP=State Historic Park)
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