Sacramento County Local News: History


All Local History News articles contributed by our local media allies and other local newsrooms.

Image caption: The California mental health crisis is tied to both homelessness and rising crime.
UPDATE: California’s Mental Health Crisis: How We Got Here

How the California mental health crisis emerged out of the state’s history of deinstitutionalization and laws designed to protect the mentally ill, as well as the communities around them.

Image caption: The 1965 law known as the Williamson Act has been responsible for keeping about half of California's farmland out of the hands of developers.
The Williamson Act: How the Law That Protects California’s Farmland Works

The Williamson Act, passed in 1965, now keeps more than 16 million acres of farmland out of the hands of developers. Here's how the law puts the brakes on the development of California agricultural properties.

Image caption: The Baldwin Hills area in South Los Angeles is one region where a state conservancy would keep open land accessible to the public.
California’s 10 State Conservancies: How They Protect Parks and Open Land

How California’s 10 state conservancies buy up open land and shield it from developers to preserve the natural environment for public use.

Image caption: Translated from the Greek, “Democracy” means “people power.” How much power do the people have in California?
People Power! What Is Democracy, and How Does It Work in California?

Democracy is a 2,500-year-old system of government still looked on today as the best system, because under a democratic system, the people govern themselves. But is that all there is to it? What is democracy? And how does it work …

Image caption: Since the Gold Rush era, land reclamation has cost California 90 percent of its wetlands.
How Land Reclamation Hurts California’s Environment

Since the Gold Rush era, land reclamation projects have helped to build California, but they are also damaging the state’s environment for people, plants and animals by eliminating essential wetlands.

Image caption: How California reclamation districts turned millions of acres of wetlands into fertile agricultural land, starting in the earliest days of the Gold Rush.
Reclamation Districts: Turning ‘Swamps’ Into Farmland

California has used reclamation districts to turn millions of acres of unusable swamps into fertile agricultural land, starting in the earliest days of the Gold Rush. Here’s how it happened.

Image caption: The California Supreme Court has defined the state’s legal and political agenda for more than 170 years.
How the California Supreme Court Blazes Legal Trails

The California Supreme Court has kept the state at the forefront of legal issues surrounding abortion, the death penalty and same-sex marriage, starting in its earliest days in the Gold Rush era.

Image caption: From nitrates to arsenic to “forever chemicals,” California’s water supply faces a serious pollution threat.
Dirty Water: California Faces a Water Contamination Crisis

Almost one million California residents are forced to drink from contaminated water supplies, or pay for bottled water. Economic inequality makes the crisis worse. What is the state doing to fix it?

Image caption: Moss Landing in Monterey Bay is the world’s largest battery storage facility for solar and other renewable energy.
Solar Power and California’s Clean Energy Goals

Solar power, and a network of giant battery storage facilities, are playing an essential role in moving California toward its goal of exclusive reliance on renewable energy sources.

Image caption: California transportation history runs from railroads to today’s car culture.
California’s History of Transportation: From Railroads to Highways

The history of transportation in California has shaped the state, from the railroads to today’s highways, making the need for planning increasingly urgent. Here’s how it all happened, and where we stand today.

Image caption: Over two weekends last October, residents of Santa Cruz and Watsonville  participated in demonstration rides aboard an electric streetcar on rails.
The ‘Rail Trail’ Movement, Explained

Thousands of miles of railroad track, including some in Santa Cruz County, now sit idle. The fate of those largely abandoned tracks has become a burning controversy.

Image caption: California continues to work on legislation that would make voting easier.
Voting Rites

California keeps on taking legislative steps that will keep it ranked in the top 10 of voter-friendly states.

Image caption: Access to abortion in California is limited in many areas, though state laws protect a woman’s right to choose.
Abortion Rights in California, Explained

California has historically been ahead of the rest of the country in expanding the legal right to abortion services. Here’s what state laws say today, and how we got here.

Image caption: Old Sacramento Historic District Sacramento is an open-air museum of historic buildings.
Capital Collections

Sacramento’s rich past can be explored by visiting its many and varied historical museums.

Sacramento News and Review logo From Sacramento News and Review...

02/11/2025
Image for display with article titled Ringing in Lunar New Year in Woodland at the Oldest Chinese Restaurant in the Country

As Lunar New Year celebrations erupt across the valley, there is a small diner on Woodland’s Main Street that survives as a culinary testament to how Chinese immigrants helped build area’s farming heritage.

Carmichael Times logo From Carmichael Times...

02/05/2025
Image for display with article titled Black History Month Discussed

Black History Month is an annually observed month-long celebration of African American life, history, and culture.

Sacramento News and Review logo From Sacramento News and Review...

02/04/2025
Image for display with article titled Sacramento Art Looks to the Future, Honors the Past This Black History Month

Exhibitions and events showcasing scores of local artists will take over Sacramento this February, with diverse shows celebrating Black culture, community, lives and creative contributions this Black History Month.

California Local Pin Marker From The Sacramento Observer...

02/04/2025
A look at 14 places in California where Black businesses and culture thrived.

California Local Pin Marker From Citrus Heights Sentinel...

01/28/2025
Read on to learn about the Citrus Heights Historical Society's new presentation series.

Sacramento News and Review logo From Sacramento News and Review...

01/21/2025
Image for display with article titled Sacramentans March in Remembrance of Martin Luther King Jr.

A beautiful sunrise started the day off right for the large turnout of people who gathered together in support of the 43rd annual March for the Dream event held at Sacramento City College on Monday, Jan. 20.

Folsom Telegraph logo From Folsom Telegraph...

01/16/2025
Image for display with article titled Folsom Approves 7-Year Agreement With Historic Railroad for Train Rides

The Folsom City Council approved a seven-year agreement on January 14 that gives the Placerville & Sacramento Valley Railroad the right to keep running excursion train rides between Folsom and the El Dorado County line. The P&SVRR volunteer group has revived the Folsom stretch of California's first train line.

Folsom Times logo From Folsom Times...

01/07/2025
Image for display with article titled Folsom Prison Museum Suddenly Closes Its Doors

Folsom’s renowned Big House Prison Museum, a longtime destination for history enthusiasts and curious visitors, has abruptly closed its doors. The closure, which occurred this past week, is reportedly due to financial challenges faced by the organization that operates the non-profit facility.

Sacramento News and Review logo From Sacramento News and Review...

12/30/2024
Image for display with article titled SN&R’s Top Ten Stories of the Year

Based on reader feedback, web analytics, SN&R’s storytelling history and the broader community conversation, here are the top ten stories for 2024 that we think are worth a second look if you missed them the first time.

Carmichael Times logo From Carmichael Times...

11/25/2024
Image for display with article titled Ex-Pow Remembers a Century

Memories accumulate for an old-timer turning 100. Some delightful, some frightful.

Folsom Times logo From Folsom Times...

11/24/2024
Image for display with article titled Folsom Powerhouse FFPA Board Seeks Members

The Folsom Powerhouse State Historical Park, nestled on the hillside just southwest of Folsom’s Rainbow Bridge, is a preserved, significant national treasure from 1895, largely unknown to many in our region. Its non-profit cooperating association, Friends of the Folsom Powerhouse, is currently seeking additions to its Board of Directors.

Folsom Times logo From Folsom Times...

11/19/2024
Image for display with article titled Hundreds of Folsom Cordova Students,staff Celebrate Ruby Bridges Walk to School Day

Hundreds of students, families, teachers, and staff from across the Folsom Cordova Unified School District (FCUSD) took part in the nationwide celebration of Ruby Bridges Walk to School Day on November 14. The event, which honors Ruby Bridges' legacy as the first African American child to integrate an all-white school in the South, saw a remarkable expansion this year, with participation growing from just one school in 2023 to ten schools in 2024.

Sacramento News and Review logo From Sacramento News and Review...

11/19/2024
Image for display with article titled Fanny the All-Female Rock Band With Sacramento Roots Everyone Should Hear About

An all-female rock band almost lost to time is experiencing a warming resurgence through the documentary film “Fanny: The Right to Rock” directed by Bobbi Jo Hart.

Sacramento News and Review logo From Sacramento News and Review...

10/23/2024
Image for display with article titled The Last Frontier: An Art Haven in the Sacramento Delta

Artists are probably the most resourceful people when it comes to housing. To avoid high rents, they squat in abandoned buildings, live in warehouses, couch surf, house sit, sublet or sublet a sublet.

Carmichael Times logo From Carmichael Times...

10/14/2024
Image for display with article titled Local Museums Offer Spirited Activities in October

The greater Sacramento area is rich with an amazing array of state-of-the-art museums and historic sites that offer visitors the chance to explore California’s art, history, and science treasures all year long

Sacramento News and Review logo From Sacramento News and Review...

10/11/2024
Image for display with article titled The Rich Cultural History of Sacramento’s Chicano Murals

From the lasting legacy of the Royal Chicano Air Force murals to more recent works honoring powerful women, Chicano murals in Sacramento serve as powerful expressions of cultural identity that celebrate the historical contributions of Chicano and Latino artists and activists.

Sacramento News and Review logo From Sacramento News and Review...

10/08/2024
Image for display with article titled New Mural Honors Sacramento’s Railroad Legacy

Kevin Hecteman, Sacramento Southern Railroad conductor and California State Railroad Museum marketing and communications manager, traded in his conductor cap for a paintbrush on Sunday, Sept. 15 as one of dozens who helped lay down the first brushstrokes for a community mural commemorating the contribution of railroads — and those who built them — to industry and agriculture at the California State Railroad Museum.

Sacramento News and Review logo From Sacramento News and Review...

10/03/2024
Image for display with article titled Native American Graves and Repatriation Survey to Be Conducted at Sac State University in October

Sacramento State recently announced plans to return any Native American artifacts and cultural items found on campus, as part of the Native American Graves and Repatriation Act.

California Local Pin Marker From The Sacramento Bee...

07/19/2024
What's the story on the 10-story pyramid adjacent to the Tower Bridge over the Sacramento River?

Folsom Telegraph logo From Folsom Telegraph...

06/18/2024
Image for display with article titled 'Big Boy,' World's Largest Operating Steam Locomotive, Rolls Through Placer

The Placer-Sierra Railroad Heritage Society meeting on Tuesday, June 25, will feature Paul Greenfield discussing the visit of the “Big Boy” to the Sacramento area.