Area Information - Grass Valley
Grass Valley is a city in
Nevada County, California USA at latitude 39.219 and longitude
-121.061. The elevation is 2,411 feet. Grass Valley appears on
the U.S. Geological Survey Map. Grass Valley had a population of
10,922 with 5,266 housing units; a land area land area of 4.11
sq. miles; a water area of 0 sq. miles; and a population density
of 2,660.17 people per sq. mile for U.S. Census 2000.
Grass Valley has warm to hot, dry summers, and wet, rainy
winters. Summer is very dry, but a thunderstorm may occur. The
dry season is from May to September. November to mid-April is
the true rainy season. Grass Valley has somewhat of an oceanic
climate, except that summers are warmer and dry enough to give
Grass Valley characteristics of the Mediterranean climate like
much of Northern California. Snow does occur at times and can be
heavy. The winter rains contribute to a heavy fuel-loading of
brush and grass, which dry out during the summer, posing a
wildfire hazard.
It is said that Grass Valley was named by settlers whose cattle
had wandered from their campsite on Greenhorn Creek to a "grassy
valley" nearby where the grazing was better. Miners panning for
gold along Wolf Creek and a major discovery of gold-bearing
quartz in 1850 started a boom. The "grassy valley" was an easy
place to put up buildings. A store opened and the spot became
known as Boston Ravine. For a short time it was called
Centerville; then it became Grass Valley. As the number of
wage-earning miners grew, Grass Valley became a trading center,
and in November 1850 the first town election was held.
In December 1848 President
James K. Polk declared in a State of the Union address that
large quantities of gold had been discovered in California. As
word spread about the gold rush, prospectors flooded the
foothills and the small settlement began looking like a village.
Then in 1850, a settler by the name of George McKnight
discovered gold in the quartz rock along Gold Hill and the real
boom began.
The 1860's and 70's saw things from 'boom' to 'bust'. WYOD,
Pennsylvania, North Star, Empire and Grass Valley mines became
known far and wide and drew miners from Cornwall and Ireland. As
the mines fluctuated in production, miners came and went. Toward
the end of the century the population stabilized and families
expanded and became the norm. The commitment to keep the mines
open and operating generated employment and opportunity, and as
the middle class grew, social clubs, churches and schools
provided increasing stability to the community.
Grass Valley mines produced well during the Depression of the
1930's, but closed temporarily during World War II. Not long
after the war, production costs went off the scale, and almost
one hundred years after it started, it was over. One by one the
great mines closed down leaving behind colorful history, miles
and miles of subterranean tunnels and shafts - and gold.
Mill Street and its intersection with Main Street, the heart of
Grass Valley, still retain much of the historic flavor of the
Gold Rush. The spirit that established commercially successful
quartz mining helps Grass Valley remain the commercial center of
Western Nevada County. The Grass Valley/Nevada County Chamber of
Commerce has worked to attract more visitors to appreciate the
City's colorful history and structures. An active Downtown
Business Association helps maintain a vital business climate.
The City of Grass Valley remains committed to providing an
attractive and quality environment in which to live and work.
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