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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