Virginiatown is California Historical Landmark #400.[3] The town was the site of one of California's first railroads, built in 1852 to carry gold ore from the mines to Auburn Ravine.[4] After the first wave of gold mining ended, wood-cutting became an important local industry, to support railroad construction and to fuel the kiln at the pottery mill in nearby Lincoln. A large number of Chinese miners moved into the area around this time and reworked the diggings;[5] the white residents voted to expel the Chinese from town in 1860, claiming a "fire hazard", and the Chinese resettled just west of town.[6] A Chinese temple stood outside Virginiatown as late as 1907,[7] and two rammed-earth Chinese houses were still standing as of 1957.[8]
The site of Virginiatown is now occupied by rural homes and small farms.
^ abDurham, David L. (1998). California's Geographic Names: A Gazetteer of Historic and Modern Names of the State. Clovis, Calif.: Word Dancer Press. p. 572. ISBN1-884995-14-4.
^"Virginatown". Office of Historic Preservation, California State Parks. Retrieved October 11, 2012.
