Soon after the discovery of gold in the Sierra Nevada foothills, it was discovered that the small valleys and foothills of the Mother Lode could be planted to grains, fruits, and wine grapes. Within a few years a number of vineyards were planted and small wineries erected, and as the mining activities prospered so did the winegrowers. In 1858, of the almost 6000 acres planted to grapes in California, the El Dorado Viticultural District (containing the counties in “Gold Country”) accounted for 383 vineyard acres. By 1868, the District had climbed to almost 6300 acres of grapevines, where it remained until Prohibition hit, and the acreage grew to the ten thousands. In 1889, California wine writer Frona Eunice Wait famously predicted that “on the whole, it may be safely assumed that these foothills and foothill valleys of the Sierra Nevada Mountains … will produce wines of exquisite aroma and bouquet.” — From E. PENINOU / G. UNZELMAN, HISTORY OF EL DORADO VITICULTURAL DISTRICT, 2004. Online.
Colfax, Placer Co.
A spectacular, historic view of the extensive vineyards prominent in the Sierra Nevada ‘Gold Country’ foothills in the 19th century. Vintage postcard images of these early Sierra Foothills vineyards / wineries are exceedingly rare. This old browned, real-photo postcard is truly an exciting card produced c1910 by photographer W. E. Banbrock (1864–1939). Celebrated for his landscape photo work, he opened his studio in 1897 and produced many valuable early local postcard views.
Colfax, at an altitude of 2300′ and site of the large connecting depot of the Southern Pacific Railroad mainline and outlet for large volumes of freight and passengers headed to mining towns, was of valuable importance to the miners, vineyardists, and wineries in the area. Many mining towns and their neighboring wineries shipped their product by narrow gauge railway to Colfax where it could be transferred to the S. P. mainline. In 1906 one mile south of Colfax, Placer County Winery with a storage capacity of 500,000 gals and the largest winery in the area, built a pipeline to the R.R. tracks to fill tankers with bulk wine.
This gorgeous 1909 vintage postcard of the important Sierra foothills wine center was printed and hand-colored in Germany for the Gillen Hotel in Colfax. The historic hotel (left center, red roof), built near the railroad depot in 1903 by former S. P. conductor Daniel Gillen, advertised all of the modern conveniences with an ‘excellent table,’ served the town folks, railroad employees, and stop-over travelers to the gold mine towns.
Vineyard House, Coloma, El Dorado Co.
Of the counties traversed by the Mother Lode, El Dorado had by far the largest number of wineries and the greatest acreage in vineyards. Robert Chalmers, who had come to Coloma shortly after the discovery of gold, bought a hotel and planted a hillside vineyard. By the 1860s he had enlarged his vineyard, inherited two wine cellars from his business friend, and married the widow. In 1876 Chalmers took first prize at the State Fair for grape brandy, white wine, sweet wine, port, sherry, and his famous Catawba Wine Bitters. In 1878 this grand home, surrounded by vineyards, was built for Chalmers and his wife, who remained active in the El Dorado winegrowing industry into the 1880s. Their residence became the popular Sierra Nevada Hotel, now part of the Marshall Gold Discovery State Park, and still serves the area (even though ghost stories rattle around the grounds, it is said).
D’Agostini Winery, Plymouth, Amador Co.
Built in 1856 of locally quarried stone by Adam Uhlinger about 8 miles north of Plymouth, this is one of the oldest wineries in the State, and now marked Calif State Historical Landmark 762. In 1911 Enrico D’Agostini bought the winery and its 125 acre-vineyard. It was still in the family at the time of this c1960s or ‘70s color postcard. Since 1989 the Sobon Family, who had founded their nearby Shenandoah Vineyards in 1977, have taken over stewardship of this historical treasure and converted the winery into a winemaking museum.
Fiddletown, Amador Co.
Behold this c1920s beautiful, historic photo postcard of a well-tended old vine, head-trained vineyard sprawling over the Sierra Foothills “Near Fiddletown.” The town and its vineyards, although there were never many, date from the 1850s. The excellent 2008 Arcadia-published history Shenandoah Valley and Amador Wine Country has a fine chapter on Fiddletown, once known as Oleta from 1878–1932. This postcard image appears on p.56. The authors dated the vineyard c1920s and noted the county’s earliest vines were head-pruned and dry farmed, but could not conclude its ownership. The Kodak stamp box on the card indicates a later printing for the earlier image. It is always exciting to find one more postcard record of one of these pioneer vineyards, even an unidentified one.
Previtali’s Vineyard, near Jackson, Amador Co.
The county seat of Amador Co, Jackson was an important turn-of-the-century grape growing area and one of the most famous gold mining towns in the Mother Lode. In early 1900 just north of Jackson, Batiste Previtali built a stone family home and established his ranch and 200-acre vineyard. With trusty mule and plow, his three sons maintained the vineyard through the 1920s. Previtali Rd remains today. One early postcard cherished in the collection identifies a rolling expanse of grapevines as Previtali’s Vineyard; this very similar very rare panoramic vineyard scene is captioned “Grape Raising on the Foothills of Jackson.” But it is surely Previtali, and a great card recording early winegrowing in the Gold Country.
Lavezzo Wine Shop, Volcano, Amador Co.
The town of Volcano, near Jackson, was located in one of the best producing Mother Lode counties. Among the most picturesque towns in the Gold Country, Volcano is also a city of many California “firsts” — the first amateur theater company, circulating library, private school. During its peak years between 1849 and 1857 the business district consisted of 11 stores, 17 hotels, 3 bakeries, 2 saloons, a library, a theater and Lavezzo’s Wine Shop, built 1850. Today the area is also recognized for its dozens of vineyards and wineries.
Yosemite Junction Winery, Tuolomne Co.
The “Old Winery at Yosemite Junction” blanketed with overgrown grapevines shown on this c1930s real-photo postcard surely has vinous stories to tell. The little community of Yosemite Junction is located at the important transportation junction of State Rtes 108 and 120, about six miles south of Sonora, “Queen of the Southern Mines.” Rte 120 continues east to travel through Yosemite National Park. Alas, though not surprising, this once very likely popular small winery remains a “ghost winery” to us. Yet, think how fortunate we are to have this browned, extremely rare postcard to remember its contribution to California wine.
UPDATE: Old Winery At Yosemite Junction, Tuolomne Co, c1930s
The long-lost “ghost winery” in our August 2023 Postcard Story about wineries in Gold Country has been found. Recent correspondence (Feb 2024) with the very helpful, knowledgeable historians at the Tuolomne Co. Historical Society in Sonora unearthed the story, with an old map and an old-timer’s recollection. :: In the southern Sierra Nevada foothills, State Rtes 108, 120, and 49 converge at Yosemite Junction about 6 mi south of Sonora and some 3 miles northwest of Chinese Camp. The Junction was known in the old trail days as the Goodwin Ranch, settled in 1854 by James A. Goodwin (1825/30–1907), a Lincolnshire Englishman, who began to make wine in the 1870s at his Mountain Pass Vineyard. He was also shipping grapes (Purple Damascus and White Muscat of Alexandria) to San Francisco, some 35 boxes every two days. An old-timer described the Goodwin Ranch “as one of the most beautiful and best-improved places in the county, with orchards, vegetable gardens, vineyards, and grain … fruit of all kinds, a winery filled with well-ripened wines that vied with any in the state.” By 1880 Goodwin reported 55 acres improved, 6 acres in vineyard, 20,000 lbs of grapes, while his stone & adobe winery held 3000 gallons of wine. Today, “only a road house stands in a corner, and the deserted place is known as Yosemite Junction — the relic we see in our c1930s postcard treasure.
