Visit Date: August 8, 2020 Most of this hunt to find these old buildings has been a solo quest. Get up early on a Sunday morning, down a cup of coffee, load a good podcast like All Night with the Living Geeks, and head to the Gold Country before anyone else is out of bed. I love the lone pursuit, where I can take all the time needed to find the building, set up the correct angle for the repeat photography, and explore any of the back roads I might across. This site visit though was different, I tricked my family into coming with me. With a promises of stopping for burgers on the way home my wife and kids all headed for Amador County on this morning. The first stop and supposed reason for the trip was to hike at Indian Grinding Rock State Park. After recovering from heat sickness from hiking in the August heat, I sprung the real reason for the trip on them. A "quick" side trip to Volcano, which is only like a mile from the park. (Don't check my math, it might be a little longer if you ask my wife . Volcano is a beautiful town though. (Probably nicer when the temperature is under 100 degrees!) The authors of Bulletin 141 (see the About for more info) even refer to it as "the most picturesque of all the Mother Lode towns." After a quick walking tours of all the sites, we set out to take some pictures. The scene above was easy enough to find but I wish I stepped a couple feet to the left for a better angle. I also wish I had re-made the actual shot. The photo used in Bulletin 141 wasn't actually taken in 1948 during the Building Survey, but was instead used from a HABS report, probably from the mid-1930s. The Library of Congress has made many of these HABS photos in their digital collecitons. The original image downloaded from the Library of Congress is below. The HABS image is so much clearer than the Bulletin 141 version, as well as uncropped. The Bulletin authors relied upon many of these HABS photos for their publication. I had assumed they traveled to these towns but all of the images from Volcano come from HABS surveys, so.... If I would have known at the time about this photo, I would have made my sons stand next to that post, just like these two old boys, with their drink and pipe. In doing a little research, you learn that Volcano in the mid-1850s was a going concern. As many as 5000 people lived there, it had the state first lending library, and first astronomical observatory in California. And like many of the major Gold Rush towns, it attracted the CIRCUS. These ads, from the Amador Ledger Dispatch, for circuses at Volcano are just amazing. The two following were from the Rowe & Co. Pioneer Circus, which visited in May and September of 1856. The graphics are unbelievable! In July of the following year, the Shephard & Adams South American Circus came to town. I'm sure my family would have had a more memorable trip to Volcano if we gone to see a circus. Maybe next time it comes to Volcano, we'll go.
1 Comment
Sebastian Nelson
7/5/2021 05:51:51 pm
One of my favorite posts so far!
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AuthorMy name is Jeff and I am on a hunt to find historic brick and stone structures along Highway 49. Archives
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