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History · Volcano

Volcano’s history is mostly unwritten

The public archives hold only 3 old photos of Volcano. The rest are in attics, shoeboxes and the historical society. Help start the collection.

3old photos & papers
1historic places
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Volcano’s archive · credits on each photo

What stands out about Volcano’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 3 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Volcano’s homes were built before 1952.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Volcano’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Volcano’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewCF1850 THE VOLCANO DIGGINGS: stand where they stood+15 Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
The story

How Volcano came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Volcano.

Read it all →

The town is named for its setting in a bowl-shaped valley which early gold miners thought was caused by a volcano. Early-morning fog rising from the valley floor only reinforced that belief. The area was first designated by Colonel Stevenson's men, who mined Soldiers Gulch in 1849. In 1851 a post office was established and by April 1852 there were 300 houses. By 1853 the flats and gulches swarmed with men, and there were 11 stores, six hotels, three bakeries, and three saloons. Hydraulic mining operations, begun in 1855, brought thousands of fortune seekers to form a town of 17 hotels, a library, a theater, and courts of quick justice.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Volcano, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1850s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1850s3 items
CF1850 THE VOLCANO DIGGINGS1850CF1850 THE VOLCANO DIGGINGS Volcano CA 18541854Volcano CA 1854 Meyers Universum Band 18 261857Meyers Universum Band 18 26
Today9 recent
Tree stump bear sculpture in the town of Volcano, California, named for its setting in a bowl-shaped valley that early …2012Tree stump bear sculpture in the town of Volcano, Cal… Bell in the town of Volcano, California, named for its setting in a bowl-shaped valley that early miners thought was ca…2012Bell in the town of Volcano, California, named for it… Old building in the town of Volcano, California, named for its setting in a bowl-shaped valley that early miners though…2012Old building in the town of Volcano, California, name… The town of Volcano, California, is named for its setting in a bowl-shaped valley that early miners thought was caused …2012The town of Volcano, California, is named for its set… St. George Hotel, the largest structure in the town of Volcano in Amador County, California2012St. George Hotel, the largest structure in the town o… St. George Hotel, the largest structure in the town of Volcano in Amador County, California2012St. George Hotel, the largest structure in the town o… Tree stump bear sculpture in the town of Volcano, California, named for its setting in a bowl-shaped valley that early …2012Tree stump bear sculpture in the town of Volcano, Cal… Bell in the town of Volcano, California, named for its setting in a bowl-shaped valley that early miners thought was ca…2012Bell in the town of Volcano, California, named for it… Black chasm2011Black chasm
Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

CF1850 THE VOLCANO DIGGINGS
Retake this viewCF1850 THE VOLCANO DIGGINGS, 1850

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Volcano’s page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

1 historic place in Volcano

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
1984
St. George Hotel
in California
#254
by listings
St. George Hotel
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Greek Revival1
St. George HotelGreek Revival

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
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From Wikimedia Commons (6), the Library of Congress (6), the National Register of Historic Places (1) and Wikipedia. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.

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