Every year each fourth grade student in California gets an overview of the gold rush that helped form our great state. However after that tutelage California’s golden history falls upon each of us to learn. That’s where California State Parks comes in. With more than ten state parks with gold rush history, there’s no excuse not to get out and learn…even if school is out for the summer. So read-up on the following sample of state parks that tell an interesting narrative on California’s History of Gold.
Warning: there will be a test at the end.
A display in the museum at Marshall Gold Discovery SHP.
Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park: Nestled among the south fork of the American River near Coloma stands the epicenter of California’s gold rush, Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park. In the early 19th century gold, mining operations were slowly taking off in Coloma Valley. However an unexpected discovery of gold at a lumber mill became the foundation for the famous gold rush of ’49. In January of 1848 the mills operational manager, James Marshall, discovered gold flakes while completing a mill for entrepreneur John Sutter. Marshall rode to Sutter’s Fort with samples of the gold. After testing it was confirmed that gold was indeed struck at the mill. Even though the site never yielded large amounts of gold, it ushered in the gold rush era in California.
Marshall Gold Discovery SHP is open 8 a.m.-5 p.m. for day use and the museum is open 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. You can call the park directly at (530) 622-3470.
Sutter’s Fort State Historic Park: This Sacramento area State park is a true historical gem. In 1840 Swiss-born John Augustus Sutter arrived in northern California and constructed New Helvetia (Spanish for New Switzerland), which later became known as Sutter’s Fort in Sacramento. The settlement provided a destination for pioneers and hopeful miners and grew to be an agricultural center for Sutter.
Admission to Sutter’s Fort SHP is $5 for adults 18 years and older, $3 for ages 6 through 17, and free to children under the age of 5. Prepare for your visit by taking a virtual tour of the fort. You can call the park at 916-445-4422.
Columbia State Historic Park: After gold was discovered in Sutter’s Mill, towns like Columbia began to spring up in Alta California’s mother lode. A tract of land 1 mile wide and 120 miles long surrounding Columbia yielded $87 million in gold. As the mining operations grew, so did the size of the town. Throughout the 1850s tents and shanties gave way to permanent buildings. However by 1860 the easily-mined placer gold was gone and the town slowly declined. Luckily the park’s buildings were preserved and can be seen today.
Columbia SHP can be found in the town of Columbia. Admission to Columbia SHP is free and the museum is open from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. You can call the park at 209-588-9128.
Bodie State Historic Park: The mining ghost town of Bodie State Historic Park, found 7 miles outside Bridgeport, offers one of the best history lessons on mining. With the decline of placer mining, mining on the Western slopes of the Sierras swelled in the latter half of the 19th century. In 1859, W.S. Body arrived at the site of what would be one of the largest gold strikes in the West. Mining at Bodie grew slowly during the 1860s until around 1875 when a cave-in yielded a large strike of gold ore. Over the next several years $32 million in gold and $6-$7 million in silver were pulled from the ore found in Bodie’s surrounding hills. As gold sources became depleted, mining dwindled and so did the population. After a disastrous 1932 fire destroyed large portions of the town, the remainder was left in a state of arrested decay.
The park is open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the winter. Admission is $7.00 for adults and $5.00 for children. You can call the park at 760-647-6445, and in wintertime are advised to call ahead anyway-due to inclement weather restricting access to the park.
Old Sacramento State Historic Park: Located near the banks of the Sacramento River, this conglomeration of historic buildings reminds us of the role that Sacramento played in the gold rush. With the discovery of gold at Sutter’s Mill, Sacramento grew as the commerce center for the gold rush. This transportation crossroad provided steamboat passage to San Francisco, a railroad line to Folsom, and supply roads to local mining operations. Some of the remaining buildings include the B.F. Hastings Building, the Big Four Building, and the Eagle Theatre.
Upcoming events include the famous Underground Tours, which run through November and are put together in conjunction with the Historic Old Sacramento Foundation. You can call 916-808-7059 for more information.
Cuyamaca Rancho State Park: Deep in the heart of the Cuyamaca Mountains near San Diego sits Cuyamaca Rancho State Historic Park, where in 1869 a brief but intense gold rush brought swarms of prospective miners. Within three years a permanent mine and encampment had been erected. In 1896 soon-to-be governor Robert Waterman bought the mine. From 1886 until 1891 the mine saw its most profitable years with over 7,000 pounds of gold extracted. After the death of Waterman in 1892 the mine never recovered. Capitalist Ralph M.Dyar bought the property in 1923 with hopes of turning it into a resort, however the Great Depression curtailed those plans.
His home, made from stone and salvaged materials from the mine ruins, remains on the park property.
You can call Cuyamaca Rancho SP at 760-765-3020.
Empire Mine: Located near Grass Valley, this mine was in existence for over 100 years and is host to the oldest, largest, deepest, longest and richest gold mines in California. Its golden story started in 1850 with the finding of golden flecks. The discoverer, a lumberman named George Roberts, started a domino effect that drew hundreds of miners to the Grass Valley area. George Robert and other miners soon realized that mining there was difficult and required tunneling deep in the ground. Many sold their claims to the newly formed Empire Quartz Hill Company. Ownership changed frequently as the mines operations grew. In 1879 William Bourn Jr. took control of the mine and slowly but effectively grew its operations by pushing deeper in the ground. Much of the success of the mine can be attributed to a wave of workers from Cornwall, England. These Cornish workers had experience in the tin and copper mines in England. Production continued until WWII, when the War Production Board froze nonessential industries. After the war production began again. However the absence and fixed price of gold spelled the end for the mine. In the end, total productions from the mine equaled nearly 6 million ounces of gold – over 9 billion dollars in current prices.
Empire Mine SHP is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. ever day. Fees are $7.00 for adults 18 and over, $3 for kids aged 6 through 17, and free to kids under age 6. Guided tours are offered throughout the day and visitors can even look into the mines themselves. The park also contains a gorgeous cottage built by one-time mine owner William Bourn Jr. You can call the park at 530-273-8522.
With this many choices there is no excuse to brush up on your California gold history. Now for the test: Which park will you go to first?
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