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| Landmark #252 | Calaveras County | Visited: May 8, 2015 | Plaque? YES! 🙂 |
| What is it? | A plaque in the town of San Andreas! |
| What makes it historical? | THE GUIDE SAYS: Settled by Mexicans in 1848 and named after the Catholic parish St. Andres, the town has been a noted mining camp since early days. Gold from the surrounding ancient river channels and placer mines contributed greatly to the success of the Union during the Civil War. The first newspaper was published here on September 24, 1846. Destroyed by fire June 4, 1858, and in 1863, San Andreas became the seat of Calaveras County in 1866. It was said to be a rendezvous for Joaquin Murrieta. Notorious stage robber, Black Bart, was tried here and sent to prison.
OTHER TIDBITS: Black Bart was a fascinating sort of outlaw, who stole $18,000 from Wells Fargo stages and often left bits of poetry behind! He was courteous to stage passengers and would not accept valuables offered to him by women! There are many legends surrounding Black Bart, like the rumor that he held up a stage with six well-positioned sticks that he claimed to be rifles! He was born in England as Charles Bowles and came to California to mine for gold! Wounded while fighting for the Union army during the Civil War, Mr. Bowles nevertheless kept on living and returned to mining, this time in Montana. That’s where Wells Fargo cut off his water supply and made him abandon his mine. So it’s no wonder he turned to robbing Wells Fargo stages! |
| How can I Help the Helpers? | HERE’S HOW:
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| Where is this place? | LISTED DIRECTIONS: NW corner of State Hwy 49 and Main St San Andreas, CA 95249 ANNOTATIONS: From Los Angeles: ~352mi (567km) — 5.9hrs |
| When should I go? | Whenever the mood strikes you! |