Explore the Past

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The Sierra Nevada foothills have been home for people for millennia.  The area was settled thousands of years ago by the Northern Sierra Miwok, Maidu, Nisenan and many other Native Californian groups. Changes to their way of life started with the arrival of American fur trappers in 1827, but the 1848 Gold Rush was the event that changed California and its people forever. The story of the incredible range of first Native peoples, prospectors, immigrants, fortune seekers and more lives on in the Sierra Foothills, through the historic towns that are still mostly unchanged, museums and national and state parks that work to preserve the past.

  • Entrance to the Marshall Gold Discovery Museum
    Historical Interest

    Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park

    The 576 acre Marshall Gold Discovery State Park encompasses the discovery site and the surrounding area, with several miles of trails for hiking and horseback riding. The museum features a number of interpretive exhibits telling the stories of the original inhabitants and those who came looking for gold. 
  • Exterior of the Gold Rush Museum
    Museums

    The Gold Rush Museum

    Pan for gold, see what it was like inside a gold mine, and explore Gold Rush history in this charming museum, open Friday through Sunday from 1:00pm to 4:00pm. Fun for kids and parents, and free!
  • The Golden Drift Museum
    Museums

    The Golden Drift Museum

    Explore the rich history of Dutch Flat and surrounding gold rush towns in the Golden Drift Museum though interpretive exhibits, photographs and artifacts. Open noon to 4pm from Memorial Day through September.
  • Photo from Dewit Museum
    Museums

    The DeWitt History Museum

    Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the DeWitt History Museum is filled with artifacts, images and interpretations of life in the hospital during the second World War.