Sac History Happenings: Old Sac upgrade plan includes archaeological site

Sac History Happenings

News and developments in Sacramento and California history

February 16, 2011

Old Sac upgrade plan includes archaeological site

As part of an ambitious general plan to expand and upgrade the Old Sacramento State Historic Park, officials are considering an excavation site where Gold Rush era artifacts will be unearthed and put on display.

As today's Bee story explains, the existing historic area reflects life in Sacramento after 1850. There's precious little illustrating what the town was like when the discovery of gold brought thousands to the region. So one idea is "to build a split-level display with 1870-era structures at current ground level and sub-grade access to artifacts and displays from 1849."

Three alternative upgrade plans were presented to the public on Jan. 19. These include expansion of the historic area into the railyard, as well extension of the excursion train to Land Park and beyond. You can view illustrated summaries of each design online. There's also a PowerPoint presentation. Even if you didn't attend that meeting, the OSSHP Planning Team wants your feedback on the alternatives. You can fill out the online comment form, or email them directly at osshp@parks.ca.gov.

PHOTO CREDIT: Elementary school students from Oakland play on the grassy slope across from the Railroad Museum. Officials are mulling using the open area built over buried buildings and artifacts to highlight different eras in the city's history. Randy Pench / Sacramento Bee

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California and Sacramento have a long, rich, vibrant history. And our region is blessed with an abundance of historical resources maintained by museums, libraries, archives and societies. This blog aims to alert readers to the latest developments in local/state historical education and research.

Send tips concerning upcoming exhibits, tours, lectures and meetings, as well as new books, magazine articles and online collections to the blog's contributors.

The Contributors:

Michael Dolgushkin

Michael Dolgushkin is Manuscript Librarian at the California State Library History Section. He is co-author of San Francisco's California Street Cable Cars and is a frequent contributor to the California State Library Foundation Bulletin. Contact him at mdolgushkin@library.ca.gov.

Amanda Graham is a Certified Archivist working in the Sacramento Room of the Sacramento Public Library. She earned a BS in History from Southern Oregon University and a MS in Information Studies with an emphasis in archives from The University of Texas at Austin. Contact her at agraham@saclibrary.org.

Pete Basofin is Director of Editorial Research at The Sacramento Bee. He previously worked at The St. Petersburg Times and Columbia (Mo.) Daily Tribune. Contact him at pbasofin@sacbee.com.

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