Historic Old Sacramento – Underground Tunnels and Old Buildings – Road Trip Day 11 Ep.29

Neek sez:

Old Sacramento is located within the Old Sacramento Historic District which is a U.S. National Historic Landmark District.  The city of Sacramento was developed in the mid-nineteenth century as an extension of Sutter’s Fort as the Sacramento River was the main waterway to the west coast.  John Sutter was the owner of the fort and Sutter’s Mill where gold was found setting off the California Gold Rush.

The waterfront was subject to flooding on a regular basis before the levees were built.  This caused much damage to the buildings in the area and brought in disease such as cholera.  

In order to alleviate these problems, the city streets were raised a level.  Most of the original sidewalks and storefronts have been destroyed or filled but many tunnels remain and there are underground tours if you care to visit them.

Sorry Lex – The tasting room is closed

Some of the relics of the buildings in Old Sacramento have been preserved in a place called Pioneer Park.  In 1849, Pioneer Park was a butcher shop known as City Market.  During the gold rush, the shop grew from a one story to four story building but had fallen to disrepair and general neglect.  It’s a haunting look at the past and how much higher the city has been raised.

 

We had a lot of fun walking and exploring the waterfront.  It was the transportation hub for the steamboats and the groundbreaking site of the Transcontinental Railway with the construction of the Central Pacific Railroad.  There were a curious amount of Canadian Geese there.  I wasn’t able to take a photo but you can see them in our video.

Our last stop was visiting the BF Hastings Building.  After driving along side the  Pony Express route on Highway 50, we thought it was fitting that we visit the western final stop of the Pony Express.

By the 1960’s Old Sacramento had become rundown and an enormous effort was made to create an outdoor living history center.  Many of the historic buildings were either reconstructed or moved.  Its success resulted in this wonderful historic district.

Next Stop – Sutter’s Fort!