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Tuesday 6 November 2012

Wonders Of The Golden West Part 10.....

Continuing our journey west on the Gold Rush trail over the Carson Pass Highway, Sierra Nevada mountains, site of the Maiden's Grave,  burial place of Rachel Melton (d. 1850), a young girl who died while traveling to California via covered wagon.

Our first stop of the day was Columbia.



 Columbia is a former California Gold Rush boomtown located in the Sierra Nevada foothills and is preserved as a California state historic park and a National Historic Landmark that preserves the original, gold-rush-town flavour.


Founded in 1850 when gold was discovered, at its height it was California's second-largest city. It was even considered briefly as a site for the state capitol of California.





Columbia's main street, part of the Columbia State Historic Park, is closed to automobile traffic but is open to horses, carriages, bicycles and pedestrians.



Within weeks of the discovery of gold in the vicinity of Columbia, thousands of miners arrived and the population climbed to 5,000.







 1852, there were 8 hotels, 4 banks, 17 general stores, 2 firehouses, 2 bookstores,



 1 newspaper, 3 churches, and over 40 drinking/gambling establishments.


 In 1854, Columbia's first fire destroyed 6 city blocks.



 The town was rebuilt using brick and iron materials. In 1857, another fire burned down nearly everything else, except the brick buildings. Columbia never became a ghost town.  In 1945, California created Columbia State Historic Park from the remains of the historical buildings of the city.

Columbia has been used in many films such as Little House on the Prairie, The Lone Ranger, Wells Fargo











and High Noon.  In fact the photo below is the house where Will Kane (Gary Cooper) and Amy Fowler (Grace Kelly) lived in the film.



This post was supposed to be about Lake Tahoe but I forgot just how many photographs we'd taken on the way when we stopped at Columbia, so I hope you'll join me for Wonders Of The Golden West Part 11 when I will show you Lake Tahoe I promise.

22 comments:

Cloudia said...

love the tour...cute buildings. That bank says: "Solid!" doesn't it? All about trust in the ole west, dear



Aloha from Honolulu
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Empress Bee (of the high sea) said...

the wild wild west!

smiles, bee
xoxoxoxoxo

A Lady's Life said...

Thats so much fun to see :)

Ron said...

WOW...this is like the COOLEST place!

I've never heard of Columbia before, so reading this post about the history was so fascinating!

You photos totally captured the 'feel' of the times.

I love the photo of the guy with the white beard in the book store because he looks as though he came from a completely different time period!

Great post, m'dear!

And looking forward to part 11!

X

Valerie said...

This is really interesting, Pearl. Had to smile at this ... 1 newspaper, 3 churches, and over 40 drinking/gambling establishments. Ah yes, I remember High Noon... my friend and I came out of the cinema humming the tune that had been so impressed in our minds.

Commander Zaius said...

Great pictures! Thanks for sharing!

Dan's Fi-ver said...

Thanks for sharing - I always look forward to reading the tales of your travels!

x

Akelamalu said...

I was like being on a film set Cloudia!

Yes indeedy Bee!

It certainly was Lady's Life.

So pleased you enjoyed it Ron, it was so interesting. I loved the little book store and the gentleman behind the counter kindly agreed to let me take his photograph - cool isn't it?

Oh yes they got their priorities right with the gambling and drinking Valerie LOL MWM and I walked down the main street singing "Do not forsake me oh my darlin'" LOL

My pleasure Beach, glad you enjoyed them. :)

Glad you enjoyed them Dan's Fi-ver, you can see the rest of the photographs next time you come over. ;)

Flowerpot said...

are you making a scrapbook of all this Ak? It'd be fascinating!

Akelamalu said...

My blog is my scrapbook Flowerpot!

Maggie May said...

40 drinking establishments!!!!!!!
You will have a lovely record of this holiday on your blog to look at from time to time. Thanks for sharing.
Maggie X

Nuts in May

Daryl said...

love seeing these ...

Akelamalu said...

That's one of the main reasons I blog about our trips Maggie ;)

So happy you enjoy them Daryl x

katie eggeman said...

I have never been to Columbia. even tho it is so close to Yosmite I will have to include it in a trip to Northern California.

Tony Crimi said...

Ahh yes the Old West , home of dirt roads and dusty morals....love it !

Dianne said...

I love the Wells Fargo building!!

thanks so much for always checking in on me
hugs from me and Hope

Travis Cody said...

I love Columbia and Tahoe! Well, I guess I just have a soft spot for the state in which I was born, even though I escaped seven years ago and am now in love with my adoptive state of Washington.

Akelamalu said...

Oh yes you should go visit BankerChick, it's rally interesting.

Got to love the old west Tony LOL

It's cool isn't it Dianne. My pleasure to look in on you. x

Ah you will know these places so well then Trav having been born there. I hope I'm doing them justice?

Sandi McBride said...

the pictures are fantastic, but the brief histories just make them more exciting!!! Any chance you
will make it to South Caroli?
Sandi

Lorraine said...

How lovely to have actually been there and seen all of this. I can't thank you enough for taking us 'stay at homes' to so many of us there through your camera Pearl. xxx

Akelamalu said...

So glad you've enjoyed them Sandi. We didn't get to south Carolina unfortunately.

Oh it's so exciting to actually see these places Lorraine and I'm so pleased you are enjoying my photos and memories. x

Akelamalu said...

So glad you're enjoying them Sandi. We didn't make it to South Carolina unfortunately. x

It's so exciting seeing all these places Lorraine and I'm so pleased you are enjoying my photos and memories. x