Downieville is the county seat of Sierra County, but despite its status as the most important town in the area, it has a small population of just over three hundred. The town marks the convergence of the Yuba and Downie Rivers, flowing rapidly through their steep-walled canyons, and the blue-green water is whipped into froth where they merge.

Originally called Little Rich Bar, the town was founded in 1848 by Philo Haven, Haven's cousin Carlos, Francis Anderson, Warren Goodall, and Thomas Angus. In November 1849, a transplanted Scotsman, Major William Downie, established a settlement at the confluence of the two rivers, known as "The Forks." Upon arrival, legend has it that one of Downie's party caught a huge trout, and after cooking it for the night's dinner, they found gold nuggets in the bottom of the pot.

William Downie put down roots and the town and river were named for him. By 1851, Downieville had a population in excess of 5000. It was not unusual for a miner to realize $100 to $200 in gold dust daily.

Highway 49 becomes main street Downieville as the one-lane Downie River Bridge into town approaches. The road is so quiet that you seldom have to wait to cross the bridge, however. The streets are so skinny that residents must park their cars fully onto the sidewalks to allow traffic to pass. The lanes are irregular, with unexpected jogs and surprising bumps. The sidewalks, a mosaic of wood, concrete, and flagstone, are cracked and lifted in spots like tectonic plates. The homes frequently have wrought iron fences with knobs on the fence posts that are shiny from the rubbing of many hands.

There is not a truly flat spot anywhere in town. The main drag is a tree-lined crooked thread with a handful of restaurants, gold jewelry shops, a couple of saloons, a grocery store, a pizza parlor, and a couple of hotels/motels, several of which cantilever precariously over the rivers. The Downieville Museum, a grandma's attic of historical oddities, is nearby. Actually, everything is nearby.

A few hundred yards away, across another bridge over the Yuba River, the county courthouse stands in a medium-sized building that also houses virtually all of the county offices. At the end of the minuscule parking lot stands a hangman's gallows -- a reminder of a shameful incident in California history.

It occurred on the Fourth of July 1851, following a raucous celebration featuring a parade, drunken revelry by thousands, and a speech by a future California governor. Later that day, a staggering sop by the name of Jack Cannon made advances on a twenty-three year old Mexican woman named Juanita (called Josepha in some accounts). Juanita has been variously described as dance-hall girl, prostitute, and innocent young flower. Whatever her background, Juanita rejected the brutish Cannon and he attempted to break down her door to get at her. Fearfully, it is believed, Juanita attacked Cannon with a knife, plunging it deeply into his chest. Cannon died instantly.

Juanita was immediately arrested for the murder of the popular Cannon. A trial was hastily convened in the town's main plaza. Cannon's still warm body was laid before the crowd as evidence. A young lawyer was appointed to defend Juanita, but soon after beginning his remarks, he was physically driven from the "courtroom" with yells and blows. As a last ditch effort, a local doctor pleaded for mercy as he claimed Juanita was pregnant. She was examined and found not to be pregnant and the doctor was run out of town on a rail. The jury deliberated for a few moments, convicted Juanita and sentenced her to hang. She was taken to the mid-span of the Jersey Bridge. According to legend, as she was being prepared for execution, Juanita tossed her hat to one of the three thousand spectators and, in Spanish, whispered a good-bye. She took the rope in her own hands, placed it over her neck and gently rearranged her long black hair over the instrument of death. A handkerchief was placed over her eyes, and she was marched onto a six-inch wide timber suspended over the river. A pistol was fired; the lashings holding the plank were slashed with an ax, and Juanita fell about four feet to her death. She was the only woman ever hanged in California. Today's courthouse gallows remains as symbol of this and other hangings in the region.

A few miles from Downieville along the Golden Chain are the remnants of a once-thriving mining camp called Goodyears Bar. Named for brothers Miles and Andrew Goodyear in 1849, the camp had a Gold Rush population of several hundred. As with most settlement, buildings arrived soon after the settlers. A post office, Wells Fargo station, saloons, restaurants, bakeries, breweries, and schools were all part of Goodyears Bar. A considerable Chinatown also developed.

Today Goodyears Bar remains mostly a memory.

Among the best of these remembrances is the city ordinance passed early in its history - the "Notice to Dogs" resolution. It reads:

Notice to Dogs

All dogs within the limits of Goodyears Bar will please take notice, that by the laws of said town, you are required to call immediately to the marshall's office and obtain a tag. On and after four days all dogs found within said limits without a tag will be impounded at their own expense, and after imprisonment for three days will be shot until they are dead.

No records indicate whether the dogs took notice, nor does it mention how in the world the dogs would pay for their own impound "at their own expense."