One of the best things about the Old Sacramento State Historic District in California’s Capital City is the history isn’t flat and static, like looking at an old map, but alive and present.
That’s because Old Sacramento, while largely retaining its historic appearance and character, has managed to blend that past with more modern uses. The restored and reclaimed buildings may have originally been built in the mid-19th century, but the businesses inside each are contemporary.
As a result, Old Sacramento has become one of the most popular tourist destinations in the Sacramento area, attracting more than five million visitors a year and offering fine restaurants, quaint bars, and plenty of shopping.
Couple that with special events, like the annual Sacramento Music Festival and Gold Rush Days, as well as attractions like the California State Railroad Museum and the Sacramento History Museum, and there is a plenty to do in this reconstruction/recreation of the original Sacramento waterfront area.
The city of Sacramento traces its beginnings to 1839, when entrepreneur John Sutter, arrived at the confluence of the American and Sacramento rivers. Offered a land grant for the area by the Mexican government that controlled most of the present-day state of California, Sutter built an imposing wooden and stucco fort (called Sutter’s Fort, naturally) and began making plans to establish a community around the fort.
The discovery of gold in 1848 in the nearby Sierra foothills served as the stimulus for creating the city of Sacramento. While Sutter’s Fort was located a few miles from the Sacramento River, a commercial district soon cropped up near the river to serve those rushing into the area to get rich.
Among the earliest merchants was Sam Brannan, who would eventually become the state’s first millionaire.
Despite being a great location for trade and commerce, Sacramento’s waterfront district was prone to fires and, in 1850 and 1852, devastating floods. In response, in 1853, the fledgling city embarked on an ambitious project to raise its business district above the flood level.
When the first attempt to build a foundation that would withstand flooding failed in 1862, the city dumped additional thousands of cubic yards of earth to raise the street level even more.
Today, visitors can see the original level of the area beneath Old Sacramento’s boardwalks and in the building basements.
During the first half of the 20th century, as the city of Sacramento expanded to the east, the original commercial district was neglected and began a slow decline. By the 1950s, the area was known as the worst skid row on the West Coast.
In response, starting in the mid-1960s, the city of Sacramento began redeveloping the area and created the first historic district in the West. Eventually, an area encompassing 53 historic buildings spread over 28 acres were registered as a national and state historic landmark district.
The concept was to create a kind of Williamsburg of the West with authentic-looking restored, preserved, and reconstructed structures. Today, that idea has sprouted with vendors dressed in period costumes and rides offered on horse-drawn carriages consistent with the 19th century.
Among the noteworthy structures found today in Old Sacramento are:
• The B.F. Hastings Building, built in 1852, which served as the western terminal for the Pony Express and was the first location of the California Supreme Court.
• The Big Four House, originally three separate buildings erected between 1851-52, which served as the offices for the four individuals responsible for constructing the Central Pacific Railroad (Collis Huntington, Mark Hopkins, Leland Stanford and Charles Crocker, known collectively as the “Big Four.”
• The D.O. Mills Bank Building, built in 1852
• Sacramento Engine Company No. 3, built in 1853, and the oldest standing firehouse in Sacramento.
A good place to begin any exploration of Old Sacramento is the Sacramento Visitor’s Center at 1000 2nd Street in Old Sacramento (http://sachistorymuseum.org/sacramento-visitors-center/).
To reach Old Sacramento, head west of Reno on Interstate 80 to Sacramento. Exit on J Street, then take 3rd Street to the Capitol Mall and Old Sacramento.
For more information about Old Sacramento, go to: https://www.oldsacramento.com/.
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