Category: History

In 1850, Elk Grove was just a one building stage stop on the dusty Upper Stockton Road joining Sacramento to Stockton. That all changed eighteen years later in 1868 when the train came through town and the town moved 1 mile east to where the railroad was built. Now the farmers and ranchers had a quicker way to get their produce to market, businesses could receive goods, and residents could travel to their destinations often within an hour. This beat the horse drawn buckboard and wagons that they were using that took hours and days to arrive at their destinations. In 1910 two more rail lines came to the area; On the western side of town, the Western Pacific line ran through Franklin and Galt and on the east side…

Surrounded by pastures, nestled just outside the small northern California town of Galt, sits the Richard A McGee Correctional Training Center. Today, the facility houses the Basic Correctional Officer Academy and other staff training. Since 1983, thousands of correctional officer cadets have made their way through the academy. But originally, the school trained priests. Correctional Training Center early years According to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Sacramento, “St. Pius X Minor Seminary relocated (from Humboldt County) to Galt in 1961, housing 200 students a year … until its closure in 1977.” St. Joseph Parish in Elk Grove credits Father Patrick Gilligan with securing the land to construct the seminary. “(He) was also responsible for a sizable donation of land given as a gift to the Diocese for the purpose of…

It may not be part of Elk Grove proper, but the River Delta community has long been connected to us. Over the years, how many of you have perused the museums and taken friends and dates to “Al the Wops” in Locke. Many have attended the Pear Faire in Courtland or the Crawdad Festival in Isleton. Some of us have danced in the speakeasy downstairs or ate upstairs at the Ryde Hotel? Who has windsurfed near Rio Vista and fished the many rivers and islands of the sloughs. Who can forget those Sunday drives along the river to all those quaint shops, museums, and cafes in each town. We are connected. In the early history of our region, towns along the Sacramento River promoted commerce and trade up and down…

Elk Grove has been around since 1850 and there has been a lot of structures that have come and gone over those years. Fortunately, many still remain. They may have been remodeled, totally rebuilt, but they still exist in some form or another. Some are residences and some are businesses and some have switched to the other? Our goal is to find those buildings and tell each's history. We will search records and files and talk to residents to get a picture of the story of the building. There may be a lot of history available or very little, but at least we can build on it. Many stories won't be complete, but we have to start getting the information down before the ones who know are gone. There is…

Written by Elizabeth Pinkerton Call it Main Street, call it Old Town, or call it our treasury of history. Whatever name you give it, this special place is the heart of our great city of Elk Grove. In that east west stretch of road from Elk Grove-Florin Road to Waterman, we find our roots, and it is there that the foundation of our city was created and developed. Almost everything that we do today in Elk Grove can trace its origins to the area around those railroad tracks that mark the center of our Old Town. Not only did many of our businesses get started on that long ago Main Street, but so did our fire department, our water service, and our Chamber of Commerce. In addition, we have two…

This long time community event was created by a group of parents from Elk Grove Elementary in 1957. Principal Raymond Case and Mother's Club President Sue Morse-Mikles decided to develop a fundraiser. They picked a western theme: working together for our children, our school, our home, and our community. The event is always held on the first weekend in May and was sixty years old in 2017. The founders put together a great group of volunteers and have continued the tradition to this day. It has changed a bit over the years, but is still going strong. The parade kicks most things off starting Saturday morning and ends in the park where there are two days of venders, booths, games, food, different types of entertainment, and of course, Johnston's carnival. Founding group people photo…

In the late 60's a gregarious Greek man Perry Portiris built three restaurants on three of the four corners of Highway 99 and Mack Road. They became hang-outs for many Elk Grove citizens and contain many memories. Only one is still in business. Here is an article from the Sacramento Bee that was published in December of 2019 that explains some of the history..... After more than half a century of serving hamburgers, omelets and much more around the clock, Original Perry’s diner will close for good Sunday (14th) at 3 p.m., owner and general manager Paul Fraga confirmed Wednesday (11th) morning. Truckadero/Original Mr. Perry's - 1968 Perry Potiris opened his first restaurant, then called The Truckadero (Original Mr. Perry's), in a partnership with ARCO (truck station next door) at 7895 Stockton…

Wilton history goes back to 1908 when the Central California Traction Railroad line choose to build a station on the property of a rancher named Seth Wilton located at Wilton Road and Green Road. A small settlement grew up around the Wilton Station and became the community of Wilton. Wilton remains a rural agricultural community with a population of 5,363 (2010 census). The two main roads are Wilton and Dillard. The main business community is small and consists of the Wilton Store, Connor's Sand & Gravel, US post Office, Sheriff's Station and Volunteers, Wilton Garage, and Steve's First Class Second Hand Store. Down the road in the Dillard area is the Dillard Store, The Wilton Fire Station #81, The Dillard School and the Wilton Bible Church and Christian School make…