A few places are more uniquely beautiful than the western slope of the central Sierra Nevada. The town of Latrobe, located near the mountains of Shield Springs, is located in the center of these hills in the southwestern part of El Dorado district. Gentle slopes, exits and springs add a certain flavor that continues to attract people from nearby cities. It is possible that the Indians of Nisenana or South Maidu appreciated the diverse magnificence of the valley when they occupied this region in aboriginal times.
Indians homeland stretched to the river Bear and south of the south or to the middle of the forks of the river Kosunnes. The Nisananov tribe consisted of a primary, permanent village, surrounded by several secondary villages and seasonal camps. Villages covered family dwellings, gastric grenades, earthen mortars, a dance house, and a pot-house with 15-500 people living there at one time. Ordinary villages were located along hills, ridges or streams with a southern exposure. Here, beggarly land acrons as the main food, and also caught fish with their own hands or spears. Salt was obtained from sources and with the use of fires and traps, they hunted deer, rabbits and other small creatures. Ants, grasshoppers, lizards and frogs were also eaten. Manzanita berries were used to make cider, like a drink. Nisenan was destroyed by the malaria epidemic in 1833, and the miners also seized their land.
Latrobe owes its roots to Placerville and Sacramento Valley Railroad, which created the station for the great benefits of the neighboring Amador district.
The region’s history is also linked to the 1850 Gold Rush, the agricultural and economic development of Eldorado County, and the trade between Clarksville and Latrobe. In 1849, a year after gold was discovered in California, thousands of reliable gold seekers arrived at the excavations. Many of them passed through the area to settle in Latrobe.
The railway station was located at the intersection of Latrobe Road and South Blue Road, in what became the city of Latrobe with Blue Springs as its eastern terminus.
The railway was completed in 1884. The city was named after a civil engineer who played an important role in the construction of the first railway in America.
JH Miller, the owner of the locomotive and the owner of the hotel, opened the first store in Latrobe in 1863. The population grows to 700-800, the number of stores increases to six or seven. Latrobe supported four hotels, three blacksmith shops and a single wagon and wagon factory. Latrobe also offered a bakery and several meat shops.
There were only three doctors, along with two pharmacies, to take care of the medical needs of the entire community. The building of the secondary school, which still stands within the Latroush school, is a two-storied building in which all public meetings are held.
Each Freemasonry and strange fellows had their own halls.
By 1864, the rails were laid in the new city of Latrobe, when it included the first trains. From then until June 1865, when the line reached Shingle Springs, it was an important route for big business, which flowed through Placerville Road into Virginia City. After about 23 years, the railway spread to Placerville.
Families living along the railroad saw some immediate benefits. However, the purchase of railways made many other residents angry because they arranged this area, but were forced to give up some of their land for the railway.
In 1866, hotels were located in the bar of Latrobe and Michigan, where lunches and overnight stays were organized for train passengers and locals.
For a long time, Latrobe supervised all of the Amador County trading activities. The city has become the center of many travelers, providing eight daily phases in connection with trains. However, since it was not a mountain town, but the construction of the railway continued to the east, the business suffered. The state of prosperity in 1883 ceased when the population was reduced to about 80 people with one general store, one hotel, a telegraph office, two blacksmith shops and a lone car and a carriage shop.
In 1981, the county of El Dorado adopted the plan for the Latrout zone, which covers the western side of the Logtown ridge to the Kosuns river, which reflects such sights as the picturesque Sugar Loaf mountain and the Indian stream.
Today, enterprises no longer exist, and the city consists mainly of multi-unit rural residential sites, such as Shadow Hawk and Sun Ridge Meadow. Another unit is currently being built next to Miller’s hilly school.
In addition, Oddfellows Hall is still standing, and what has become one of the most highly-rated schools in California today is Latrobe Elementary School.
