Between a Rock and a Quaint Place

Although gold may still lie hidden in the hills of this Mother Lode town, this city today has treasures that are easier to find.

Last summer, the town became home to the California State Mining and Mineral Museum, where a fortune in precious metals and gems is on display. Previously, the state’s collection of rare and beautiful minerals had been on exhibit in San Francisco.

This relaxed, rural town of 2,750 also has a cache of historical riches, including a museum that depicts California’s Gold Rush era.

Another gem is the Mariposa County Courthouse, which has been the seat of local justice since 1854. Oil lamps still hang in the upstairs courtroom. A wood-burning stove still wards off chills.

Located at the southern end of California 49, Mariposa is a year-round gateway to Yosemite National Park. From Los Angeles, drive north on Interstate 5 and California 99 to Fresno and exit north on California 41 to Oakhurst, where California 49 begins.

At the south end of Mariposa, look for the county fairgrounds that is the site of the Mining and Mineral Museum. Hundreds of minerals in their natural forms are on view, including gold, the official state mineral.

You’ll see samples of the state gemstone, benitoite, and the state rock, serpentine. Among unexpected minerals found in California are diamonds from Butte County and jade from Monterey County. The use of minerals in commercial products also is shown, such as limestone, an ingredient in toothpaste.

Drilling, blasting, timbering and other labors in underground mining can be seen during a walk through a recreated 150-foot-long tunnel. Also there’s a turn-of-the-century assay office.

Some mineral specimens are for sale, including a $150,000 gold formation that resembles a work of art.

The museum shop has less expensive minerals and gemstones from around the world, such as $5 samples of white okenite from India that feel like fuzzy rocks.

The California State Mining and Mineral Museum is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. except Mondays and Tuesdays. (Closing time Sundays is 4 p.m.) The museum will be open daily from May 1.

Admission is $3.50. Cost for seniors, students and children is $2.50. Children under 5 years are free. Call (209) 742-7625 for more information.

Campers will find sites with RV hookups at the fairgrounds for $10 per night. No reservations needed.

Continue driving on California 49, which merges with California 140/Charles Street and is the major thoroughfare through town. Turn left on 12th Street to the Mariposa Museum and History Center adjoining the local library.

Just inside is the 1850s Gagliardo Store that was moved--lock, stock and barrel--from nearby Hornitos to the museum.

Mementos from Mariposa’s past are displayed in a miner’s cabin, a one-room school house, a sheriff’s office, a drugstore, a newspaper print shop and other old-time settings. Excerpts from letters that disclose life in the Forty-Niner era are posted around the museum.

The museum is open weekends only in winter from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. From April through October, hours are daily from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Admission is free. For more information, call (209) 966-2924.

Return on 12th Street across California 49/140 to Bullion Street and go right two blocks to California’s oldest courthouse, which has been in continuous use for 136 years.

Inside the handsome, two-story, white-frame building are artifacts that were found during a recent renovation. A map shows that Mariposa County covered one-sixth of the state prior to 1850.

The courtroom upstairs still contains some of its original furnishings. Pads have been placed on the hardwood chairs to make today’s jurors more comfortable. Visitors are welcome weekdays during business hours; there are guided tours on weekends in summer.

Visit the Mariposa County Chamber of Commerce for a map to other historic sites and a list of lodgings and restaurants. The office is near the north junction of California 49 and 140 and opens daily at 9 a.m. Call (209) 966-2456 for information.

If you decide to linger overnight, there are two dozen bed and breakfast inns to choose from. Among them is the Meadow Creek Ranch that first opened its doors as a stagecoach stop in 1858. Rates for two, including breakfast, are $60. Or bed down for $85 in a former chicken coop that has been converted to a comfortable cottage. Call (209) 966-3843 for reservations.

Most of Mariposa’s B&Bs; are outside of town, but at 5038 Bullion St. you’ll find the historic Schlageter House. Its Victorian charm, complete with a canopied bed and full breakfast, costs $55 per couple. Call (209) 966-2471.

Among several motels is the new Yosemite Gold Rush Inn at the southern junction of California 49 and 140. Room rates begin at $45, including a continental breakfast. Call (209) 966-4344. Other lodgings to try are Yosemite Way Station, Mariposa Lodge and Miners Inn Resort.

Miners Inn also features a popular restaurant with steaks and seafood. Best known for fine dining is the Charles Street Dinner House, open from 5 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. Other restaurants include China Station and the Red Fox.

Return to Los Angeles by driving California 140 west to Merced to join California 99 and Interstate 5 south.

Round trip from Los Angeles to Mariposa is 590 miles.