Placerville is a charming gold rush town in California, named after the placer gold deposits discovered in riverbeds and hills in the late 1840s. The city of Placerville is centrally located between Sacramento, the state capital, and South Lake Tahoe, a world-famous vacation destination. Located above the fog and below the snow line, Placerville has an ideal climate with four distinctive seasons. Placerville can be reached via state highways 49 and 50, one of the most well-traveled routes in California. Placerville’s valuable heritage is reflected in the historic nineteenth-century architecture of its downtown area. Additionally, Placerville is the county seat and a center of financial, commercial, civic, and governmental activity.

Serving as a “hub” for many surrounding destinations and activities, Placerville is well located. Premiere wineries, Apple Hill Farms, historic Coloma, the American River and El Dorado National Forest are all just minutes from downtown. The future of Placerville’s business economy will continue to be strengthened and infused by these established and emerging areas of opportunity surrounding this node. Within this node, local merchants, property owners, and government officials are working to strengthen Placerville’s economic vitality. These groups collaborate on business improvements and redevelopment projects to preserve, enhance, and improve the quality of life for everyone in the community. The location, climate, rich heritage and high level of commitment and pride have allowed Placerville to emerge as a “destination” in El Dorado County.

Placerville’s history began with the California Gold Rush in the 1840s. The highly publicized discovery of gold in a stretch of waterway near Sutter’s Mill in Coloma (just 10 miles from Placerville) in 1848 led to the migration of thousands of fortune seekers to Northern California in the late 1800s. The town of Placerville was named for the placer deposits found in the riverbed between Spanish Ravine and the town square. During the gold rush, Placerville became an important supply center for the surrounding mines.

Placerville was also known as the “Execution City” in its early days. Although there are many stories about how this name was obtained, the most famous story is related to an event that took place in January 1849. A gambler named Lopez gained a lot of attention with his winnings at a local saloon.