el dorado county museum

It's Sunday afternoon and we are the only visitors. The museum is a Hodge-podge of historical memorabilia, photographs, machines, etc. They even have a Shay locomotive, something very rare we are told. The Docent, Jim, is wonderful, he has the right personality for the job: enthusiastic historian and loving people. From memories of his childhood days in California, to poems of Black Bart, the bandit, to discussions of past and present people and events, he does it all, and with a great sense of humor, too! He gives us a detailed tour where we stop at every step and listen to him, and talk, and exchange stories. Once the indoor tour is over, he directs us to the outside, where a great number of old rusty machines and tools are sleeping. Two Stamp Mills supervise the premises while the famous Shay locomotive is locked in his own barn. We have great time. Highly recommended for history enthusiasts. Suggested donation is $2

I love popping in for the historical exhibits and getting info from the docents, Seems that everytime I go I find something I missed.

Good place to start a visit to El Dorado County and Old Hangtown (Placerville). Lots of stuff to see and talk about. It is the history of the area in artifacts.

Not a huge museum but chock-full of displays and dioramas plus lots of items (Gold Rush-, agriculture- or railroad-related) outdoors. Docents are extremely knowledgeable plus there's a research library. Anyone interested in Gold Rush and early Northern California history should definitely visit. They ask for a donation but since it's optional I checked "no fee required," although I hope visitors contribute to this great little museum.

The displays here are well done. We have also been here with a group from across the U.S. who were interested in history. They said it was one of the best museums they'd seen in their travels across the country.It gives you a good feel for the history of the Gold Rush era. There are well-done dioramas inside and large equipment outside, so there's lots to see. If you're interested in geneology, they have loads of information in the back and docents to help with the search. I've found information that's not on Ancestry.com such as mining records with the signatures of my Welsh great grandfather and his brother. If you want to do research, just call first to make sure someone would be there to help you. The research is just done on certain days.

Very interesting museum. They will help you do a genealogy search on Tuesdays. The docents have interesting and funny facts to share about the gold rush days. They ask a $2.00 donation but you'll want to give more since the presentation and attention to detail is way above average

They have done a good job to recreate history! The railway is exceptionally well done!

Located near the entrance to THE ELDORADO COUNTY FAIRGROUNDS in Placerville, CA., this quaint museum caters to all ages and interests. Indian artifacts, train memorabilia and Gold Rush era are well displayed and the attending docents are well versed in all the displays.

Very small museum, but large on information . Museum workers are more than happy to answer any questions . Since it was not busy, we got a private tour!

O guia que nos mostrou o museu era muito simpático e realmente nos deu uma aula de história sobre tudo o que havia no museu. Perguntou como haviamos chegado até o museu (mostrei um guia de viagem), e nos indicou um restaurante para almoçarmos. O atendimento foi tão bom que nem vimos a hora passar. Todos que atendiam no museu eram super simpáticos e queiram saber coisas sobre o Brasil. Não é cobrada nenhuma taxa para entrar no museu, apenas contribuições. Perto da porta de entrada há diversas revistas antigas que podem ser pegas.