Pony Express Fifteen Mile House - Rancho Cordova, California

DATE VISITED: 02/22/2015

HISTORICAL SITE:  Pony Express Fifteen Mile House

LOCATION: White Rock Rd. & Gold Valley Dr., Rancho Cordova, Sacramento Co., CA

MARKER #: 698

 

DEDICATED: April 2, 1960

"Owned and operated from 1857 as a stage station by Henry F. W. Deterding, this was the site of the second remount station of the Central Overland Pony Express during March-July 1860. Here on April 4, 1860, Sam (Bill) Hamilton with the first eastward mail of the Pony Express changed ponies with Mormon Tavern as his next stop."

**closer look below

Marker Placed By: California Parks Commission in cooperation with the Sacramento County Historical Society, Fern Parlor No. 123, Native Daughters of the Golden West and the Central Overland Pony Express Trail Association

PERSONAL REFLECTIONS: I have to say this is the first time that I have been uncomfortably conscious of my surroundings as not being in the best area and knowing I was a little exposed and alone.  Several homeless guys wandered by and although they seemed friendly enough, I didn't hang around long.  This is chiefly an industrial area and so on the weekends is quite secluded with not a lot of traffic going by.

 

Surprisingly, the Pony Express only existed from April 1860 to November 1861 after the transcontinental telegraph's western and eastern expansion met in Salt Lake City.  The endeavor cost approximately $100,000 to set up and lost much more for individuals invested in the venture.  While short-lived, its identity will always be a part of Wild West folklore.

American River Grange Hall - Rancho Cordova, California

DATE VISITED: 02/22/2015

HISTORICAL SITE:  American River Grange Hall

LOCATION: 2720 Kilgore Rd., Rancho Cordova, Sacramento Co., CA

MARKER #: 1996001079

 

Certification: October 10, 1996

"American River Grange #172

Organized March 1874

Dedicated October 1882

Marker Placed By: Native Daughters of the Golden West, San Juan Parlor #315, Rededicated 5-15-98"

 

PERSONAL REFLECTIONS: As I was taking pictures of the Hall, I realized I had no idea what it was used for and noted that on FaceBook.  And just like that, information is posted...Thank you Dirk and Charley.  I have since found out that the "Order of Patrons of Husbandry" called their meeting sites "Granges" which according to Webster's dictionary is a farmhouse with outbuildings.  It was started after the Civil War with an idea of bringing southern and northern farmers together with a common goal of economic relief and growth by banding together. 

The halls were used as a way to gather and share information. The American River Grange was incorporated in January 1873 although the farming community met at the Pony Express Fifteen Mile House until the Grange Hall was built in 1882 and has been in continuous use since then.  It was even rededicated in 1998 and is currently being used by the Masons and Veterans of Foreign Wars.