The Cities and communities of Sacramento County, California *

Antelope, Arcade, Arden
Carmichael, Citrus Heights, Clay, Cosumnes
Elk Grove, Elverta
Fair Oaks, Florin, Folsom, Foothill Farms, Freeport
Galt
Herald
Isleton
Laguna, La Riviera, Locke
North Highlands
Orangevale
Parkway
Rancho Cordova, Rancho Murieta, Rio Linda, Rosemont, Ryde
Sacramento, Sheldon, Sloughhouse, South Sacramento
Vorden
Walnut Grove, Wilton

*This list of cities may not be complete. The list may contain towns, cities, villages, boroughs, neighborhoods, townships, ghost towns and other populated places.

If you have information about any of these unlinked communities, please send it to us and we will add a page for that community. Some of these places above may only be neighborhoods or local area names and are not listed with the census at all or just included in a larger surrounding designated census area..

Return to top

Information & Facts about Sacramento County, California

Government:

Sacramento County Government Site

Sacramento became the State Capital in 1854.
Sacramento is the county seat and also the site of the state government for California. It is also the largest city in the county.
How is the county governed? Find out on this page.

The County Seal

Sacramento County Sheriff's Department

Population:

2000 - 1,230,700
Sacramento County is the eighth most populous county in California.

Other Facts:
Average housing price: $129,000 (1995)
Average rent: $527/ month

Location:

The County is bordered by Contra Costa and San Joaquin Counties on the south, Amador and El Dorado Counties on the east, Placer and Sutter Counties on the north, and Yolo and Solano Counties on the west.

A map page with links to many different types of maps for the area.

Climate:

Average Annual Maximum Temperature - 73.6 degrees
Average Annual Minimum Temperature - 49 degrees
Average Rainfall - 19.6 inches

History:

Sacramento County was incorporated in 1850 as one of the original 27 counties of the State of California.

A history page for Sacramento County
Old Sacramento and Sutters Fort

The original residents of California were not the spaniards, mexicans or gold rush miners, they were the Nisenan, a branch of the Maidu tribe of Native Americans. They inhabited the valley for thousands of years before settlements from others occurred. It was in 1808 that Lieutenant Gabriel Moraga and his party of Spanish soldiers came to discover the Sacramento and American Rivers. At the time, the Sacramento River was called Jesus Maria and the Feather River was call the Sacramento. No real settlement took place for quite a few years. In 1827-28, Jedediah Smith and other fur trappers passed through along with more trappers during the 1930's. Early in the 1930's, a major smallpox epidemic spread through the area, killing around 20,000 of the Indians in the valley. Finally in 1839, John Augustus Sutter received a 48,000 acre land grant from then governor, Alvarado. He came from Switzerland in 1834 and went west, making it to Sacramento on 12 August 1839. He didn't come directly, however. He came via New York, St. Louis, Hawaii and Alaska, in that order. While in Hawaii, he became friends with King Kamehameha who gave Sutter eight men to help him reach his destination safely. Sutter originally hoped to create a haven for European emigrants by creating a new community which he named New Helvetia or New Switzerland. He moved inland about one mile from where he landed to build his trading post. Sutter hired James Marshall to build a sawmill on the American River about thirty miles east of the fort. This is the place where gold was discovered by Marshall on 24 January 1848 kicking off the now famous Gold Rush.. In those days, news traveled rather slowly and even when the news reached San Francisco, it warranted only an item on the back page of the newspaper. The real gold fever didn't strike yet. This happened after Sam Brannan, a local merchant, gathered up some nuggets and put them in a bottle. He then rode through San Francisco shouting out the fact that there was gold in "them thar hills." It didn't take long for the fever to attack the entire city and quickly became virtually deserted. The rest of the nation heard of the news when President Polk announced the fact in Congress. With the throngs of people coming west, there was ample opportunity for new business in California and many grew rich through their insight. Sutter, whose name is always remembered in conjunction with the gold rush, did not fare so well. His workers deserted his sawmill and his creditors demanded their money. Sutter's son arrived soon afterward from Switzerland and was able to help his father by dividing up some of the land holdings there and auctioning them off. Sam Brannan, who helped John Sutter, Jr., is credited for the naming of Sacramento. The county, of course, bears the same name. John Sutter, Sr., later left the area after selling his properties and died in 1860 in Washington, D.C.

Though Sutter had his problems, Sacramento and the area did not suffer the same fate. In 1850, California was admitted to the Union and Sacramento was named the state capital in 1854. Along with the building of the capitol building, many of the new millionaires of the gold rush began to build their large mansions here and the city of Sacramento became one of the fastest growing cities in the country.

Geography:
Total area - 990.01 sq. miles
size of unincorporated area: 813.25 sq. miles

Genealogy:

US GenWeb Project page for Sacramento County

Cemeteries of Sacramento County

Genealogical Association of Sacramento

Libraries:

Sacramento Public Library

Sacramento Public Law Library

Schools:

Sacramento County office of Education
9738 Lincoln Village Drive
Sacramento, CA 95827-3399
Phone: (916) 228-2500

Organizations & Groups

Chamber of Commerce links for the county area

Sacramento Convention & Visitors Bureau
1303 J Street
Sacramento, CA 98314
Phone: 916-264-7777
Fax: 916-264-7788
Email

Attractions & Other Information

Try this photo gallery of pictures of the area

Sacramento County landmarks

California State Military Museum
1119 Second Street
Sacramento, California 95814
Telephone: (916) 442-2883
Fax: (916) 442-7532
Preserving California's Military Heritage

Golden State Museum
1020 O Street.
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: 916-653-7524
Visit exhibits, authentic documents, murals, photos, holograms, films and interactive media and much more

Pony Express Monument
Second & J Streets
Old Sacramento
This monument commemorates the short-lived Pony Express which began April 1860 when 80 riders made the 1,966 mile trek on horseback to St. Joseph, Missouri in ten days. The Western Union Transcontinental telegraph was inaugurated in October 1861 effectively putting the Pony Express out of business.

Sacramento African Cultural Center
3519 3^rd Ave.
Sacramento, CA 95817
Learn more about African culture at this interesting center.

Wells Fargo History Museum
Corner of Second and J streets
Old Sacramento, 95814
Phone: 440-4263
Learn about Wells Fargo's history through exhibits, displays, artifacts, photographs and more.

Discovery Museum Science & Space Center
Discovery Museum Challenger Learning Center
3615 Auburn Blvd.
Sacramento, CA 95821
Phone: 575-3941

Fairytale Town
3901 Land Park Drive
Sacramento, CA 95822
Phone: 264-5233
Across from the Sacramento Zoo, come enjoy a magical places where fairytales and nursery rhymes seem to come alive.

Sacramento Zoo
3930 West Land Park Drive
Sacramento, CA 95822
Phone: 264-5888
The zoo is in William Land Park and features over 400 animals including 32 endangered or threatened species.

Sutter's Fort State Historic Park
2701 L Street,
Sacramento, CA 95816
Phone: 445-4422

Roseville Telephone Museum
106 Vernon Street
Roseville, 95678
Group Tours: 786-1621
Fax: 786-7170
View items from the 1890's to the present all about telephone technology

Camellia Symphony Orchestra
P.O. Box 19786
Sacramento, CA 95819
Phone: 929-6655
A nationally acclaimed orchestra performing from October through May

Sacramento Ballet
1631 K Street
Sacramento, CA 95814
Office/Administration: 552-580
Ticket sales: 264-5181
Fax: 552-5815
This dance company brings both classicaland contemporary ballet to the area

ARCO Arena
One Sports Parkway
Sacramento, CA 95834
Box Office Phone: 928-6900
Home of the Sacramento Kings NBA basketball team, the WNBA Sacramento Monarchs and many concerts and special

Big Four Building
113 I Street
Old Sacramento 95814
Phone: 445-7387
The "Big Four" of railroad fame were Leland Stanford, Mark Hopkins, Collis P. Huntington and Charles Crocker. See the Huntington and Hopkins Hardware Store Museum, the Stanford Gallery, the Railroad Museum Library and more at the center.

Effie Yeaw Nature Center
Ancil Hoffman Park
6700 Tarshes Drive
Carmichael, CA 95608
Phone: 489-4918
This nature center has 77 acres. There are interactive exhibits, live animals, trails and many weekend programs for visitors.

Port of Sacramento
2895 Industrial Blvd
West Sacramento, CA 94591
Phone: 371-8000
Fax: 372-4802
A deep water port for nearly all vessels. Tours are available.

Sutter's Fort State Historic Park
2701 L Street
Sacramento, CA 95816
Phone: 445-4422
Phone: 323-7626
The city's first settlement began here in 1839. Visit the many exhibits and reconstructed shops, stores, livings quarters and more.

Return to top

Search Key to the City Custom Search

or Search anywhere on the Web Custom Search

Return to the California Counties page

Return to the California Page

Return to the Key to the City home page

Thanks for visiting Key to the City. We hope you will visit again soon. We'll leave the light on for you!!

This page was last updated on 19 April 2010 at 6:32 pm

This page was created on 4 October 2002