Wednesday, March 11, 2015

1st Passenger Railroad Terminal - Folsom, California



DATE VISITED:  03/08/2015

HISTORICAL SITE:  Terminal of 1st Passenger Railroad

LOCATION:  Sutter St. & Reading St., Folsom, Sacramento Co., CA

MARKER #:  558
 

DEDICATED:  December 30, 1956

"Competition of the Sacramento Valley Railroad from Sacramento to Folsom was celebrated here February 22, 1856, by enthusiastic residents of both cities. The new line, 22 miles in length, was commenced February 12, 1855, and was built by Theodore Dehone Judah, noted pioneer engineer." 

**closer look below

Marker Placed By:  Erected by the California State Park Commission in cooperation with the Sacramento County Historical Society

PERSONAL REFLECTIONS:  Solo again, this was my return trip to Folsom since Dana and I didn't get to all the sites last weekend. I think Folsom has really embraced their history because you can find markers describing all kinds of things around Sutter Street. After parking, I was walking past the corner of Sutter and Leidesdorff when my path was blocked by 3 elderly ladies all walking their little dogs.  Cute though the dogs were, funny were the women who were scolding their dogs and kept turning to keep their dogs leashes from tangling up their legs.

The passenger railroad was supposed to go from Sacramento to Marysville by way of Folsom, but ended up stopping once the rails got to Folsom. This really benefited Folsom because they became not only home for railroad workers but also a hub for businesses related to the maintenance of the railroad and those who would ship using the rails.
 
An interesting little piece of information is that the President of the Sacramento Valley Railroad was no other than the future General for the Union forces during the Civil War, William Tecumseh Sherman.

The plaza, besides being where the terminal stood, also has a turntable where the rail cars were turned for the return trip to Sacramento. I guess the original brickwork still exists but the turntable itself is a replica. 

" Leidesdorff Plaza. Dedicated to the memory of William Alexander Leidesdorff. Early California pioneer, civic leader, merchant, trader, and owner of 35, 000 acre rancho "Rio De Los Americanos" in the Folsom area. Born 1810 in Danish West Indies of negro and Danish parents. Died 1848 in San Francisco. Dedicated May, 1966 by Negro Museum and Library Association of Sacramento, Inc."

 

At each end of Sutter Street are a pair these pillars declaring the following....

"Folsom City: In 1827 "bible totin'" Jed Smith camped here. In 1850, these diggins' became known as Negro Bar. Then named Granite City after the rocks, and in 1855 Joseph Folsom lent his name to this fair city. Also in 1855 Folsom hired Theodore "Crazy" Judah to lay out a route for the Sacramento Valley Railroad between Sacramento and Folsom, the foothill metropolis. Judah later surveyed and planned the route for the Central Pacific over the Sierra Nevada. In 1868 Folsom Prison was started and "opened" in 1880. In its day it was hailed as a model prison and was the first to light with electricity. We hereby declare Joseph Folsom an honorary clamper and dedicate the plaque to his memory.  Plaque placed by New Helvetia, Chapter #5, E Clampus Vitus on August 8, 1981 and so recorded"

I've seen "New Helvetia" before and was curious...what is it? It's a version of "Nueva Helvetia" which basically stands for "New Switzerland" and was the name of the 48,000 acre rancho granted to John Sutter by the Governor of Mexico and encompasses present day Sacramento. The current organization is dedicated to the study and preservation of Western Heritage, especially the Mother Lode and gold regions. 
 
The "Wells Fargo" office also held the Assay offices of Palmer and Day as well as the Pony Express Stop. The current building is a reconstruction but some original material was retrieved and used.



"Early day assay office and home of Wells Fargo and Co., 1860. Marker placed by Fern Parlor No 123, Native Daughters Golden West. September 25, 1932"


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