4.3) The History Of Yolo County: The Gold Rush and the Advent ofAgriculture.
Description
This article is from the Yolo County FAQ, by David F. Prenatt, Jr. with numerous contributions by others.
4.3) The History Of Yolo County: The Gold Rush and the Advent ofAgriculture.
The discovery of gold at Sutter's Mill in 1848 (days after the signing
of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo) triggered a large westward
migration to California, but once again the migration stopped short of
Yolo County, this time primarily on the east side. Of all the
counties bordering the Sacramento River, Yolo County maintained the
slowest population growth. The Sacramento River formed an
inhospitable barrier that most 49ers simply had no reason to cross for
any appreciable length of time. Meanwhile, however, the aboriginal
population of Yolo County that had avoided the missionization process
disappeared virtually overnight, succumbing to the totally exotic
forces of alcohol, disease, and hostile white emigrants.
After the Gold Rush, agriculture emerged as the primary industry
in Yolo County. Yolo was one of the original counties established
when California became a state, but to this day, Yolo County remains
an obscure, rural agricultural area, but for the presence of U.C.
Davis (formerly the U.C. College of Agriculture, and before that the
U.C. Berkeley farm) in its midst. Yolo County agriculture is
comprised almost entirely of automated tomato harvesting and
processing, a multi-billion dollar agribusiness that dominates 90% of
the national market in tomatoes.
The Yolo County Historical Museum, located at 512 Gibson Rd in
Woodland, exhibits artifacts and displays dating from the time of the
Gold Rush through the end of the Depression. Contact the Yolo County
Historical Museum at (916)666-1045 for more information.
Continue to:
My Books
