Tuesday, October 10, 2006

Views from the Sacramento Capital Building

From: "Dick Morris" rmorris@alaska.net

On the CPRR Museum's Sacramento City Views exhibit are links to three photographs (97710419_NR, 97712007_, and 97713423_A) which are identified on the photographs as having been take from the capital building. Another (97710116_) appears to have been taken from the capital, but isn't identified as such. Do you know what date the photos were taken or have any other information on them?

My gg grandfather lived and my great grandfather was born in a house in Sacramento on the block bordered by L and M and 12th and 13th streets. (My gg grandfather was a blacksmith with the CPRR when he died in 1868.) In about 1870 the property was sold and was incorporated into the park around the capital. ...

Dick Morris
Anchorage, Alaska

6 Comments:

Blogger CPRR Discussion Group said...

From: "Chris Graves" caliron@cwnet.com

Mr. Morris may be interested to find that street addresses in Sacramento City from 1849 thru 1879 were changed in 1880 to accomodate local mail delivery.

For example, 131 "M" St. in 1879 became 1303 "M" St. in 1880 ("M" Street is now Capitol Avenue). If Mr. Morris has the OLD Street address (prior to 1880) it is not too difficult to translate it into the new address system, therefore he would be able to pinpoint the location of his grand-fathers home.

10/10/2006 10:50 PM  
Blogger CPRR Discussion Group said...

From: "Dick Morris" rmorris@alaska.net
Subject: Charles Crocker, Storekeeper

I thought I'd share a few snippets of information that I found in my gg grandfather, Nelson W. Chisholm's, diary. My mother transcribed the diary many years ago and I've made a partial index of the people he mentioned.

Between his arrival in December, 1850, and May of 1852, the last date I have indexed, he mentions "Mr. Crocker" or "Mr. Crocker's" 19 times. All mentions of Crocker were between December, 1850 and August, 1851. Although there was at least one other Crocker in Sacramento around this time, the context suggests that this was Charles Crocker. Most of the entries said that he went to Mr. Crocker's, went to Mr. Crocker's in the evening, or went to Mr. Crocker's to pass the time. For a single blacksmith in his mid-20s, visits to the store, walks around downtown Sacramento, and frequent attendance at services at several churches were ways to wile away the extra time. In addition to the general entries, he also mentions taking a stove for Crocker and setting it up in December, 1850; getting paper, getting his saddle, buying boots, and getting a piece of an old tent cover for his (Nelson's) bed, and going to Mr. Crocker's and selling shirts. In June, 1851, Nelson said he went over to Mr. Crocker's and had quite a sociable talk with him. In July, 1851, he went to Mr. Crocker's house to ascertain the name of someone who had died the previous fall, but Crocker wasn't home. In August, 1851, he mentions having "quite a talk" with Crocker.

I have a note that says the last mention of Mr. Crocker was when Nelson visited him at the Ousley's Bar mining camp near Marysville in July, 1852.

Unfortunately, the diary ends around 1857 (I don't have it in front of me for the exact date), so the information above is the only part even indirectly related to the CPRR.

Dick Morris
Anchorage, Alaska

10/11/2006 12:50 AM  
Blogger CPRR Discussion Group said...

Begin forwarded message:

From: "Kevin Bunker" mikadobear45@yahoo.com

I understand these were taken in or around January - February 1869 as the capitol was nearing completion. These were among a number of compass-point views of the city below taken from the roof parapet and the dome's cupola, a few of which served the 20th century capitol restoration team exceedingly well to gain a better understanding of how the building and its decorative rooftop sculptures looked (and how they were secured) on their plinths around the roof perimeter.

—Kevin

10/11/2006 8:35 AM  
Blogger CPRR Discussion Group said...

From: kylewyatt@aol.com

Thomas Houseworth 1213 Sacramento City from the new Capitol Building, Looking Northwest, ca 1867
There is a whole series of photos taken around the capitol at this time, Houseworth 1208 - 1215.

J J Reilly 122 Birdseye View of Sacramento from the top of the State Capitol, ca 1877

Eadweard Muybridge 1503 Sacramento - from the State Capitol, ca 1872

unknown photographer - from the State Capitol - ca 1880s

—Kyle Wyatt

10/11/2006 9:39 PM  
Blogger CPRR Discussion Group said...

From: "Glenn Willumson" Gwillumson@arts.ufl.edu

The only one I recognize is 97710419. it is the earliest. Made when the capitol rotunda was still under construction (there are several others by Hart and Houseworth). You could date it securely with construction dates of the building, but I am guessing that it will be about 1866.

—Glenn Willumson

10/11/2006 9:42 PM  
Blogger CPRR Discussion Group said...

From: "Dick Morris" rmorris@alaska.net

Thanks .... The answers led me to some additional photos taken from the capital building.

—Dick Morris, Anchorage, Alaska

10/21/2006 3:15 PM  

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