Stretching from the foothills above the Sacramento Valley through rugged mountains to Lake Tahoe, the "Golden County" of California has a terrain as diverse as its population. The pioneering spirit that drew the gold seekers of yesterday still thrives among our current business owners. The county remains a land that is rich in opportunity and continues to prosper in its people.

On January 24, 1848, James Marshall found gold in the sawmill tailrace on the banks of the American River's South Fork. When the word spread in California and the rest of the West, it was a gold rush to the empire county. News was slow to reach the east, but in 1849 the migration continued by land trail or ship. In November 1849 alone, 600 vessels entered San Francisco Bay. Gold mining in El Dorado County has rich history, that influenced a large migration. The influx into Cali-fornia by the end of 1849 was 39,000 by sea and 42,000 overland.

Visit:

• Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park
  Coloma, on Highway 49 between Placerville and Auburn
• Hangtown's Gold Bug Park and Mine
  2635 Goldbug Lane, Placerville
• El Dorado County Historical Museum
  Next to the El Dorado County Fair Grounds
  104 Placerville Drive, Placerville