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San Andreas
is an unincorporated census-designated place and the county
seat of Calaveras County, California. The population was
2,615 at the 2000 census. Like most towns in the region,
it was originally founded during the California Gold Rush.
The town is located on State Route 49 and is registered
as California Historical Landmark
Settled by Mexicans in 1848 and named after the Catholic
parish St. Andrew, the town has been a noted mining camp
since early days. The gold from the initially discovered
placers gave out after a few years, but the discovery of
gold in an underground river channel in 1853 revitalized
the camp and it soon became a town. Mining of the channels
was lucrative enough for the town to completely rebuild
after fires in 1858 and 1863. The gold discovered here contributed
greatly to the success of the Union during the Civil War.
In 1866, San Andreas became the seat of Calaveras County.
It was said to be a rendezvous location for Joaquin Murietta.
Notorious stagecoach robber Black Bart was tried here and
sent to prison.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has
a total area of 8.8 square miles (22.7 km²), of which,
8.7 square miles (22.6 km²) of it is land and 0.04
square miles (0.1 km²) of it (0.23%) is water.
This sprawling town of 2,115 on Highway 49 in Calaveras
County was named after San Andrés, the patron saint
of Spain. Mexicans first discovered gold here, and by the
early 1850s between a thousand and 1,500 miners were working
the gullies and washes. In 1854, extensive placer deposits
were discovered 150 below the surface of the earth, and
the place boomed. Lack of water was a problem, but the Table
Mountain Water Company was formed to bring water from 50
miles away. Today most of these old ditches are still in
use and maintained by PG&E.
The perhaps fictitious
bandit Joaquin Murieta is said to have frequented the region.
And the poetic and always polite highwayman known as Black
Bart wsa jailed and tried in the courthouse that is now
a museum before he was taken to San Quentin Prison.
Today San Andreas has a modern
feel due to expanding population and highway realignments.
A few Gold Rush buildings, however, remain on Main Street:
the stone Fricot Building, an I.O.O.F. hall and an old courthouse,
which also houses part of the Calaveras County Museum and
Archives. The museum is open daily except for major holidays.
The California Caverns, discovered
by a prospector in 1849 (or 1850 according to some sources),
are located 12 miles east of San Andreas off Mountain Ranch
Road. The caves were opened to the public in 1850. Cave
explorers from the 1850s left their signatures on the walls.
Guided tours of the extensive caverns are offered daily.
Families will enjoy the "Trail of Lights" tour,
lasting about 80 minutes, while the more adventurous might
want to try the "Wild Cave" expedition.
A winding back road takes visitors
on an alternate route from Highway 49 between Altaville
and San Andreas. Follow Dogtown Road, which turns into Calaveritas
Road, through the sites of such towns as Dogtown, Calaveritas,
Scratch Gulch and Brandy Flat. All the towns are gone except
for Calaveritas, where only a few buildings remain.
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