Placer County Museums

Just in time for Halloween, here's our second page on what carvings on headstones mean. This time we're focused on fraternal orders.

This fraternal organization ballot box is on of our only artifacts from Deadwood.

If you've ever taken a walk in an old cemetery you've probably noticed some recurring themes. This presentation will help you decode popular victorian era symbols in the Old Auburn Cemetery.

We are so excited to announce the opening of our new online research portal that we made a video to introduce you to it! This is phase one of what we're hoping will be a complete digitization of everything in our Archive. Check out the video below and then go poke around on the new website. If you get there and are at a loss as to how to use it, we made a how to use it video also.

We all know sequins are pretty great, but what did people use before that when they wanted to look flashy? Oh, yeah, beetle wings.

It's finally starting to feel a little like fall! While we all welcome the cooler weather, and the smoke-free skies, it means time is running short to enjoy our self-guided tours before the rains begin. Click on the link below to see all five tours currently available. Then, get out there and see some history this weekend! https://www.placer.ca.gov/6611/Self-Guided-Tours

Even though people look at me like I'm crazy every time I use it, walking with a parasol makes summer strolls so much nicer. Seriously, if we all work together we can bring them back into fashion. Who's with me?!?

Well, it is October which means it's time for spooky stuff. This presentation is chock full of skeletons, forgotten graves, and complaints of livestock grazing in cemeteries. Enjoy!

This week's artifact highlight is about a little know mustache related item. It's worth clicking on for the frank talk about how mustache wax effects hot coffee.

So, while we were putting the DeWitt History Museum together some old recodriogram discs turned up. From the labeling, we knew the head surgeon of the place was on at least one of them. Our hope was that he would be talking about something profound that we could use to help unravel some secret or other of the hospital. I don't want to say we were disappointed in what ended up being on the disks, but it definitely wasn't what we were hoping for. In some ways though, it was even better than we imagined. Check out the video below to find out how The Mystery of the Mystery Discs played out.

These last couple months have been a tough time for all of us. Why not brighten up someone's weekend with flowers. Just make sure you're sending the right message...

Once considered a necessity, or an illegal weapon, the hat pin has a storied history. And this one in our collection is some serious bling.

Please enjoy this look at The History of Chinese in Placer County. It's really good, if we do say so ourselves.

The short film about the Transcontinental Railroad we put together last year is an official selection for The Short Film Awards! If you haven't seen it yet you can check it out on youtube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lhk0pKKyMUg&t=14s