Editing Placerville, California (section)

==Culture==
[[File:Gold-133538.jpg|thumb|[[Gold]] specimen from Placerville]]

Placerville has many old buildings from the Gold Rush days.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://visit-eldorado.com/historic-towns/|title=Gold Rush History &#124; Historic Towns}}</ref>  A walk down Main Street also reveals many historical markers, signifying spots of certain events or persons of importance during this period.  Placerville was also on the line of the [[Pony Express]], a short-lived mail carrier service that connected California to the Midwest and East (basically from Sacramento to [[St. Joseph, Missouri]]).

Historically, Placerville was often referred to by the name "Hangtown," because of the 3 unfortunates that were hung after being caught for cattle rustling by locals. Those traveling in the area can still see the site of the hangman's platform that was used for public hangings<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.usacitiesonline.com/cacountyplacerville.htm|title=Placerville California Profile and Resource Guide. Placerville, California Facts and Information.|website=www.usacitiesonline.com}}</ref> along with a commemorative mannequin ("George") hanging from a noose above the Old Hangman's Tree (now an ice cream parlor).  The dummy enjoyed a brief hiatus when town officials attempted to freshen up the town's image before returning due to popular demand.  In 2015 the dummy was stolen.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.mtdemocrat.com/news/hangman-willie-slips-from-his-noose-again/|title=Hangman missing|date=October 21, 2015}}</ref> It has since been replaced. In April 2021, the city council agreed unanimously to remove the noose from the city's logo.<ref>{{cite web | last=Seidman | first=Lila | title=Gold Rush past, post-George Floyd present: Placerville drops noose on city logo after months of debate | website=Los Angeles Times | date=April 13, 2021 | url=https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2021-04-13/placerville-debates-dropping-noose-from-city-logo | access-date=April 14, 2021}}</ref>

Placerville is home to the legendary dish known as the "[[Hangtown fry]]" which includes eggs, bacon, and oysters.<ref name="noble">{{cite web| last = Noble | first = Doug | title = The Hangtown Fry  | publisher = City of Placerville, CA   | url = https://www.cityofplacerville.org/history-of-the-hangtown-fry-and-recipes    | access-date = July 15, 2018 }}</ref> There are multiple legends regarding the origin, but all stories agree that Placerville is the place of origin.

The [[Southern Pacific Transportation Company]] branch line was purchased from the Union Pacific in 1996 for $14 million (~${{Format price|{{Inflation|index=US-GDP|value=14000000|start_year=1996}}}} in {{Inflation/year|US-GDP}}) by the Joint Powers Authority consisting of Sacramento County, Folsom, and El Dorado County. The line is being converted to a hiking and biking trail, with over 12 miles of the rail line now paved as a Class 1 biking route.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://eldoradotrail.com/trail-map/ |title=El Dorado Trail Map |access-date=May 21, 2022}}</ref>

Placerville is the home of [[United Ancient Order of Druids#United States|United Ancient Order of Druids of California]] Grove No. 1, which was established in 1860 as the first Druid hall in  California. It was reinstated in 2017–18, along with several other historical fraternal societies.  Main Street Placerville features a large stone column holding a glass and metal "torch" known as "The Druid Monument", commemorating the Order's inception there 1860.<ref>{{Cite web | url=http://californiadruids.org/pages/history.html |title = Druids of California}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web | url=https://www.edcgov.us/landing/Living/Stories/pages/druid_monument_in_placerville.aspx |title = Druid Monument in Placerville}}</ref>  The City of Placerville is currently attempting to repave the roundabout containing the monument, possibly removing it permanently in the process—a proposal that has divided the community.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Lakey|first=Pat|date=December 15, 2017|title=Roundabout opponents now take aim at Clay Street Bridge project|url=https://www.mtdemocrat.com/news/roundabout-opponents-now-take-aim-at-clay-street-bridge-project/|website=Placerville Mountain Democrat}}</ref>