Sacramento is the capital of the American state of California.
It ekes out its obscure existence alongside the greats of San
Francisco and Los Angeles, as this travel guide shows.
Located in the southern part of the Sacramento Valley at the
confluence of the American River and the Sacramento River, many
tourists on their way from the Bay Area to the Sierra Nevada
know Sacramento almost only by driving past.
But
Sacramento is a shame and offers more than just the seat of
government of ex-governor Arnie Schwarzenegger. It has been the
capital of the well-known state since 1854.
Numerous
green areas and parks invite you to linger and stroll,
historical buildings and squares offer information from past
centuries, huge shopping malls satisfy the desire to buy.
By plane
Sacramento International Airport offers connections to
and from numerous states in the USA (including Hawaii) and Mexico. It is
about 15 km northwest of downtown. Yolobus Route 42 offers an
inexpensive bus transfer.
By train
The Amtrak station is
located at 401 I Street. For timetable information see.
By bus
The Greyhound Bus Station is at 715 L Street. For timetable information
see.
In the street
Sacramento is located at the intersection
of Interstate 5 and Interstate 80, as well as Highways 50 and 99.
San Francisco 87 miles
South Lake Tahoe 105 miles
Reno 135
miles
Los Angeles 384 miles
Yosemite National Park 167 miles
Bridges
Tower Bridge (railway lift bridge). Sacramento's Tower
Bridge is definitely worth a visit to the city. It is a beautiful
architectural building and overlooks the Sacramento River.
Museums
California State Railroad Museum. A Dorado for railway fans
or those who want to become one. Located on the edge of 'Old
Sacramento', it is open daily from 10am to 5pm except Thanksgiving,
Christmas and New Years Day.
Old Sacramento State Historic Park. Old
Town Sacramento. Located west of the US Capitol between Interstate 5 and
the Sacramento River, Old Sac offers a glimpse into 19th-century
America.
Sutter's Fort. Sutter's Fort, located between K and L
Streets and 26th and 28th Streets, was built by Johann August Sutter in
1839. The two-story adobe-style main building was completed between 1841
and 1843 and is the only original building in this rebuilt and renovated
complex. The State Historic Park is open daily from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm
except Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years Day. For visits from Monday
to Saturday it is advisable to have enough quarters ready for the
parking meters. Parking is free on Sundays
Parks
Sacramento is a green city. In addition to numerous green areas and
parks, many streets in the inner city area are lined with trees, so that
one occasionally has the impression of driving through avenues.
As is almost usual in the USA, the green areas and parks are mostly very
clean and well-kept.
State Capitol Park Downtown, behind the
Capitol between L and N Streets.
William Land Park, between Freeport
Blvd. and Interstate 5 Sutterville Road exit. There is also the
Sacramento Zoo (small but nice).
There are also extensive green
spaces along the American River.
Sacramento Jazz Jubilee. Sacramento Jazz Jubilee is the largest and most important Jazz Festival in the United States. It takes place every year on the weekend of the Memorial Day.
Shop 'till you drop is also the motto in Sacramento. In addition to
the obligatory huge shopping malls, the small shops in the Capitol area
are also worth a visit.
Arden Fair Mall, 1689 Arden Way off I-80
Arden Way exit.
Downtown Plaza Shopping Center at 547 L Street
between Old Sacramento and Capitol.
Roseville Galleria. Approximately
23 miles northeast of downtown Sacramento, easily accessible off I-80
(Exit Eureka Rd).
Fry's Electronics, 4100 Northgate Blvd., I-80 exit
Northgate Blvd. computers and electronics.
Best Western Expo Inn, 1413 Howe Avenue. Tel.: +1 916 922-9833, +1
800 643-4422 (gebührenfrei), Fax: +1 916 922-3384.
Best Western John
Jay Inn, 15 Massie Ct. Tel.: +1 916 689-4425, Fax: +1 916 689-8045.
Best Western Sandman Motel, 236 Jibboom Street. Tel.: +1 916 443-6515,
Fax: +1 916 443-8346.
Best Western Sutter House, 1100 H Street.
Tel.: +1 916 441-1314, Fax: +1 916 441-5961.
Courtyard Sacramento
Airport Natomas, 2101 River Plaza Drive. Tel.: +1 916 922-1120, Fax: +1
916 922-1872.
Courtyard Sacramento Cal Expo, 1781 Tribute Road.
Tel.: +1 916 929-7900, Fax: +1 916 920-9319.
Courtyard Sacramento
Midtown, 4422 Y Street. Tel.: +1 916 455-6800, +1 800 321-2211
(Toll-free), Fax: +1 916 669-1031.
Fairfield Inn & Suites Sacramento
Airport Natomas, 2730 El Centro Road. Tel.: +1 916 923-7472, Fax: +1 916
923-7482.
Fairfield Inn Sacramento Cal Expo, 1780 Tribute Road.
Tel.: +1 916 920-5300, Fax: +1 916 920-9319.
Hawthorne Suites, 321
Bercut Drive. Tel.: +1 916 441-1200, Fax: +1 916 319-7093.
Holiday
Inn, 5321 Date Ave. Tel.: +1 916 338-5800.
Holiday Inn, 300 J
Street. Tel.: +1 916 446-0100.
Holiday Inn Express, 728 Sixteenth
Street. Tel.: +1 916 444-4436.
Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites,
2981 Advantage Way. Tel.: +1 916 928-9400.
Motel 6 Sacamento South,
7407 Elsie Avenue. Tel.: +1 916 689-6555, Fax: +1 916 689-6495.
Motel 6 Sacramento Central, 7850 College Town Drive. Tel.: +1 916
383-8110, Fax: +1 916 386-0971.
Motel 6 Sacramento Downtown, 1415
30th Street. Tel.: +1 916 457-0777, Fax: +1 916 454-9814.
Motel 6
Sacramento North, 5110 Interstate Avenue. Tel.: +1 916 331-8100, Fax: +1
916 339-2241.
Motel 6 Sacramento Southwest, 7780 Stockton Boulevard.
Tel.: +1 916 689-9141, Fax: +1 916 689-7340.
Motel 6 Sacramento-Old
Sacramento North, 227 Jibboom Street. Tel.: +1 916 441-0733, Fax: +1 916
446-5941.
Residence Inn Sacramento Airport Natomas, 2410 West El
Camino Avenue. Tel.: +1 916 649-1300, Fax: +1 916 649-1395.
Residence Inn Sacramento Cal Expo, 1530 Howe Avenue. Tel.: +1 916
920-9111, +1 800 218-7214 (gebührenfrei), Fax: +1 916 921-5664.
SpringHill Suites Sacramento Airport Natomas, 2555 Venture Oaks Way.
Tel.: +1 916 925-2280, Fax: +1 916 925-2290.
Suites Sacramento Cal
Expo, 1786 Tribute Road. Tel.: +1 916 920-5400, Fax: +1 916 920-5411.
From 1839 the area was part of Neu-Helvetien, a private colony
founded by Swiss immigrant Johann August Sutter with permission from the
Mexican administration. At the mouth of the American River in the
Sacramento River, he laid out Fort Sutter, from which the city emerged.
After the Mexican-American War of 1846-48, all of California became
American. In 1848, Sutter's colony collapsed under the pressure of the
California Gold Rush. As a result of the gold rush, the settlement of
Sacramento arose as a gold rush settlement at the confluence of the
American River and the Sacramento River. At that time prospectors came
here by ship and then searched on foot.
Sacramento was declared a
city in 1850 and the capital of the state of California in 1854. After
the first railroad opened in 1856, Sacramento grew into a center of
commerce and quickly became known as Boomtown on the River. Visible from
afar, the State Capitol was built between 1861 and 1869, and the
construction of a canal in 1963 made navigation much easier. In 1964,
the suburb of North Sacramento was incorporated. Sacramento is known for
the textile and food industries.
Five Sacramento locations have
National Historic Landmark status, including the Pony Express Terminal
and the Old Sacramento Historic District. The city has 65 structures and
sites listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) as of
October 31, 2018.
As of the 2000 census, there were 407,018 people, 154,581 households,
and 91,202 families residing in the county. The population density was
1617.4 people per km². In 2000 there were 163,957 housing units with a
density of 651 per km². The demographics of the county were 48.3% white,
15.5% African American, 1.03% American Indian, 16.3% Asian, 0.09%
Pacific Islander, 11.0% other races, and 6.04% of two or more races.
21.06% of the population was of Hispanic or Latino origin of any race.
According to the Census Bureau in 2000 the median household income
in the town was $37,049, and the median family income was $42,051. Men
had a median income of $35,946 compared to $31,318 for women. The per
capita income for the town was $18,721. About 15.3% of the population
were below the poverty line.
The 2010 United States Census
reported that Sacramento had a population of 466,488. The population
density was 1799.2 inhabitants/km². Sacramento's racial distribution was
210,006 (45.0%), White, 80,005 (16.6%), African American, 85,503
(17.8%), Asian (Chinese 4.2%, Hmong 3.3%, 2 .8% Filipinos, 1.6% Indians,
Vietnamese 1.4%, 1.2% Laos, Japan 1.2%, 0.3% Pakistanis, 0.3% Koreans,
Thais 0.3%, 0, 2% Cambodian), 6,655 (1.4%), Pacific Islander (0.6% Fiji,
Tonga 0.2%, 0.2% Samoa), 5,291 (1.1%) Native American , 57,573 (12.3%)
from other races, and 33,125 (7.1%) from two or more races. Hispanic or
Latino of any race was 125,276 people (26.9%), 22.6% of the population
of Sacramento is Mexican, 0.7% from Puerto Rico, 0.5% Salvadoran, 0.2%
in Guatemala and Nicaragua 0.2% [34] non-Hispanic whites were 34.5%. of
the population in 2010, compared to 71.4% in 1970.
The Census
reported that 458,174 people (98.2% of the population) lived in
households, 4,268 (0.9%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters,
and 4,046 (0.9%) were institutionalized. Furthermore, with the recent
real estate crisis there have been no changes in these numbers.
In 2010 there were 174,624 houses of which 57,870 (33.1%) had children
living in them, 65,556 (37.5%) were heterosexual married couples living
together, 27,640 (15.8%) had a female head of household with no husband
present, 10,534 (6.0%) had a male head of household, with no wife
present. There were 13,234 (7.6%) heterosexual unmarried couples, and
2,498 (1.4%) homosexual marriages. 53,342 households (30.5%) were
composed of individuals and 14,926 (8.5%) had someone living over the
age of 65. The average number of occupants per home was 2.62. There were
103,730 families (59.4% of households), the average family size was
3.37.
For every 100 women there are 94.9 men. For every 100 women
age 18 and over, there were 92.2 men.
Sacramento is located at coordinates 38°34′N 121°29′W. According to the Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 257 km² (99.2 mi²), of which 251.6 km² (97.1 mi²) is land and 5.4 km² (2.1 mi²) (2.1 %) is water.
Sacramento has a climate characterized by cold, wet winters with
frequent fog, and mild, dry summers. The rainy season is generally from
October to April, although there may be eleven or twelve days of rain
and light in June or September. The average annual temperature is
11.2°C, with monthly averages ranging from 2.7°C in December to 19.1°C
in July. The summer heat is usually moderated by the sea breeze known as
the "delta breeze," which comes across the Sacramento-San Joaquin River
Delta from San Francisco Bay.
Snowfall is exceptionally rare in
Sacramento (at an elevation of only 7.6 m above sea level). The all-time
record snowfall was 14 cm and occurred on January 4, 1888. During
especially cold winters there is occasionally a large amount of hail,
which can create dangerous driving conditions. Significant snow
accumulations each year occur in the foothills located 65 kilometers (40
miles) east of the city.
On average, there are 74 days that
exceed a maximum of 27 °C, and 15 days that exceed 33 °C. On the other
hand, freezing nights occur several times a year. At Sacramento
International Airport, extremes have ranged from -8°C on December 22,
1990 to 46.1°C on June 15, 1961.
The average annual precipitation
is 470 mm. On average, precipitation falls on 60 days a year in
Sacramento, and almost all of this falls during the winter months.
Average January rainfall is 93 mm, and measurable rainfall is rare
during the summer months. In February 1992, Sacramento had 30
consecutive days of rain, resulting in an accumulation of 193 mm for the
period. A record 214 mm of rain fell on April 20, 1880. On rare
occasions, monsoon moisture arising from the desert southwest can bring
upper level humidity to the Sacramento region, leading to increased
summer cloudiness, humidity, and even light rain and thunderstorms.
Monsoon clouds usually occur in late July to early September.
Main highways
The Sacramento metropolitan region is served by I-5,
I-80, Business 80 (Capital City Freeway), U.S. Route 50 (El Dorado
Freeway), State Route 99, State Route 160 (Downtown Sacramento) and
State Route 65. It is also served by the Amtrak train.
Some
Sacramento neighborhoods, such as Downtown Sacramento and Midtown
Sacramento, have as many bike lanes as does the rest of the region. As a
result of the litigation, Sacramento has had to make the city accessible
to people with disabilities.
The Sacramento City Unified School District operates public schools.
Sacramento State University is part of California State University
and has more than 200,000 students
The confusion that many Americans have between Sacramento and the populous Californian city of San Francisco has frequently been parodied in literature, film and series. An example of this is episode 22 of season 7 of the series Two and a Half Men (titled «"This is not going to end well"»), in which Charlie (Charlie Sheen) argues with his nephew Jake (Angus Jones) about which is the correct capital of the state of California, since the latter was convinced that it was San Francisco. In fact, in 1862 the capital of California was temporarily moved to San Francisco, due to strong floods that affected Sacramento.