Collection: Books and Periodicals

About This Item:

Title: A Memorial and Biographical History of Northern California (1891) Collection Type: Books and Periodicals Publisher: Lewis Publishing Company Published: 1891 Copyright: In the public domain or published before 1925 Source(s): Google Books # of Pages: 713 Download PDF: User Login Required Download OCR Text: User Login Required

Date Scanned: 2024-07-22 00:25:09 Item Sourced From: PDF First Created: 2025-03-17 03:11:29 Last Updated: 2025-03-17 06:30:36

Original Held At: Searls Historical Library Location: 161 Nevada City Hwy, Nevada City, CA 95959

Page: of 713  

184 HISTORY OF NORTHERN OALIFORNIA. Stevens, Placerville and Sacramento stages, and connected with Wells and Fargo’s express at Sacramento; and this was kept up for years. El Dorado is one of the original counties of February 18, 1850; and Coloma, the only town in the county, was designated as the seat of government; but the population was change. able and evanescent, and no substantial public buildings could be erected there. In 1854 a fight for the county-seat began, which lasted three years and ended in a victory for Placerville. This place, the most historic town in the gold region, was first known as Old Dry Diggings. In 1849 a Frenchman and a Spainard were hung there to a tree by a mob for highway robbery on the Georgetown road, and this gave the name of “ Hangtown ” to the place, by which it was known throughout the early mining days, when it was the most thronged point in California, the headquarters of the gold excitement. In 1854 the place was incorporated under the name of Placerville, the municipal election being held June 5 that year. Alexander Hunter, previously mentioned, was elected the first mayor. The altitude of Placerville is 1,895 feet; and the summit at Johnson’s Pass, 7,266 feet; and the height of Genoa above sea level is 4,794 feet. In 1857 an effort was made in vain to form Eureka County from the northern half of El Dorado. Nearly every surviving town in the connty owes its beginning to mining, although so large a proportion now depends solely on agriculture and trade; but with the decline of mining the vitality of the larger places also declined, so that by 1880 less than 11,000 remained of the population which during the 60s exceeded 20,000. Farming, however, and notably horticulture, stepped in to turn the current into a channel of slow though steady revival. The census of 1880 assigned to the county 542 farms, with an improved acreage of only 69,000. Farming had its beginning in this region in 1849-50, when potatves were first planted by the Hodges Bros., on Greenwovod Creek, near Coloma. By the year 1855 forty saw-mills and one flour-mill had been erected; alsu five tanneries and three breweries, fifteen toll-bridges, etc. There are a number of splendid caves in this county, the principal being near the Cosumnes copper mine, and the alabaster cave, or Coral cave, on the road from Pilot Hill to Rattlesnake Bridge. This has unusually fine stalactites. A large quantity of copper exists in El Dorado County, some silver, cinnabar, iron, asbestos, and large quantities of lime-stone, marble, roofing slate, etc. No similar area of country in the world can boast of a finer water supply than El Dorado County. Thomas A. Springler introduced the first newspaper into this county, namely, the £7 Dorado Republican, at Placerville, in the summer of 1851, and it was the first paper in the interior of California outside of Sacramento. It was continued regularly until February 18, 1854, when he sold out to D. W.. Gelwicks & Co., who replaced the Republican with the Mountain Democrat, which paper was well managed. The Miners’ Advocate was first issued also in the summer of 1851, at Coloma. James KR. Pile & Co. were the proprietors, D. W. Gelwicks editor, and D. (s. Waldron business agent. This was the second paper in the whole mining district of the State. It was Whig in politics. In 1853 the material was sold to a party who changed its name to the Empire County Argus. The Miners’ Advocate was transferred to Diamond Spring, and afterward had a varied history. Up to 1855 the people were taxed heavily for the care of the indigent sick, who had to be removed to the Marine hospital at San Francisco. This institution was abolished by the Legislature in 1855, and county infirmaries provided for. The county then awarded the contract to Drs. Asa Clark and Obed Harvey for taking care of those who were dependent upon the public. They erected a building, to which the county made an appropriation of $3,500, and