In Folsom, California—about 40 minutes east of Sacramento—the American River flows with sun glinting on its surface, and beneath its depths, gold glints, too. Upstream is the stretch of river where the Gold Rush began, with prospectors flooding west beginning in 1849 after the discovery of gold the year before. Although the story of hopeful families migrating to California in search of gold isn’t a new one, particularly in Folsom where cutesy 1850s-era storefronts line the streets of the historic district, what’s often left out of the Gold Rush conversation is the small piece of land between Folsom Lake and Lake Natoma that holds a hidden piece of Black history often not found in textbooks.
A camp built by Black miners
In its name, Black Miners Bar (known as Negro Bar during the 19th century), a sandbar at the Folsom Lake State Recreation Area, preserves the memory of a settlement of Black miners who came to California at the very beginnings of the Gold Rush and found wealth in the American River, working in the area until roughly 1856. It was one of the earliest established gold mining camps by Black miners and eventually grew to become one of the largest. From sun up to sun down, these men shoveled riverbed soil into troughs called “long toms,” easing gold out by washing the earth past screens and bars to catch the heavier nuggets.
Many who worked at Black Miners Bar lived at a town site roughly three miles north called Negro Hill. Whereas Black Miners Bar mainly consisted of canvas tents and temporary structures, this settlement was much more substantial, with homes, stores, boarding houses, dancing halls, saloons, and even a 5,000-seat amphitheater. By 1853, the community grew to a population of 1,200 and included miners from China, Spain, Mexico, and Portugal, making it at one point one of the most culturally and ethnically diverse towns in California.
Susan D. Anderson, history curator and program manager at the California African American Museum, says,“The whole world was represented in the gold fields, including African Americans who came from the East Coast like other Americans to make their living, and strike it rich if they could.” At Black Miners Bar, many did: The Daily Placer Times reported in 1850, that “gentlemen just from these diggings inform us that one to two ounces [of gold] to each man is the average per day.” For perspective, from 1843 to 1861, the price of gold was $20.67 per ounce, the equivalent of about $910 today.
For many of these men, the gold wasn’t about wealth. Some were brought to California by southern enslavers who, according to Sylvia Alden Roberts, author of Mining for Freedom: Black History Meets the California Gold Rush, “intended to work them in the gold fields as they had worked them in the cotton fields.” The chance to find gold gave these men the opportunity to purchase their own freedom from enslavers. Delilah Beasley, author of The Negro Trailblazers of California (1941), wrote, “The allurement of gold was for the white men. The privilege of working in the mines that they might earn their freedom was to the colored men more precious than gold.”
The entrance sign at Black Miners Bar reflects an ongoing effort to recognize the site’s history as a Gold Rush settlement established by Black miners; circa 1849, the mining site then known as “Negro Bar” where Black prospectors worked the American River during the earliest days of the California Gold Rush.
Photo by Chris Allan/Shutterstock (L); Courtesy of UCLA Library Digital Collections (R)
What remains today
Around 1856, Black Miners Bar was largely abandoned due in part to both gold depletion and cloudy water from hydraulic mining at other sites on the river. By the 1860s, Negro Hill was also abandoned, but instead of becoming a mining ghost town similar to those frequented by curious travelers in Nevada and Arizona, what remains of Negro Hill now resides beneath Folsom Lake. In 1954, the construction of the Folsom Dam flooded the settlement, but sometimes in a severe drought year, waters recede enough to view the indentations in the ground that show where structures once stood. The cemetery at the settlement was moved to dry ground in El Dorado Hills, and visitors can pay their respects to stones that now read “Unknown – moved from Negro Hill Cemetery by U.S. government 1954.”
In recent years, there has been discussion about how best to share this legacy with travelers interested in the area’s Gold Rush history. Petitions to rename Negro Bar to Black Miners Bar began in 2018, and Anderson collaborated with the State Parks Commission and the public to debate a new name for the area. While some were offended by the name Negro Bar, others believed it helped visitors understand the site’s cultural heritage. Anderson suggested Black Miners Bar, and in 2022, the parks commission unanimously voted to temporarily adopt the name change. It has not yet been made permanent.
Today, where such fraught life-changing work happened, placid recreation takes place. Black Miners Bar is especially scenic, these days filled with paddleboarders, sunbathers, kayakers, and picnicking families. Year-round, visitors bike the 32 miles of trails that wind near the sandbar and beyond, and spend lazy afternoons fishing from the shore. Currently, only one interpretive sign shares the story of the Black miners, but hopefully soon, more visitors will know the history beneath the surface.
Things to do nearby
Wander Historic Sutter Street where you can visit the Folsom History Museum for a deeper dive into the city’s Gold Rush history, and snag the chance to pan for gold at the Square, an outdoor museum and maker space. Visitors can also watch a working blacksmith forge different tools and pieces of art, and sign up for an introductory blacksmithing class. If you’re traveling with little ones, visit the Folsom City Zoo Sanctuary, where all of the animals are rescued. Younger rail enthusiasts will also love the Folsom Valley Railway, a 10-minute ride on 12-inch narrow gauge tracks with a steam engine that puffs clouds of smoke. It’s said to be the only one of this size still operating in the United States.
Today, visitors come to Folsom Lake for waterfront dining and summer recreation, often unaware they are near the remains of a once-thriving Black Gold Rush community.
Photo by Andri Tambunan/Visit California
Where to eat
The Sutter Street Steakhouse offers happy hour drinks and prime, hand-cut steaks with soy wasabi sauce or a nice Béarnaise. Another option is Crawdads on the Lake, a Cajun restaurant where you can order a bucket of boiled crawfish with Jack Daniels–laced iced tea. For dessert, head to family-run Snooks Candies for chocolate truffles and toffee.
Where to stay
Lake Natoma Inn: This hotel in the heart of historic Folsom perches on Lake Natoma. Expect rooms with fireplaces and seasonal, outdoor fireplaces. From $150/night.
Larkspur Landing Extended Stay Suites Folsom: An all-suite, family-friendly option with fully equipped kitchens and spacious living rooms. From $110/night.
