A Town With a Past In 1848, miners from Sonora, Mexico, found gold here and established a camp. Sonora became known as the "Queen of the Southern Mines" and was the biggest town in the Mother Lode. Horse races and fights between bulls and bears were common. Miners and gold, hard work and saloons, gamblers and schemes, fire and drought - that was the town of Sonora. The "Great Fire" of 1852 damaged or burned down every building on Washington Street. Some stone exteriors from the subsequent reconstruction are still around. One of the richest gold mines in California, the "Big Bonanza Mine," was located on Washington Street, less than 100 yards from St. James Episcopal Church. When miners found large nuggets where Sonora High School now stands, a group of gamblers tried to force them out. A few persons were killed in the ensuing gun fight, but when hundreds of angry miners from nearby mines came to help their embattled comrades, the gamblers called it quits. This mine yielded a 28 lb. nugget in 1851 and produced 990 lbs. of gold in one week in 1879. An incredible 12 tons of gold were tanken from the Sonora area between early 1849 and the spring of 1850. One of the oldest churches in California, and the most elegant old building in Sonora, is St. James Episcopal Church, also known as the "little red church". Originally built in 1848, it was rebuilt after a fire in 1859. The county jail dates back to 1857 and was in use till 1960. In 1865 a drunk set his cell on fire and burned down the entire jail. He was the only fatality, due to a jammed door. Top of Page Present Day Sonora After the gold rush, Sonora's central location kept it going. Today it is a busy county seat and the shopping area of Tuolumne county. It is the "nearest biggest little town" this side of Yosemite National Park. Tuolumne county's economy includes lumbering, tourism, cattle ranches, turkey and Christmas tree farms, apple and pear orchards and even a Dolomite mine. Though in size it is one of California's largest counties, its population is approximately 48,000. 70% of the county is on federal land. California's two highest passes, both over 9,500 ft., are located here. A large number of movies and TV shows are produced in the county. Actors such as John Wayne, Gary Cooper, Gregory Peck, Humphrey Bogart, Tom Selleck, Jack Lemon and Michael Landon have all performed here. Exhibits and meetings make use of the Mother Lode Fairground facilities, in Sonora. Air access is provided by Columbia Airport (4 miles away). Current Events Sonora has entered the communications age with the electronic guide to the Sierra foothills: Sierra Seasons, which publishes a local calendar of events. Also...check out what is going on with the Sierra Repertory Theatre, for year-round Professional Theatre In the Mother Lode. Top of Page

Click on any image for larger JPEG graphic Railtown Historic State Park, Jamestown   The "Little Red Church", Sonora   Fine fishing in the nearby High Sierras   Roundup time at the Mother Lode Fairgrounds

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