Editing Placerville, California (section)

== History ==
A former [[Maidu]] settlement called '''Indak''' was located at the site of the town.<ref name=gnis>{{gnis|1744726}}</ref>

After the discovery of gold at Sutter's Mill in nearby [[Coloma, California]], by [[James W. Marshall]] in 1848 sparked the [[California Gold Rush]], the small town now known as Placerville was known as Dry Diggin's after the manner in which the miners moved cartloads of dry soil to run water to separate the gold from the soil.<ref name="CGN">{{California's Geographic Names|539}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite web|last=Svoboda|first=Dylan|date=June 5, 2021|title=The NorCal town proud of its lynching history, until it wasn't|url=https://www.sfgate.com/travel/article/Northern-California-Hangtown-Placerville-history-16219364.php|access-date=June 8, 2021|website=SFGATE|language=en-US}}</ref>

Later in 1849, the town earned its most common historical name, '''Hangtown''', because of the numerous hangings that had occurred there.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.visit-eldorado.com/visitorsguide/stillfindinggold.html | title=El Dorado County Visitor's Guide | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080513024836/http://www.visit-eldorado.com/visitorsguide/stillfindinggold.html | archive-date=May 13, 2008 | url-status=dead}}</ref> However, there is debate on exactly how many lynchings occurred in the town.<ref name=":0" /> The town had no police force (in 1849) and five immigrants attempted robbery of a Mexican gambler.<ref name=":0" /> Of the five immigrants, two Frenchmen and one Chilean were known wanted men, and they were not given any trial, instead they were hanged on an oak tree on Main Street by a mob.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web|date=April 15, 2021|title=NorCal City Once Known as 'Hangtown' Votes to Remove Noose From Its Logo|url=https://sfist.com/2021/04/15/norcal-city-once-known-as-hangtown-votes-to-remove-noose-from-its-logo/|access-date=June 8, 2021|website=SFist - San Francisco News, Restaurants, Events, & Sports|language=en|archive-date=June 8, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210608172453/https://sfist.com/2021/04/15/norcal-city-once-known-as-hangtown-votes-to-remove-noose-from-its-logo/|url-status=dead}}</ref> The name "Hangtown" stuck after that event.<ref name=":0" />

By about 1850, the temperance league and a few local churches had begun to request that a more friendly name be bestowed upon the town. The name was not changed until 1854 when the City of Placerville was [[municipal corporation|incorporated]], taking the name from the local [[placer deposit|placer gold deposits]]. At its incorporation, Placerville was the third largest town in California. In 1857, the county seat was then moved from Coloma to Placerville, where it remains today. The town's first post office opened in 1850.<ref name="CGN" /> In 1871, the [[Placerville Union Cemetery]] was founded by a group of fraternal organizations, and it holds the graves of many of the city founders.<ref name=":02">{{Cite web |date=February 3, 2020 |title=Headstones at Placerville Union Cemetery are deteriorating. Who is to blame? |url=https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/headstones-at-placerville-union-cemetery-are-deteriorating/103-158d7abe-5677-4341-a295-b665e96aace7 |access-date=October 14, 2022 |website=ABC10.com |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite book |last=Bottjer |first=Linda J. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kAN3CQAAQBAJ |title=Gold Rush Ghosts of Placerville, Coloma & Georgetown |date=June 17, 2014 |publisher=Arcadia Publishing |isbn=978-1-62584-994-6 |pages=83–84 |language=en}}</ref>

Placerville was a central hub for the Mother Lode region's mining operations.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.visit-eldorado.com/placerville.html |title=El Dorado County Visitors Authority |access-date=May 1, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070426100307/http://www.visit-eldorado.com/placerville.html |archive-date=April 26, 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The town had many services, including transportation (of people and goods), lodging, banking, and had a market and general store.  The history of hard-rock mining is evidenced by an open and accessible Gold Bug Park & Mine, now a museum with tours and books.<ref>[http://www.goldbugpark.org/ Hangtown's Gold Bug Park & Mine].</ref>

The [[Sacramento and Placerville Railroad]], (later part of the [[Southern Pacific Railroad]]) had a [[branch line]] that extended from Folsom to Placerville.  The track was abandoned in the 1980s and is now used by [[heritage railroad]]s. The [[Camino, Placerville and Lake Tahoe Railroad]] (now abandoned) also operated an {{convert|8|mi|km|adj=on|spell=on|abbr=off|sp=us}} shortline that operated between [[Camino, California]], and Placerville until June 17, 1986. The track right-of-way is now a 37-mile hiking and biking path that connects the city of [[Folsom, California]] to the town of [[Camino, California|Camino]] with plans to extend the trail across the entire El Dorado county and eventually to Lake Tahoe.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://eldoradotrail.com/faqs/ |title=El Dorado Trail |access-date=May 21, 2022}}</ref>

Placerville is now registered as [[California Historical Landmark]] #701.<ref name=CHL>{{cite ohp|701|Placerville|2012-10-07}}</ref>

Placerville's logo featured a hangman's noose, in reference to the town's history as "Hangtown", until 2021, when the town council voted to remove it.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite news|last=Hauser|first=Christine|date=April 15, 2021|title=A Gold Rush Town Removes a Noose From Its Logo|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/15/us/placerville-logo-hangtown.html|access-date=June 8, 2021|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> An earlier proposal to redesign the logo had been rejected in 2020.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://edition.cnn.com/2021/04/14/us/hangtown-remove-noose-logo-trnd/index.html|title=City known as Hangtown votes to remove noose from its logo|publisher=CNN|last=Trent|first=Rachel|date=April 14, 2021|accessdate=April 14, 2021}}</ref>