Old Sacramento in Sacramento County, California — The American West (Pacific Coastal)
Battling the Elements
Photographed By Joseph Alvarado, May 24, 2023
1. Battling the Elements Marker
Inscription.
Battling the Elements. . Floods, fires, and disease tested Sacramento’s resolve to survive. Floods were nearly an annual event and sometimes occurred several times in a winter season. City residents responded by building increasingly larger levees. Meanwhile, two fires in the 1850s almost burned the City to the ground. After one fire, citizens quickly rebuilt the City, constructing 700 buildings in only 30 days. The City then greatly reduced its vulnerability to fire by including a waterworks plant inside its first City Hall, which was the first municipal water system in the state. The City Council set codes that banned the construction of substantially wooden buildings. Disease also exacted a heavy toll on Sacramento, with a cholera epidemic sweeping the region in 1850 and claiming 600 lives.
Floods, fires, and disease tested Sacramento’s resolve to survive. Floods were nearly an annual event and sometimes occurred several times in a winter season. City residents responded by building increasingly larger levees. Meanwhile, two fires in the 1850s almost burned the City to the ground. After one fire, citizens quickly rebuilt the City, constructing 700 buildings in only 30 days. The City then greatly reduced its vulnerability to fire by including a waterworks plant inside its first City Hall, which was the first municipal water system in the state. The City Council set codes that banned the construction of substantially wooden buildings. Disease also exacted a heavy toll on Sacramento, with a cholera epidemic sweeping the region in 1850 and claiming 600 lives.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Disasters • Settlements & Settlers. A significant historical year for this entry is 1850.
Location. 38° 34.911′ N, 121° 30.233′ W. Marker is in Sacramento, California, in Sacramento County. It is in Old Sacramento. Marker can be reached from the intersection of K Street and Interstate 5, on the right when traveling east. The metal marker is along the pedestrian walk where K Street extends under the freeway overpass towards downtown. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Sacramento CA 95814, United States of America. Touch for directions.
More about this marker. The marker is part of the Historical Timeline of Sacramento. Inset Images:
Fire, ca. 1850 – from the California State Library Collection
City Water Works Building, Front and I Streets, ca. 1855 – from the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency Collection
Related marker. Click here for another marker that is related to this marker. Historical Timeline of Sacramento
Photographed By Joseph Alvarado, May 24, 2023
2. Battling the Elements Marker
Right of center.
Photographed By Joseph Alvarado, May 24, 2023
3. Marker Within the Timeline
Credits. This page was last revised on August 2, 2023. It was originally submitted on August 2, 2023, by Joseph Alvarado of Livermore, California. This page has been viewed 54 times since then and 18 times this year. Photos:1, 2, 3. submitted on August 2, 2023, by Joseph Alvarado of Livermore, California.
