Thursday, February 22, 2024

Heritage Trail 2024

 We look forward to seeing you on The Heritage Trail 2024!
Dates (TBD) between June-September 2024
Check back later this spring for more information! 



Tuesday, May 30, 2023

Thank you for traveling The Heritage Trail!

Thank you for traveling The Heritage Trail with us this summer! 


Everyone who turned in a blue Get-up-and-Go card will be entered into a prize drawing that will take place this week! This year, thanks to the generosity of our historical community, we have FOUR prize baskets to give away! 

All of the students who turned in a green Scavenger Hunt card will be entered into a prize drawing that will take place this week! One winner will receive a Samsung Galaxy Tablet. One winner will receive a Kindle Fire. And three winners will receive a backpack full of school supplies! 

Winners will be contacted and we'll post pictures on the blog in the coming weeks. 

We look forward to seeing you on The Heritage Trail in the Summer of 2024!




 

Tuesday, April 26, 2022

Heritage Trail 2024

 

 

 TRAIL


CALENDAR

SUMMER LONG ADVENTURE 2024

 

 

 25 MUSEUMS - ROSEVILLE TO TAHOE!

 

Welcome Trail Travelers!

We are glad you decided to join us on the 2024 Heritage Trail Museums Tour. This will be the 15th year for the event and 25 museums from Roseville to Tahoe/Truckee are opening their doors free of charge for certain days throughout the summer. All 25 museums are committed to showcasing history in a fun and entertaining way. For many Trail Travelers, this event has become a family tradition. Geographic clusters of museums will have their Heritage Trail event on certain Saturdays throughout the summer.  This way you have the whole summer to visit participating museums.

 If you can’t make it on a museums’ Heritage Trail Day, you can visit them during their regular hours of operation and still get your Get-Up-And-Go cards stamped!  All museums have free admission on their Heritage Trail Day (see calendar below). If you visit them on any other day, you will have to pay admission if applicable.

Whether you are from Auburn, Reno, San Francisco, or Boston, please enjoy this opportunity to take a trip back in time and get a better understanding of Placer County’s rich and colorful history. Each museum on the tour is unique. Aside from immersing yourselves in history, you will enjoy the variety of settings at each museum. If you are a student entering K thru 12th grade in the fall of 2024, you can enter a chance to win a Samsung Galaxy tablet, a Kindle Fire or backpacks full of school supplies by completing a student scavenger hunt card. Scavenger hunt cards are available in participating museums.


We'll have the calendar up soon, but look below to see what museums will be involved! Thanks again for joining us. We hope you have a great time!


TRAIL TIPS

THE FOLLOWING TRAIL TIPS WILL HELP YOU PLAN YOUR ADVENTURE.

·         For questions about The Heritage Trail, please call 530-889-6500.

·         Eating, drinking and smoking are not permitted in the museums.

·         Leave pets at home.

·         You’ll want to bring your camera. Inquire at each museum for flash photography guidelines.

·         Be sure to pick up your FREE Get Up & Go card at the first museum you visit.

·         If you can’t make it to a museum on their Heritage Trail Day, please visit them during regular hours of operation.

·         This year it will take 4 stamps on your Get-Up-And-Go card to qualify for a gift basket drawing.

Event Website: www.theheritagetrail.blogspot.com

 

Heritage Trail 2024 Participants

Sierra College Natural History Museum   

5000 Rocklin Rd., Rocklin

916-660-7923 https://www.sierracollege.edu/about-us/visit/natural-history-museum.php

Explore exhibits on contemporary nature in our region as well as fossils of life that lived millions of years ago. Enjoy the special program “Living Under a Microscope.”

Normal hours of operation: Open when school is in session; first Saturday of the month 10:00 am - Noon.

 

The Wheatland History Museum  

111 Main St. Wheatland, CA

Wheatlandhistoricalsociety@gmail.com

The primary purpose of the Wheatland Historical Society is to discover, collect, preserve, and disseminate knowledge concerning the history of the Wheatland area in the County of Yuba and the State of California.

Normal hours of operation: First Saturday of the month 10:00 – 2:00 pm

 

Lincoln Area Archives Museum   10:00 am – 4:00 pm

640 Fifth St., Lincoln

916-645-3800  www.laamca.org

View Nisenan artifacts, Gladding McBean & Co photographs, a gold scale from the Van Trent Mine, military uniforms and artifacts, and Chinese baskets. Also on display are a restored buggy and a grain scale from the local Walter Jansen & Son.
Lincoln local author Christina Richter will have a book signing during the Heritage Trail event for her book “Past and Present Placer County.” Also, you have to see our replica of the Lincoln Depot. It’s wonderful.
Normal hours of operation: Thursday through Saturday 11:00-3:00.

 

Fruitvale Schoolhouse Museum 

3425 Fruitvale Rd., Lincoln

530-889-6500  www.placer.ca.gov/museums

Witness the education that farm children received 100 years ago in a one room schoolhouse in rural Lincoln. Experience hands-on Living History activities and be sure to bring your picnic basket and enjoy lunch on the grounds!

Normal hours of operation: 2nd Sunday of the month Noon to 4:00 pm.

 

Bernhard Museum

291 Auburn Folsom Rd., Auburn

530-889-6500 www.placer.ca.gov/museums

Dive into family-friendly living history fun! Explore vintage toys and wagons. Some of our Living History Stations will be open for visitors! Challenge your knuckles—do laundry the old-fashioned way. Dress up in 19th century style and take advantage of multiple photo opportunities. The Placer County Genealogical Society will be on hand to offer guidance on family history research.

Be sure to refresh your family with watermelon and hand-cranked ice cream!

Normal hours of operation: Tuesday–Friday 1:00 – 4:00 pm, Weekends 11:00 – 4:00 pm

 

Benton Welty School Room

1225 Lincoln Way, Auburn

530-906-0712 www.placercountyhistoricalsociety.org

Auburn Grammar School, built in 1915 (now Auburn City Hall), listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Get a rare sense of old school days in a classroom packed with photos, scrapbooks, maps and old schoolbooks. Try your hand at string games and penmanship. Young visitors will be engaged with 1916 classroom activities. Enter the free “just for kids” basket drawing. Ample parking behind building. 

Normal hours of operation: Open by appointment only.


Gold Country Medical History Museum

219 Maple St., Auburn

530-885-1252 www.goldcountrymedicalmuseum.com

Restored Victorian building is on the site of the original Placer County hospital. See medical, dental and nursing implements, equipment, furnishings, pharmaceuticals, ephemera, and a collection of “quackery”. They offer demonstrations of quackery, tours and interpretation of artifacts. Visit this museum before it closes at the end of summer and the collection moves to the University of Nevada, Reno!

Normal hours of operation: Saturdays 11:00-3:00 (Last summer of operation)

  

Maidu Museum & Historic Site

1970 Johnson Ranch Dr., Roseville

916-774-5934  www.roseville.ca.us/indianmuseum

Explore site where Valley Nisenan Maidu Indians lived for thousands of years; discover native plants and over 400 bedrock-grinding holes; experience unique and rare sandstone petroglyphs; hand-on children’s activities, guided tours at 10:00 and 1:00, and an indigenous art gallery. Gift Shop offers a wide selection of books about Native Californians, handmade jewelry, minerals, arrowheads and snacks & drinks.

Normal hours of operation: Thursday-Friday 9:00 – 4:00 pm, Saturdays 10:00-5:00 pm.

 

Roseville Telephone Museum

106 Vernon St., Roseville

916-786-1621 www.consolidated.com/museum

The Roseville Telephone Museum has one of the most extensive collections of antique telephones and memorabilia in the nation. The exhibits in the 4,500 square-foot museum chronicle and celebrate more than a century of communications technology in Roseville as well as nationally and internationally. A visit to the Roseville Telephone Museum makes a fun and educational family outing, a great school field trip or a group sight-seeing tour destination. Our museum docents are current and retired employees who are passionate about telephone history and volunteer their time to share it with visitors of all ages. Presented by Consolidated Communications, this museum offers rare collectible and historical telephones, a working telegraph, and hands-on demonstrations of an early switchboard.

Normal Hours of Operation: First Saturday of the month 10:00 – 2:00.

 

Roseville Historical Society Carnegie Museum

557 Lincoln St., Roseville

916-773-3003 www.rosevillehistorical.org

The Roseville Historical Society's Carnegie Museum and Archives is filled with artifacts and ephemera of Roseville's past! We highlight our train display, a massive "N" gauge model railroad depicting Roseville's Old Town and peeks into our turn-of-the-century past. We also feature the pioneer Roseville Fiddyment family, beginning with matriarch Elizabeth Jane and the next several generations who worked the land and used its resources to make a living. The featured display this year is a turn of the century parlor set and a display of Latino culture.

Normal hours of operation: Tuesday thru Friday 12:00- 4:00 pm; 2nd Saturdays 10:00-2:00.

 

Loomis Basin Historical Society at the Loomis Library and Community Learning Center 10:00 am – 4:00 pm

6050 Library Dr., Loomis

916-824-2905  http://loomislibrary.org/

View photos and exhibits on Loomis Basin pioneers, businesses, ethnic groups, and life on the fruit ranch. Enjoy a video featuring vintage footage of fruit packing in the 1930s. Browse the genealogy and local history book collection in the library. Take a stroll downtown on the Loomis Legacy Loop self-guided walking tour, where you can view colorful murals and sidewalk tiles replicating many local fruit crate labels. Use your cell phone to dial 916-512-1206 to hear recorded messages about the history behind each mural.

Normal hours of operation: Tues. 1:00 pm – 7:00 pm; Wed. – Sat. 10:00 am – 4:00 pm

 

Griffith Quarry Museum  

Corner of Taylor and Rock Springs Roads, Penryn

530-889-6500  www.placer.ca.gov/museums

View exhibits on granite quarrying, the Penryn Granite Works business, the history of Penryn and the Griffith Family.  Inside are two great hands-on exhibits and a guided tour of the historic Quarry Park will be offered at 8:30 am.

Normal hours of operation: Saturday and Sunday 12:00 - 4:00 pm


Rocklin History Museum 

3895 Rocklin Rd., Rocklin

916-624-3464  www.rocklinhistorical.org

Home of Rocks, Rails and Ranches.  View exhibits on Rocklin pioneers, railroad history, buildings and granite quarrying plus extensive photographs and interpretation of J.P. Whitney and his land holdings. Granite splitting demonstration at 11:00 am – you can’t miss this!

Normal hours of operation: Saturday and Sunday 1:00-4:00 pm

 

Golden Drift Museum

32820 Main St., Dutch Flat

530-389-2126  www.placer.ca.gov/museums

Visit the best-preserved Gold Rush town in Placer County. View exhibits on nearby towns, hydraulic mining, the railroad, the Towle Lumber Company, the Maidu Indians, and the Chinese. A large collection of historic photographs will help you experience Dutch Flat in its heyday. Guided walking tour of Dutch Flat at 10:00am (1 hour) followed by Cemetery Tour at 11:30am (1.5 hrs). *Wear comfortable shoes, bring a hat and water*  Open house at several original buildings in town: United Methodist Church, the Odd Fellows Hall, and the Dutch Flat Hotel. Don't miss this unique opportunity to view these fascinating historic buildings from 1:00-3:00pm.  Free refreshments.

Normal hours of operation: Memorial Day- thru the end of September: Friday – Sunday 12:00-4:00 pm (open summer holidays)

 

Colfax Area Heritage Museum 

99 Railroad St., Colfax

530-346-8599  www.colfaxhistory.org

Experience exhibits on the history of the railroad, gold mining, pioneer life, as well as collections of Maidu Indian and Chinese artifacts. There will be live music and tours of the Placer-Sierra Railroad Heritage Society caboose with railroad equipment and history displays.

Normal hours of operation: Tuesday-Saturday 9:00 -2:00 pm

 

Placer County Museum (Historic Courthouse) 

101 Maple St., Auburn

530-889-6500  www.placer.ca.gov/museums

Overview of Placer County history, Pate Collection of American Indian Artifacts, gold collection, restored Sheriff’s Office, Women’s Jail with Alma Bell, make your own wanted poster and the Placer County Genealogical Society will offer guidance on family history research.

Normal hours of operation: Daily 10:00-4:00 pm

 

Gold Rush Museum  

601 Lincoln Way, Auburn

530-889-6500  www.placer.ca.gov/museums

Pan for gold in our indoor panning stream, tour museum which includes a replica mining tunnel, gold rush era artifacts, a Gold Rush Twitter wall, Ghost Town and play an interactive Gold Rush game.

Normal hours of operation: Thursday thru Sunday 10:30 – 4:00 pm

 

Western States Trail Museum (Placer County Visitor’s Bureau) 

1103 High St., Auburn

530-889-6500  www.wstrailmuseum.org

The Western States Trail Museum will provide for the collection and display of historic items relating to the Western States Trail route through the Sierra Nevada. This rugged route was used during the early history of California and Nevada by Native Americans, pioneers and gold rush emigrants, and early Express Riders of Wells Fargo and Adams Express Companies. The Western States Trail is also home to the Tevis Cup and 100-mile endurance run. Our aim is to open Fall of 2023. Enjoy a small sample of some of the historic objects and photographs in our collection at the Placer County Visitor’s Bureau!

Normal Hours of operation: Tuesday-Saturday 9:30 – 4:30 pm 




The Joss House Museum and Chinese History Center

200 Sacramento St., Auburn

www.auburnjosshouse.org
Built in the early 1920s by Charles Yue, leader of local Tong association and community steward for the Auburn Chinese population, the “Joss House” began as a boarding house but was soon converted to the Ling Ying Association (Brave Heroes) meeting place. Here the (c.1880) original Altar was transferred from a previous joss house and placed into service. ‘Charlie’ also established Auburn’s only Chinese school where his children and others of the community could learn to read, write and translate Chinese, as well as study the history and culture of China. The “Joss House” also served as a meeting place and a hostel for transient Chinese from the early 1920s to the late 1960s.

Normal hours of operation: Memorial Day weekend thru Labor Day, Saturdays 10:30 – 2:30


Summit Tunnel Conservation Association Hike

19195 Donner Pass Rd., Norden (but will come up as “Truckee” for USPS purposes)

Contact: 530-305-2241

Once the parking lot is full, overflow parking will be at Donner Ski Ranch just to the west on Donner Pass Road. The hike will cover the history of the area with an emphasis on the Chinese laborers who built the Transcontinental Railroad over the pass. Learn about the efforts to recognize this site as a National Historic Landmark. Bring a lunch, water, wear good hiking shoes and sunscreen and/or a hat.

 

Gatekeepers Museum

130 West Lake Blvd., Tahoe City

530-583-1762  www.northtahoemuseums.org

View the Marion Steinbach Native American Basket Museum, one of the largest Native American Basket Collections in the US. Also featuring exhibits on Tahoe history, maritime, restaurant and movie industries. Special exhibits on Lake Tahoe maps and early 20th century photography. 

Normal hours of operation: Wednesday - Sunday 11:00-4:00

 

Watson Cabin

560 North Lake Blvd., Tahoe City

530-583-1762 www.northtahoemuseums.org

Built in 1909 by Robert Watson as a wedding present for his son, the Watson Cabin is the oldest building constructed onsite in Tahoe City and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. View pioneer artifacts from early Tahoe with docent-led tours.

Contact for appointment.

 

Museum of Truckee History

10065 Donner Pass Rd., Truckee www.museumoftruckeehistory.org  

View exhibits on the Native Americans who settled in the area, the construction and development of the Transcontinental Railroad, logging, ice, California’s first lager beer, and the development of local recreation including the 1960 Winter Olympics. This is a brand-new museum, so be sure to visit us anytime – especially on our Heritage Trail Day!

Normal hours of operation: Friday- Sunday 10:00 – 4:00 pm

*The Truckee River Railroad will also be operating at nearby Truckee Regional Park. Check the Heritage Trail blog for more information (www.theheritagetrail.blogspot.com)

 

Truckee Railroad Museum

10075 Donner Pass Rd., Truckee www.truckeedonnerrailroadsociety.com/museum/museum.htm

Inside the museum are stories, pictures, recreations, and railroad artifacts depicting the impact of railroads in the formation and development of Truckee. The First Transcontinental Railroad, Logging Railroads, and Tourism by Rail all played an important part in Truckee’s history.

Normal hours of operation: Saturdays & Sundays 10:00 – 4:00 pm

 

Truckee Old Jail Museum

10142 Jibboom St., Truckee

530-582-0983  www.truckeehistory.org/old-jail-museum

View exhibits on the history of the jail and a wide variety of local artifacts and photographs. You will see relics from other important industries including lumbering, box manufacturing and ice harvesting. Other exhibits pay tribute to the film industry, which thrived in Truckee during the 1920's along with gambling and bootlegging. Also exhibited are artifacts from the Truckee's early winter sports era, including early skiing equipment.

Normal hours of operation: Summer: Saturday & Sunday 10:00 – 4:00 pm

 

DeWitt History Museum

2985 Richardson Dr., Auburn

530-889-6500  www.placer.ca.gov/museums

View exhibits on the history of the DeWitt Government Center from its inception as a World War II Army Hospital, its use as a State Mental Hospital and finally its use as a Placer County Government Center. Displays will also cover the use of German Prisoners of War from nearby Camp Flint and the Internment of Japanese Americans.

Normal hours of operation: Wednesdays Noon – 4:00 pm

 

Placer County Museums Archives and Collections Facility

11526 C Ave., Auburn

530-889-6500  www.placer.ca.gov/Museums

View exhibits in the foyer or go on a guided tour to see where we store thousands of artifacts, documents, historic ledgers and photographs.

Normal hours of operation: Mon.-Tues & Fri. 9:00 – 3:00 pm

 

Forest Hill Divide Museum

24601 Harrison St., Foresthill

530-367-3988  www.foresthillhistory.org

Watch blacksmiths craft period tools, view exhibits on mining, Native American Heritage, the lumber industry, fires & firefighting and life in the Victorian era. Visitors can enjoy Interactive Entertainment …bringing history to life. They are made up of notable outlaws and marshals who teach as well as entertain about the heritage of the Gold Rush. The Foresthill Divide Chamber of Commerce will also sponsor hands on kids activities, music, craft & food booths in the Memorial Park. More activities to be announced by the Chamber. The Forest Hill Divide Museum combines their Heritage Trail with the town’s annual Heritage Festival.
Normal hours of operation: Memorial Day Weekend thru Labor Day Weekend Saturdays & Sundays 12:00-4:00 pm; also open July 4th

 

 

 

Get-Up-And-Go Cards

You can pick-up your Get-Up-And-Go cards at the first Heritage Trail Day (June 3rd) from the Sierra College Natural History Museum.  After that day, you can pick up Get-Up-And-Go cards from any participating museum.  You can pick up cards and get them stamped on any day the museum is open throughout the summer.  This year, it will take 4 stamps on your card to enter the drawing for a gift basket. Please remember that you can only play one Get-Up-And-Go card at a time.  You are free to start another card once you have turned in a fully stamped card. Cards must be turned in by 4:00 pm by September 4th at any participating museum.

 


Saturday, September 25, 2021

2021 Heritage Trail Winners!

This year might have looked different than years past, but one thing was the same...the smiles! These two young men completed this year's student scavenger hunt and were entered into the prize drawing. 

Jeffrey Thomas won our Samsung Tablet. 

Marshall Neal won the Kindle Fire.


















Thanks for joining us this year! I am looking forward to seeing you all on the trail next summer! 

Thursday, June 17, 2021

Heritage Trail 2021

 


LET’S GET BACK ON THE TRAIL! 

SUMMER LONG ADVENTURE 2021 - ROSEVILLE TO TAHOE!


Welcome Trail Travelers!


We’re excited to welcome you back to Heritage Trail 2021. This year will be different due to COVID-19, but we’re still committed to showcasing history in a fun and entertaining way! 18 museums will join us on the trail. Museum hours and openings may fluctuate, so be sure to check with each individual museum. Heritage Trail will take place from June 17th to September 5th. 

This year we will continue our scavenger hunt. Everyone is welcome to take a trip back in time and get a better understanding of Placer County’s history while entering for a chance to win a Kindle Fire Tablet or Samsung Galaxy Tablet.

The scavenger hunt will encompass all participating museums and each question can be answered in-person or online. You can print it out, pick one up, or complete it digitally. All completed scavenger hunts should be emailed to museums@placer.ca.gov or turned in to one of the participating sites.

Thanks again for joining us. We hope you have a great time, and we can’t wait to hear from you!

Ralph Gibson
Placer County Museums Administrator
Chairperson, The Heritage Trail

Scavenger Hunt Instructions: 

1. Download scavenger hunt PDF  (here)
2. Answer questions:
a. Follow links and answer questions online
b. Print out scavenger hunt and visit participating museums
3. Complete at least five questions
4. Turn it in! Scavenger hunts must be turned in by September 5th.
a. You can fill it out as a PDF form and email to museums@placer.ca.gov
b. Turn your printed out and completed scavenger hunt at any open, participating museums OR at the Placer County Museums office at 101 Maple Street, Auburn, CA 95603
5. Questions? Call 530-889-6500

List of Participating Museums


Bernhard Museum Complex
Phone: 530-889-6500
Address: 291 Auburn Folsom Road, Auburn, CA 95603
Hours: Closed until further notice, call for more information. 

Carnegie Library Museum, Roseville Historical Society
Phone: 916-773-3003
Address: 557 Lincoln St., Roseville, CA 95678
Hours: Tuesday-Friday, 10-2pm; Second Saturday of the Month, 10am-2pm

DeWitt History Museum
Phone: 530-889-6500
Address: 2985 Richardson Dr., Auburn, CA 95603
Hours: First Two Wednesdays of the month, 12:00-4:00pm

Donner Summit Historical Society
Phone: 530-587-2160
Address: 21501 Soda Springs Rd., Truckee, CA 96161
Hours: Saturdays & Sundays, 10:00am-4:00pm

Foresthill Divide Museum
Phone: 530-889-6500
Address: 24601 Harrison St., Foresthill, CA 95631
Hours: Weekends, 12:00-4:00pm through Labor Day

Fruitvale School Museum
Address: 3425 Fruitvale Road, Lincoln, CA 95648
Phone: 530-889-6500

Gatekeeper’s Museum
Phone: 530-583-1762
Address: 130 W. Lake Blvd., Tahoe City, CA 96145
Hours: Thursday-Sunday, 10:00-4:00pm

Gold Country Medical Museum
Phone: 530-863-3274 (FYI: this is not a dedicated museum line, and is answered "This is Lynn." Don't worry, it's the correct contact!) 
Address: 219 Maple St., Auburn, CA 95603
Hours: Saturdays, 11:00-3:00pm until the end of October. 

Gold Rush Museum
Phone: 530-889-6500
Address: 601 Lincoln Way, Auburn, CA 95603
Hours: Friday-Sunday, 1pm-4pm

Golden Drift Museum
Phone: 530-889-6500
Address: 32820 Main St., Dutch Flat, CA 95714
Hours: Friday-Sunday, 12:00-4:00pm through Labor Day

Griffith Quarry Museum
Phone: 530-889-6500
Address: 7504 Rock Springs Rd., Penryn, CA 95663
Hours: Saturdays, 12:00-4:00pm

Maidu Museum & Historic Site
Phone: 916-774-5934
Address: 1970 Johnson Ranch Dr., Roseville, CA 95661
Hours: Wednesday-Saturday, 9:00-2:00pm

Museum of Truckee History
Phone: 530-582-0893
Address: 10065 Donner Pass Rd., Truckee, CA 96161
Hours: Saturday & Sunday, 11-5

Placer County Historical Society, Benton Welty School Room

Placer County Museum
Phone: 530-889-6500
Address: 101 Maple St., Auburn, CA 95603
Hours: Daily, 10:00-4:00pm

Rocklin Historical Society Museum
Hours: Saturday, 1:00-4:00pm
Address: 3895 Rocklin Rd., Rocklin, CA 95677

Hours: Currently closed
Address:  106 Vernon Street, Roseville, CA 95678

Sierra College Natural History Museum
Phone: 916-660-7923
Address: 5100 Sierra College Blvd., Rocklin, CA 95677
Hours: Open when school is in session, 10:00-12:00pm

Watson’s Cabin Museum
Phone: 530-583-1762
Address: 560 N. Lake Blvd., Tahoe City, CA 96145
Hours: Most weekends, Intermittent - call ahead  

Monday, March 30, 2020

Heritage Trail 2020

In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, Heritage Trail 2020 is canceled. 

We hope all of you stay healthy and safe. Many museums are focusing on putting more content online and if you scroll down to the Trail Guide from 2019, you'll find links to the websites of those museums that have an online presence.  At the Placer County Museums, we're putting a lot of content on our website: Artifact Highlights, educational material, an Ask a Curator activity, and soon we'll post virtual tours of museums and a Walking Tour of historic Auburn. We'll also start an Online History Art Club that you and your children can participate in. 

For more information go to:

www.placer.ca.gov/museums  and scroll down to the bottom to view our new content.

We look forward to seeing you online! Once we get through this, we'll begin planning Heritage Trail 2021!

Wednesday, October 9, 2019

2019 Heritage Trail Winners!

The winners for this year's Gift Baskets and Student Scavenger Hunt prizes are below!

Lily Lynch won the Samsung Galaxy Tablet!



Madoc Wilson won the Kindle Fire Tablet!



Nathan picked this Backpack of school supplies up for his friend Greighlon!



Davin Ratliff won a backpack of school supplies!



Austin Croucher (right) won a backpack for of school supplies while his sister, Madelyn, won the Benton Welty School Room Kid's Basket AND a Heritage Trail Gift Basket!



Nathan Kosmides won a Heritage Trail Gift Basket (posing with his mother).



Denise Bueno won a Heritage Trail Gift Basket!


Those are your winners for 2019!  We hope to see you on the trail in 2020!!




Friday, July 5, 2019

Heritage Trail 2019



And that's a wrap! Heritage Trail 2019 is over!

We'll be gathering all the stamped Get-up-and-Go card and Student Scavenger Hunt cards over the next several days and then we'll have our drawing. 

Thank all of you who came out the this year's Heritage Trail and we hope to see you next year!







Friday, May 31, 2019




HERITAGE

TRAIL

 CALENDAR
SUMMER LONG ADVENTURE 2019

 26 MUSEUMS - ROSEVILLE TO TAHOE!

Welcome Trail Travelers!
We are glad you decided to join us on the 2019 Heritage Trail Museums Tour. This is the 12th year for the event and 26 museums from Roseville to Tahoe/Truckee are opening their doors free of charge for certain days throughout the summer. All 26 museums are committed to showcasing history in a fun and entertaining way. For many Trail Travelers, this event has become a family tradition. This year, just as last year, geographic clusters of museums will have their Heritage Trail event on certain Saturdays throughout the summer.  This way you have the whole summer to visit participating museums. We are focusing on the 150th anniversary of the Transcontinental Railroad, so keep your eye open for special exhibits and programs tied to this important anniversary!
 If you can’t make it on a museums’ Heritage Trail day, you can visit them during their regular hours of operation and still get your Get-Up-And-Go cards stamped!  All museums have free admission on their Heritage Trail day (see calendar below). If you visit them on any other day, you will have to pay admission if applicable.
Whether you are from Auburn, Reno, San Francisco, or Boston, please enjoy this opportunity to take a trip back in time and get a better understanding of Placer County’s rich and colorful history. Each museum on the tour is unique. Aside from immersing yourselves in history, you will enjoy the variety of settings at each museum. If you are a student entering K thru 12th grade in the fall of 2019, you can enter a chance to win a Samsung Galaxy tablet, a Kindle Fire or backpacks full of school supplies by completing a student scavenger hunt card. Scavenger hunt cards are available in participating museums.

Please read the calendar on the following pages.  Thanks again for joining us. We hope you have a great time!

Ralph Gibson
Placer County Museums Administrator
Chairperson, The Heritage Trail


TRAIL TIPS
THE FOLLOWING TRAIL TIPS WILL HELP YOU PLAN YOUR ADVENTURE.
·         For questions about The Heritage Trail, please call 530-889-6500.
·         Eating, drinking and smoking are not permitted in the museums.
·         Leave pets at home.
·         You’ll want to bring your camera. Inquire at each museum for flash photography guidelines.
·         Be sure to pick up your FREE Get Up & Go card at the first museum you visit.
·         If you can’t make it to a museum on their Heritage Trail Day, please visit them during regular hours of operation.
·         This year it will take 8 stamps on your Get-Up-And-Go card to qualify for a gift basket drawing.


Heritage Trail 2019 Calendar

June 15th  10:00 am – 4:00 pm
Bernhard Museum
291 Auburn Folsom Rd., Auburn
Dive into family-friendly living history fun! Explore vintage toys and wagons. Make a mini fruit crate and rag dolls. Challenge your knuckles—do laundry the old-fashioned way. Dress up in 19th century style and take advantage of multiple photo opportunities. And be sure to refresh your family with watermelon and hand-cranked ice cream!
Normal hours of operation: Tuesday–Sunday 11:00-4:00

Benton Welty School Room
1225 Lincoln Way, Auburn
Auburn Grammar School, built in 1915 (now Auburn City Hall), listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Get a rare sense of old school days in a classroom packed with photos, scrapbooks, maps and old school books. Try your hand at string games and penmanship. Young visitors will be engaged with 1916 classroom activities. Enter the free “just for kids” basket drawing. Ample parking behind building. School songs of yesteryear with Clifford Johnson at 1:00 pm!
Normal hours of operation: Open by appointment only.

Gold Rush Museum
601 Lincoln Way, Auburn
Pan for gold in our indoor panning stream, tour museum which includes a replica mining tunnel, gold rush era artifacts, a Gold Rush Twitter wall, Ghost Town and play an interactive Gold Rush game.
Normal hours of operation: Thursday thru Sunday 10:30 – 4:00



June 22nd  
Loomis Basin Historical Society at the Loomis Library and Community Center            10:00 am – 5:00 pm
6050 Library Dr., Loomis
View exhibits on Loomis Basin pioneers and entrepreneurs, businesses and Chinatown artifacts. Fruit ranchers will also be featured. View a video of the history of the area. There is a walking tour of downtown as part of the Legacy Loop. You can view replicas of original fruit labels that have been cemented into the sidewalks on Taylor Road. There are fruit label murals painted on the sides of many of the downtown buildings. Use your cell phone to simply dial 916-512-1206. Enter the number associated with each mural followed by the #sign and you will hear a recorded message of the history behind each mural.
Normal hours of operation: Tues. 1:00 pm – 7:00 pm; Wed. – Sat. 10:00 am – 5:00 pm

Griffith Quarry Museum  8:00 am – 12:00 pm
Corner of Taylor and Rock Springs Roads, Penryn
View exhibits on granite quarrying, the Penryn Granite Works business, the history of Penryn and the Griffith Family.  Inside are two great hands-on exhibits and a guided tour of the historic Quarry Park will be offered at 8:30 am.
Normal hours of operation: Saturday and Sunday 12:00-4:00

Rocklin History Museum 10:00 am – 4:00 pm
3895 Rocklin Rd., Rocklin
916-624-3464  www.rocklinhistory.org
View exhibits on Rocklin pioneers, buildings and granite quarrying plus extensive photographs and interpretation of J.P. Whitney and his land holdings. Granite splitting demonstration at 11:00 am – you can’t miss this!
Normal hours of operation: Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday 1:00-4:00



June 29th 10:00 am – 4:00 pm
Gatekeepers Museum
130 West Lake Blvd., Tahoe City
530-583-1762  www.northtahoemuseums.org
View the Marion Steinbach Indian Basket Collection and exhibits on Tahoe history; special exhibit on the 1960 Winter Olympics; and special activity outside.
Normal hours of operation: Daily 10:00-5:00

Watson Cabin
560 North Lake Blvd., Tahoe City
Built in 1909 by Robert Watson as a wedding present for his son, the Watson Cabin is the oldest building constructed onsite in Tahoe City and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  View pioneer artifacts from early Tahoe with docent-led tours.
Normal hours of operation: (summer: Wed-Sun 12-4).



July 6th  10:00 am – 4:00 pm 
Placer County Museum (Historic Courthouse)
101 Maple St., Auburn
Overview of Placer County history, Pate Collection of American Indian Artifacts, gold collection, restored Sheriff’s Office, Women’s Jail with Alma Bell, make your own wanted poster and the Placer County Genealogical Society will offer guidance on family history research.
Normal hours of operation: Daily 10:00-4:00

Gold Country Medical History Museum
219 Maple St., Auburn
Restored Victorian building is on the site of the original Placer County hospital. See medical, dental and nursing implements, equipment, furnishings, pharmaceuticals, ephemera, and a collection of “quackery”. They offer demonstrations of quackery, tours and interpretation of artifacts.
Normal hours of operation: Saturdays 11:00-3:00, April-October.

The Joss House Museum and Chinese History Center
200 Sacramento St., Auburn
530-823-0373
Built in the early 1920s by Charles Yue, leader of local Tong association and community steward for the Auburn Chinese population, the “Joss House” began as a boarding house but was soon converted to the Ling Ying Association (Brave Heroes) meeting place. Here the (c.1880) original Altar was transferred from a previous joss house and placed into service. ‘Charlie’ also established Auburn’s only Chinese school where his children and others of the community could learn to read, write and translate Chinese, as well as study the history and culture of China. The “Joss House” also served as a meeting place and a hostel for transient Chinese from the early 1920s to the late 1960s.
Normal hours of operation: Open most Saturdays 10:30-4:00



July 13th  10:00 am – 4:00 pm 
Maidu Museum & Historic Site
1970 Johnson Ranch Dr., Roseville
Explore site where Valley Nisenan Maidu Indians lived for thousands of years; discover native plants and over 400 bedrock-grinding holes; experience unique and rare sandstone petroglyphs; hand-on children’s activities, guided tours at 10:00 and 1:00, and an indigenous art gallery. Gift Shop offers a wide selection of books about Native Californians, handmade jewelry, minerals, arrowheads and snacks & drinks.
Normal hours of operation: Saturdays 9:00-4:00

Roseville Telephone Museum
106 Vernon St., Roseville
The Roseville Telephone Museum has one of the most extensive collections of antique telephones and memorabilia in the nation. The exhibits in the 4,500 square-foot museum chronicle and celebrate more than a century of communications technology in Roseville as well as nationally and internationally. A visit to the Roseville Telephone Museum makes a fun and educational family outing, a great school field trip or a group sight-seeing tour destination. Our museum docents are current and retired employees who are passionate about telephone history and volunteer their time to share it with visitors of all ages. Presented by Consolidated Communications, this museum offers rare collectible and historical telephones, a working telegraph, and hands-on demonstrations of an early switchboard.
Normal Hours of Operation: First Saturday of the month 10:00 – 2:00.

Roseville Historical Society Carnegie Museum
557 Lincoln St., Roseville
The Roseville Historical Society's Carnegie Museum and Archives is filled with artifacts and ephemera of Roseville's past! We highlight our train display, a massive "N" gauge model railroad depicting Roseville's Old Town and peeks into our turn-of-the-century past. We also feature the pioneer Roseville Fiddyment family, beginning with matriarch Elizabeth Jane and the next several generations who worked the land and used its resources to make a living. The featured display this year is the “Rail of Two Cities”, which depicts the Transcontinental Railroad through Rocklin and Roseville.
Normal hours of operation: Tuesday thru Friday 10:00- 2:00; 2nd Saturdays 10:00-2:00.



 July 20th
The Wheatland History Museum  10:00 am – 2:00 pm
111 Main St. Wheatland, CA
The primary purpose of the Wheatland Historical Society is to discover, collect, preserve, and disseminate knowledge concerning the history of the Wheatland area in the County of Yuba and the State of California.
Normal hours of operation: Open 1st and 3rd Saturdays from 10:00 am – 2:00 pm

Lincoln Area Archives Museum   10:00 am – 4:00 pm
640 Fifth St., Lincoln
916-645-3800  www.laamca.org
View Nisenan artifacts, Gladding McBean & Co. photographs, a gold scale from the Van Trent Mine, military uniforms and artifacts and Chinese baskets.  Also on display are a restored buggy and a grain scale from the local Walter Jansen & Son.  Miss Katy will be showing off her fabulous late 1800s kitchen and come see the Lincoln Depot replica – it’s wonderful!. Beverages and cookies available.
Normal hours of operation: Tuesday through Saturday 11:00-3:00.



July 27th   8:00 am – 12:00 pm
Fruitvale School
3425 Fruitvale Rd., Lincoln
Witness the education that farm children received 100 years ago in a one room school house in rural Lincoln. Experience hands-on Living History activities and be sure to bring your picnic basket and enjoy lunch on the grounds!
Normal hours of operation: Open by appointment only.



August 3rd  10:00 am – 4:00 pm
Colfax Area Heritage Museum
99 Railroad St., Colfax
530-346-8599  www.colfaxhistory.org
Experience exhibits on the history of the railroad, gold mining, pioneer life, as well as collections of Maidu Indian and Chinese artifacts. Drinks and snacks will be available.  Enter a drawing for books on Donner Pass and Railroads of Placer County by local authors Roger Stabb and Jack Duncan.
Normal hours of operation: 10:00 -3:00 Monday-Saturday

Golden Drift Museum
32820 Main St., Dutch Flat
Visit the best preserved Gold Rush town in Placer County.  View exhibits on nearby towns, hydraulic mining, the railroad, the Towle Lumber Company, the Maidu Indians, and the Chinese.
Guided walking tour of Dutch Flat at 10:00am followed by Cemetery Tour at 11:30am.  In celebration of the Lincoln Highway and Highway 40 there will be a handout available with a map and list of local points of interest where the routes run through this area.
Free refreshments.
Normal hours of operation: Memorial Day- thru the end of September: Friday – Sunday 12:00-4:00 (open summer holidays)

Donner Summit Historical Society Museum
21501 Donner Pass Rd., Soda Springs
Donner Summit is the richest historical area in California: first wagon trains, first transcontinental railroad, highway, telephone line, and air route. Lincoln Highway and Historic Highway 40 talk by Norm Saylor at 1:30 pm.
Normal hours of operation: Saturday and Sunday 10:00-4:00


August 10th& 11th  9:30 am
Donner Summit Hike.
Margie Powell was the inspiration for the Donner Summit Historical Society. In her memory we’ve held annual Margie Powell hikes in August. On this, our eighth year, we're going to go down Summit Canyon:
This hike is all downhill.  We will park some cars at the end and then shuttle back uphill.  This hike will start with an overview of Donner Summit history - the most historically significant square mile in California and maybe the entire Western United States. That overview has the most magnificent view! We’ll talk about the firsts: first transcontinental railroad, first transcontinental highway, first transcontinental air route, first transcontinental telephone line, and the first wagon trains to California. We’ll see ads painted on the rocks 100 years ago and we’ll see petroglyphs incised into the granite 2-4,000 years ago.  We’ll have great views and lots of great stories. The hike is illustrated so there will be lots of old photographs. It’s the same hike both days. The hike is three miles long. Do not consider going on this hike unless you are nimble because there are parts where we’ll have to scramble over some rocks since there is no trail. Meet at 9:30 am each day at the Donner Ski Ranch parking lot (19320 Donner Pass Road) and bring a hat, good shoes, sunscreen, water, camera, lunch, and curiosity.


August 17th  10:00 am – 4:00 pm
Truckee Old Jail Museum
10142 Jibboom St. Truckee
View exhibits on the history of the jail and a wide variety of local artifacts and photographs. You will see relics from other important industries including lumbering, box manufacturing and ice harvesting. Other exhibits pay tribute to the film industry, which thrived in Truckee during the 1920's along with gambling and bootlegging. Also exhibited are artifacts from the Truckee's early winter sports era, including early skiing equipment.
Normal hours of operation: Summer, Saturday & Sunday 10:00 – 4:00

Truckee Railroad Museum
10075 Donner Pass Rd., Truckee
Inside the museum are stories, pictures, recreations, and railroad artifacts depicting the impact of railroads in the formation and development of Truckee. The First Transcontinental Railroad, Logging Railroads, and Tourism by Rail all played an important part in Truckee’s history.
Normal hours of operation: Saturdays & Sundays 10:00 – 4:00



August 24th  8:00 am – 12:00 pm
DeWitt History Museum
2985 Richardson Dr., Auburn
View exhibits on the history of the DeWitt Government Center from its inception as a World War II Army Hospital, its use as a State Mental Hospital and finally its use as a Placer County Government Center. Displays will also cover the use of German Prisoners of War from nearby Camp Flint and the Internment of Japanese-Americans. Guided Walking Tours of the Historic DeWitt Campus at 8:30 am and 9:30 am..
Normal hours of operation: Wednesdays Noon – 4:00 pm.

Placer County Museums Archives and Collections Facility
11526 C Ave., Auburn
530-889-6500  www.placer.ca.gov/Museums
View exhibits in the foyer or go on a guided tour to see where we store thousands of artifacts, documents, historic ledgers and photographs.
Normal hours of operation: Mon.-Tues & Fri. 9:00 – 3:00


August 31st & September 1st 10:00 am – 4:00 pm
Forest Hill Divide Museum
24601 Harrison St., Foresthill
530-367-3988  www.foresthillhistory.org
Watch blacksmiths craft period tools, view exhibits on mining, Native American Heritage, the lumber industry, fires & firefighting and life in the Victorian era.  Hands-on activities for kids, craft and food booths, gold panning demonstrations, lumberjack contest, and visitors can watch the State Gold Panning championships. Visitors can also enjoy the re-enactments of the California Rangers as the Tombstone Cowboys. They are combining the Heritage Trail with their annual Heritage Festival.
Normal hours of operation: Memorial Day thru Labor Day Saturdays & Sundays 12:00-4:00


September 7th  10:00 am – 12:00 pm
Sierra College Natural History Museum   10:00 am - Noon
5000 Rocklin Rd., Rocklin
Enjoy exhibits on contemporary nature in our region as well as fossils of life that lived millions of years ago. Enjoy the special program “In Their Footsteps: Trace Fossils and Tracks”.
Normal hours of operation: Open when school is in session; first Saturday of the month 10:00 am - Noon.




Sesquicentennial of the Transcontinental Railroad Events

June 22, Historical Talk: The Chinese and their importance to the Railroad. Presented by Bill George at the Donner State Memorial Park Visitors Center - 5:00 pm.

June 29, Historical Talk: Snow Sheds-Fires and other Related Subjects at the Tahoe Truckee Airport Conference Room. Presented by Bill Oudegeest of the Donner Summit Historical Society – 7:00 pm.

July 27, Historical Talk: Logging Railroads. Presented by Nelson Van Gundy at the Truckee Tahoe Airport Conference Room. A discussion on how the logging industry was tied to the development of the Railroad and the surrounding areas – 7:00pm.

August 3, Historical Talk: Truckee Lake Tahoe Railway presented by Jerry Blackwill at the Truckee Tahoe Airport Conference Room. Discussion regarding the History of the Truckee Lake Tahoe Railway and the impact of creating tourism for the Lake Tahoe Basin – 7:00pm.
August 31: Our final goodbye to the Celebration of the Transcontinental Railroad will be held at the Regional Park Railroad Terminus in the Truckee River Regional Park. Plans are still being finalized but the vision is a wonderful day at the park riding the trains, eating lunch, kids playing and lots of history discussions! There will be CAKE and BBQ Truckee Style – 11:00am – 3:00pm.

Complete list of events are two posts below this one.







Museum Calendar of Events Outside of Heritage Trail

July 6, Gathering at The Gatekeeper’s Join us for the annual Gathering at The Gatekeeper’s dinner with silent and live auction. Catered by Big Blue Q. 4-8pm. Reservations required by June 29. $85 per person.

July 17, Donner Summit Train Tunnel Hike Will review the early exploration of the Central Pacific Railroad route and the subsequent construction of the line over the Sierras. Bring lunch, water, camera, hiking poles, and sunscreen.  About 2.5 miles.  Meet in Gatekeeper’s Museum parking lot at 8:30am.

August 1, 46th Annual Home Tour Join us for our annual tour of unique and historic Tahoe homes. This year features houses in the Rubicon area of Lake Tahoe. Catered reception. 12-4pm.

August 21, Truckee River Canyon Railroad Hike Will follow the new hiking/bike trail route from Floriston to Farad along the Truckee River below Hirschdale.  We will follow the old Floriston/Reno water flume and rail line, discussing both the rail and flume history. Bring lunch, water, camera, hiking stick, and sunscreen.  About 2.8 miles.  Will carpool from end of trail back to the trailhead.  Meet at Gatekeeper’s Museum parking lot at 8:30am.

Sept. 14 & 15, Donner Party Hike. Learn secrets of the Sierra as you hike with local historians. For more information email info@donnerpartyhike.com or visit http://www.donnerpartyhike.com

October 6: Old Auburn Cemetery Tour 1:30pm - 3:30pm. Call 530-889-6500 for more information.



Get-Up-And-Go Cards
You can pick-up your Get-Up-And-Go cards at the first Heritage Trail Day (June 15th) from the Bernhard Museum, Benton Welty School Room or the Gold Rush Museum.  After that day, you can pick up Get-Up-And-Go cards from any participating museum.  You can pick up cards and get them stamped on any day the museum is open throughout the summer.  This year, it will take 8 stamps on your card to enter the drawing for a gift basket. Please remember that you can only play one Get-Up-And-Go card at a time.  You are free to start another card once you have turned in a fully stamped card. Cards must be turned in by 4:00 pm by September 7th at any participating museum.    






Thank you to our sponsors!

             




                                                                                                                          
  Auburn Parlor #59 and Silver Star Parlor #63 (Lincoln)


















1869 – 2019
The 150th anniversary of the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad!





A full list of sesquicentennial events are two posts below this one!