Forest Hill Divide Historical Society

08/08/2026

This weekend, due to the hot weather, our blacksmith shop will be closed. Not healthy for our guys to be working in that heat.
The museum will be open with air conditioning, Saturday and Sunday, 12-4pm. Admission is free.

07/20/2026

Do you like planning local events and dinners?

The Forest Hill Divide Historical Society is looking for a volunteer Event Coordinator.
We have 2 dinners annually ( June & December) and 2 large events- July 4th and the Heritage Festival.
For the dinners, the coordinator will obtain a speaker for the 2 dinners, procure a caterer for the December holiday dinner, assist with decorating the tables, and make sure plates, silverware & napkins are purchased as needed . We also make coffee and put out pitchers of water and a carafe of lemonade. For the 4th, there are signs to put out and decorations.
For the Heritage Festival, the event coordinator currently contracts with Interactive Entertainment ( group from Georgetown), makes sure they get paid by our treasurer and obtains lunch tickets from the American Legion, coordinates activities with the Chamber of commerce and puts out flyers, etc. We also have a historical walking tour that day that needs to be announced in the park. There is signage to put in the park and hay bales for guests to sit on in the entertainment area that need to be brought in by volunteers obtained by the Chamber of Commerce. So,
basically this is 4 events for the entire year. It’s great assisting in making these events successful, fun and bringing the community in to learn more about our society and museum. Our goal is to share the rich history of our community. The museum season is Memorial Day weekend through the Heritage Festival in September. Our museum hours are Saturdays and Sundays 12-4.
Admission is free.

If this sparks your interest, please contact us at foresthillhistory@ gmail.com and we will get in touch with you.

07/08/2026

This week the Heritage Trail will be in Auburn with two dynamite museums to visit. Swing by the Bernhard Museum and the Benton Welty Schoolroom for all kinds of fun. Details below!

Bernhard Museum 10 AM to 4 PM
291 Auburn Folsom Rd., Auburn

530-889-6500

Dive into family-friendly living history fun! Explore the Bernhard family’s restored 19th century Victorian farmhouse. Learn about daily life from experienced docents, view authentic period wagons, and handle 19th century artifacts. Then, roll up your sleeves and get to work! Build your own replica fruit crate, try washing clothes by hand, or head inside to make your own vintage toys. Don’t forget to try a cup of ice cream.

Benton Welty Schoolroom 10 AM to 4 PM
1225 Lincoln Way, Auburn City Hall

The Benton Welty Historic Classroom is housed in the old Auburn Grammar School, now City Hall. Join us for a rare sense of time-gone-by in this little gem of our past. See how students experienced a typical school day in the days before computers and electronics. Slate boards and chalk will let visitors share the experience. Dip a quill pen in an inkwell and practice your handwriting the old-fashioned way. Auburn Grammar School was built in 1915. Parking is behind the building.

For more details, visit placer.ca.gov/7375/Heritage-Trail

06/24/2026

This Saturday, June 27th, The Heritage Trail is in Auburn! Swing by and visit these four museums which will have free admission and special events.

Western States Trail Museum 10 AM to 4 PM
1103 High St., Suite 300, Auburn

The Western States Trail Museum (WSTM) will serve as a testament to the trail's significance across Native American, Gold Rush, and modern-day eras. Exhibits will include settlers, local pioneers, miners, and immigrants who helped shape the American West. Visitors will be able to explore the history of this iconic trans-Sierra trail between Carson City, Nevada and Sacramento, California from its origins as a lifeline for indigenous communities to its contemporary allure, including renowned sporting events such as the Tevis Cup Ride and Western States Endurance Run. Join us in our new space to get a preview of our plans, and what’s to come! Our entrance is located on the Lewis Street side in the suite next to the Auburn Chamber of Commerce and the California Welcome Center/Placer County Visitor’s Bureau.

DeWitt History Museum 9 AM to 1 PM
2985 Richardson Dr., Auburn

Explore the history of the DeWitt Government Center at this fascinating museum. Learn about the construction and use of the World War II Army Hospital, the site’s use as a State Mental Health Hospital, and it’s current use by Placer County. Visitors will learn how WWII affected the local community and start their very own Victory Garden with a hands-on activity.

Placer Athletic Hall of Fame 10 AM to Noon
275 Orange St., Auburn

The Placer Athletic Hall of Fame Museum is housed in the historic Earl Crabbe Gym on the campus of Placer High School. This Gym was a 1936 WPA project and placed on the National Register of Historical Places in 2017. Many aspects of Placer High School’s long and storied athletic history are show cased. Walk on the gym floor, toss a ball around, view an extensive collection of memorabilia and photos.

Auburn Journal Newspaper Museum 10 AM to 3 PM
1030 High St., Auburn

View vintage newspaper printing presses, tools, and learn how these were used to produce early issues of the Auburn Journal.

For more details, visit placer.ca.gov/7375/Heritage-Trail

06/16/2026

A Huge THANKS to all our members, docents and community who attended our BBQ last night!!!
It was a wonderful turnout with about 50 in attendance.

06/15/2026

Thank you for sharing this info. A past Eagle Scout made a display inside our jail of a prisoner on his bunk. We even have a few rats ( plastic) in there. Someone tried to escape by starting a fire inside and you can see the charred beams on the ceiling.

In 1886, the Board of Supervisors authorized $100 from the general fund to build a jail in Forest Hill. They authorized this jail over a request from Michigan Bluff residents for their own jail. The Forest Hill jail was evidently built soon after its approval, as in 1889, the Board authorized $59 for jail repairs.

While most of these small regional jails scattered around the county held local drunks and hobos, some, like the jail in Foresthill, held murderers until they could be transferred to Auburn. Because of the arduous journey from remote towns, it was common for the sheriff to place one-room jails in these distant localities so the local lawman had somewhere to store captured lawbreakers until the sheriff could come up and retrieve them.

This jail now resides at the Forest Hill Divide museum, but its original location was near the corner of Soap Street and Lowe Street, one block south of downtown.
Forest Hill Divide Historical Society

06/06/2026

Don't forget we are OPEN every weekend through the summer from Noon to 4pm. Come and visit us today. You can also RSVP to the BBQ Potluck at the museum. See our flyer blow:

05/16/2026

Heritage Trail Museums Tour is a Summer-long tour of Placer County Museums. 29 Museums will host special events on their tour day. The tour runs from June 6 to September 6.

05/15/2026

Here’s the link to all of the information on this year’s Placer County Museums Heritage Trail.
It is the schedule for all of the participating museums. Ours will be September 12th this year in conjunction with our Heritage Festival in Foresthill. Plan to discover a new museum this summer!

Heritage Trail Museums Tour is a Summer-long tour of Placer County Museums. 29 Museums will host special events on their tour day. The tour runs from June 6 to September 6.

05/08/2026

Hidden Treasure, in Forest Hill, Featured in this week's placer county newsletter! https://www.placer.ca.gov/8336/Weekly-Newsletter

The Hidden Treasure Mine located on the Foresthill Divide was the most productive drift mine in California. Drift mines tunnel horizontally into the buried gold-bearing gravel of ancient river channels that have been encased underground. It is estimated that between $4 million and $5 million in gold was extracted by this operation from 1875 to 1910, which would be between $870 million and $1.1 billion in 2026.

The town of Sunny South was a company town, founded at the entrance of the mine on the south-facing hillside above El Dorado Canyon. Miners working for wages brought their families to this rugged location, and the town’s population grew to a peak of about 350 people, with nearly 50 families.

In 1896, when the Hidden Treasure tunnel was nearly 2 miles deep, a new tunnel was dug 2 miles above Sunny South. At the new entrance, the town of Bullion was built, and the residents of Sunny South abandoned the old townsite. A hydroelectric power station was installed to provide electricity to the mine at Bullion, which now included an electric locomotive that ran on rails through the main working tunnel.

In June 1910, a cave-in forced the mine to close, and operations never reopened. The town of Bullion was abandoned. A major fire in 1924 destroyed what was left of Sunny South, and very little remains to mark the site of the famous Hidden Treasure Mine.

Photo: Hidden Treasure Mine at Sunny South. Circa 1880. Placer County Museums, Placer County Historical Society collection.

Explore our new interactive timeline — updated every Thursday with photographs, milestones and the stories of people who built this county. Explore timeline

https://engage.placer.ca.gov/175th-anniversary

Also check out this article by Christina Lynn Richter
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1447057000554984&id=100057520926654&mibextid=Nif5oz

Christina's page: https://www.facebook.com/ChristinaLynnRichter?mibextid=ZbWKwL