Old Sacramento preserves the historical state of a city that has grown beyond its bounds. Old buildings have been restored or rebuilt. Small business, some of them unique, fill the streets with picturesque storefronts. It is an appealing tourist attraction to native Sacramentans and to visitors alike. It has also attracted the attention of Acting Assemblyman Maurice Stenkilbuch of Yuba City. Speaking before the Upper Assembly of the Yuba City Congress on Monday, Acting Assemblyman Stenkilbuch proposed “That Yuba City annex Old Sacramento and move it to Yuba City. Members of the Upper Assembly listened politely and scheduled hearings to be held after the municipal elections.
In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries many immigrants from Europe believed the streets of America were paved with gold. The streets were not gold, but fortunately, they offered golden opportunities.
One of those opportunities was found in the gold fields of northern California during the gold rush in 1849. In their rush to get to the nuggets in the streams and rivers of the Serria Nevada Mountains the 49'ers passed right over the gold beneath their feet in Yuba City.
In truth, they were not aware of the gold in Yuba City. It was not discovered until 1948 when it was unearthed during a Plumas Street construction project. At that time the city fathers decided that at the then current price of gold it was too expensive to mine and simply paved over it.
However in 2007, when the price of gold soared past one thousand dollars per ounce, it was decided there was enough profit to be had to justify digging up Plumas Street. And so... the modern day gold rush has begun in Yuba City.
Old Sacramento
The oldest part of the town besides Sutter's Fort is Old Sacramento, which consists of cobbled streets and many historic buildings, several from the 1850s and 1860s. Buildings have been preserved, restored or reconstructed, and the district is now a substantial tourist attraction, with rides on steam-hauled historic trains and paddle steamers. The historic buildings also include the Lady Adams Building, built by the passengers and ship's carpenters of the ship Lady Adams. Having survived the Great Conflagration of November 1852, it is the oldest surviving building in Sacramento other than Sutter's Fort.
Another surviving landmark is the B.F. Hastings building, built in 1853. Early home of the California Supreme Court and the location of the office of Theodore Judah, it also was the western terminus of the Pony Express. The "Big Four Building", built in 1852, was home to the offices of Collis Huntington, Mark Hopkins, Leland Stanford, and Charles Crocker. The Central Pacific Railroad and Southern Pacific Railroad were founded there. The original building was destroyed in 1963 for the construction of Interstate 5, but was re-created using original elements in 1965. It is now a National Historic Landmark. Also of historic interest is the Eagle Theatre, a reconstruction of California's first permanent theatre in its original location.
