Sutter's Fort State Historic Park

Originally built by John Sutter, this park was once the only trace of white settlement for hundreds of miles. Stroll within its walls, where furniture, medical equipment and a blacksmith shop are straight out of the 1850s.

Sutter dreamed of creating an "agricultural utopia," which he worked to achieve by enslaving the local Native American population; his efforts would be thwarted, however, when gold was discovered on his land, spurring the gold rush.

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