Amador City (formerly Amadore's Creek or South Amador) is a city in Amador County, California, United States. The population was 200 as of the 2020 census, up from 185 in 2010, making it the least populous city in California. Amador City is also noted for being the smallest city in California by area making up just .3 square miles in total. The current mayor is Sandra Staples.
Only two miles (3.2km) from Sutter Creek on Old Highway 49, Amador City is the state's smallest incorporated city by area. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 0.3 square miles (0.78km2), all of which is land, making it the smallest city in California by size.
Amador City was originally settled in 1849 at what is now Turner Road and Amador Creek (an old wagon road between Drytown and Sutter Creek) by several groups of gold panners who were drawn to the area. One of the groups was the Sunol Group. The Sunol group included José María Amador. José María Amador panned the creek, but his primary success was providing supplies that he brought from his rancheria in the San Ramon area. José María Amador left the group after six months, returning to his rancheria. The rancheria had suffered during his absence, and he needed to care for his ailing wife. José María Amador must have made a significant impression among the other panners. The creek, city and County eventually carried the name "Amador", the city taking its name from the county.[8]
Early in 1851 gold quartz veins were discovered along the same creek but further west. Arrastras were brought to the area to crush the quartz. Shortly stamps mills were brought in to process the hard quartz that the gold veins were embedded in. By September two stamp mills were erected along Amador Creek. These stamp mills were so remarkable that it drew the attention of Eadweard Muybridge. He photographed the area and 3D images taken in 1851 were made of the stamp mills.
Amador City was incorporated as a city on June 2, 1915.
There were 95 households, out of which 29.5% included children under the age of 18, 38.9% were married-couple households, 8.4% were cohabiting couple households, 32.6% had a female householder with no partner present, and 20.0% had a male householder with no partner present. 29.5% of households were one person, and 12.6% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.11. There were 61 families (64.2% of all households).
The age distribution was 15.5% under the age of 18, 6.0% aged 18 to 24, 28.0% aged 25 to 44, 21.5% aged 45 to 64, and 29.0% who were 65years of age or older. The median age was 46.5years. For every 100 females, there were 92.3 males.
There were 119 housing units at an average density of 383.9 unitsper square mile (148.2 units/km2), of which 95 (79.8%) were occupied. Of these, 54.7% were owner-occupied, and 45.3% were occupied by renters.[10][11]
There are currently no schools within Amador City's boundaries. The city is serviced by Amador High School, Ione Junior High and Sutter Creek Elementary.
An abandoned brick building stands next to the Fleehart Store, an example of reflection of historic stonemasonry in the area. Also on Main Street is the old Imperial Hotel, another example of historic Californian brickwork.[13] A bridge replacement project completed in 2014 has beautified and revitalized the center of the city, providing patio dining at the Imperial Hotel, new public restrooms and improved access to the businesses in the area.
Little Amador Railroad — Remnants remain of an incredibly detailed G-Scale model train set in a garden that featured miniature mines and mills and turn-of-the-century full-size mining equipment. It is currently unused.
Amador City Cemetery — located behind the Imperial Hotel. Visitors can take a self-guided tour of the 1.25-acre (5,100m2) cemetery that dates back to the beginning of the town.[14]
Amador Whitney Museum — located in one of the oldest commercial buildings in town, dating back 1860, the museum collects and displays items related to history and culture of the Mother Lode region. The museum is named after Mr. Whitney, an antique dealer, who bequeathed the building to the city of Amador to be used as a museum.[15]
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