Oak of the Golden Dream

Transcript

[0:01] We've all heard the saying, there's gold in them, thar hills.

[0:04] But what about these here onions?

[0:05] Let's take a field trip.

[0:12] In the rolling hills of Placerita Canyon, our destination is an unusual piece of SoCal history located on the former Rancho San Francisco, the Oak of the Golden Dream.

[0:36] This quiet path was once the backdrop for a legendary event.

[0:40] On March 9, 1842, when California was still a part of Mexico, Ranchero Francisco Lopez stumbled upon gold while napping under this very tree.

[0:53] As the story goes with his cattle grazing nearby, Lopez dreamed he was floating on butter.

[0:59] When he woke up, he was hungry.

[1:01] So he pulled some wild onions from the ground with his knife and lo and behold on their roots, was gold flakes.

[1:08] Lopez had made California's first ever recorded gold discovery, and it started a sort of mini gold rush here in the canyon, complete with small-scale mining operations.

[1:18] And all this took place six years before the more famous gold discovery up north at Sutter's Mill.

[1:23] So if you ever want to visit the true birthplace of the Golden State.

[1:27] Take a detour through Placerita Canyon, step back in time and see what you can discover.

[1:32] I'm Michael Imlay and thanks for joining me on this Back Story field trip.