Columbia, California

Stepping onto the main street of Columbia is like stepping back into the Gold Rush days. Columbia's historic district, with its many vintage buildings, has not only been preserved, but is alive with the sights and sounds of life in the 1800's.

This photo shows a detail of Columbia's hand-pump fire engine, named Papeete. As the story goes, the engine was originally intended for the king of the Society Islands (Papeete being the capital city of the island Tahiti). It was built in Boston and brought around the Cape to San Francisco, only to be abandoned there and subsequently bought in 1859 by Columbia's volunteer fire department. The elegantly-decorated engine is a reminder not only of the extravangance that the mines' riches brought to the towns of the Gold Country, but also of the vunerability to fire of those same towns. At several times in Columbia's history, the town was devastated by fires. Today, Papeete still demonstrates its ability, shooting a powerful stream of water down Columbia's main street during the town's annual Fireman's Muster.

The town of Columbia is a California State Historic Park, and is located 3 miles north of Sonora off Highway 49. For details visit the park web site.