Editing San Andreas, California (section)

==History==
[[File:2009-0724-CA-SanAndreas-CalaverasCtyCt.jpg|thumb|left|Old Calaveras County Courthouse, built 1867, served in that role for 100 years. Afterwards, it was turned into the Calaveras County Museum, and was listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]] (NRHP).]]
Settled by [[Mexico|Mexican]] [[gold miner]]s in 1848 and named after the [[Catholic]] parish [[St. Andrew]], the town has been a noted mining camp since early days.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Jenner |first=Gail L. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wC89EAAAQBAJ |title=What Lies Beneath: California Pioneer Cemeteries and Graveyards |date=2021-09-15 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |isbn=978-1-4930-4896-0 |pages=179 |language=en}}</ref> It existed as a tent city for the first few years, and even included a tent church.<ref name=":0" /> A few miles outside of town is the [[Pioneer Cemetery (San Andreas, California)|Pioneer Cemetery]], established in c. 1851.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JpM8AAAAIAAJ |title=Guide to the Mother Lode |date=1971 |publisher=Automobile Club of Southern California |pages=24 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=California Historical Landmark #271: Pioneer Cemetery in Calaveras County |url=https://noehill.com/calaveras/cal0271.asp |access-date=2023-01-08 |website=noehill.com}}</ref>

In August 1852, a nugget of gold was found here and was sold to [[Wells Fargo & Co]]. for US$12,000.<ref name=":0" /> The [[gold]] from the initially discovered [[placer mining|placers]] gave out after a few years, but the discovery of gold in an underground river channel in 1853 revitalized the camp and it soon became a town. Mining of the channels was lucrative enough for the town to completely rebuild after fires in 1858 and 1863. The gold discovered here contributed greatly to the success of the [[Union (American Civil War)|Union]] during the [[American Civil War|Civil War]].

In 1866, San Andreas became the [[county seat|seat]] of Calaveras County. It was said to be a rendezvous location for [[Joaquin Murrieta]]. Notorious [[highwayman]] [[Charles Bolles|Black Bart]] was tried here and sent to prison.

The post office was established in 1854.<ref>{{California's Geographic Names|824}}</ref>