History of Yreka, California
Stagecoach in front of Franco-American Hotel on West Miner Street
Yreka was born when gold was discovered on the flats near a ravine called Black Gulch in March of 1851 by Abraham Thompson, a member of a mule train party en route to Scott Valley from southern Oregon. Six weeks after the discovery 2,000 miners had arrived in "Thompson's Dry Diggings" to test their luck. By May, the gold rush "boomtown" was composed of tents, shanties and a few rough cabins. Several name changes occurred until the little city was called Yreka, apparently a Shasta Indian word meaning "north mountain." Incorporation proceedings were completed on April 21, 1857.
Joaquin Miller described Yreka during 1853-54 as a bustling place with "...a tide of people up and down and across other streets, as strong as if in New York". More stage lines used the town for a stage stop than any other community in the state. Two sizable Chinatowns existed on Miner Street and in 1889 a short line railroad connected the city with the Southern Pacific's west coast line. The heart of the community, then and now, was Miner Street--named appropriately enough after those hardworking individuals who built the town.
Miner Street [looking West] circa 1930's
Yreka is truly a community where history lives on. Over seventy-five homes built in the 1800's [see example in photo at right] have been preserved as well as many more constructed after the turn-of-the-century. The residential district of Third Street has been listed on the National Register of Historical Places in Washington, D.C. The historical/commercial district of Miner Street offers visitors a view into Yreka's past with buildings maintained from the late 1800's and early 1900's. Detailed brochures with designed walking or driving tours of both the Heritage Homes and the Historical District are available at Chamber office. Located within the Historical District are two churches built in the 1800's as well as the Siskiyou County Courthouse, built in the mid-1850's, which houses an extensive gold display in its lobby. Also situated in the district are historical signs noting specific buildings with their history and past/present activities. Inside many of these commercial structures are points of interest such as the beautifully carved antique bar in the Elk's Lodge & hammered tin ceilings.
Chinese New Year celebration in Chinatown, Yreka circa 1890's
Historical mural on South Broadway