Ophir, California

Ophir
Unincorporated community
Ophir

Location in California

Coordinates: 38°53′28″N 121°07′25″W / 38.89111°N 121.12361°WCoordinates: 38°53′28″N 121°07′25″W / 38.89111°N 121.12361°W
Country  United States
State  California
County Placer County
Elevation[1] 682 ft (208 m)
Reference no. 463

Ophir (also, Spanish Corral[1] and Ophirville[2]) is an unincorporated community in Placer County, California.[1] Ophir is located 2.5 miles (4.0 km) west of Auburn.[2] It lies at an elevation of 682 feet (208 m).[1]

Ophir, now a suburb of Auburn, it was a boomtown of the California Gold Rush, later a ghost town. In 1852 it was the center of the local gold mining industry, and the most populous town in the county. After the gold rush, the area was planted in vineyards and orchards, and during Prohibition just in orchards. Beginning in the 1970s vineyards again returned to the area. Today, local services for Ophir come from Auburn.

The Ophirville post office was open by 1852 and closed in 1866.[2] The Ophir post office opened in 1872 and closed in 1910.[2] The name comes from Biblical Ophir, the source of King Solomon's treasures.[2]

Originally named The Spanish Corral in 1849,[3] Ophir received its Biblical name in 1850 because of the rich, gold placer mining in the area, and grew to over 500 families by 1853, when a disastrous fire on the 12th of July destroyed the whole town.[4][5] The town was quickly rebuilt. Later Ophir became the center of quartz mining in the county. It is remembered at California Historical Landmark #463. [6]

Ophir addresses have the ZIP code of 95658, a Newcastle address.[7]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Ophir, California
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Durham, David L. (1998). California's Geographic Names: A Gazetteer of Historic and Modern Names of the State. Clovis, Calif.: Word Dancer Press. p. 533. ISBN 1-884995-14-4.
  3. ↑ Gudde, Erwin. 1975. California Gold Camps. University of California Press: Berkeley. pp. 252-253.
  4. ↑ Seacrest, William B. (2005). California Disasters, 1812-1899. Sanger, California: Quill Driver Books. p. 234. ISBN 978-1-884995-49-1.
  5. ↑ "The Ophir Fire: Additional Particulars". Sacramento Daily Union 5 (720). 15 July 1853. p. 1, column 4.
  6. ↑ "Ophir". Office of Historic Preservation, California State Parks. Retrieved 2012-10-11.
  7. ↑ Zip Code Lookup

External links