The history of Sacramento began in 1808, when a group of Spanish soldiers under the command of Gabriel Morago crossed the American and Sacramento Rivers and claimed the land for Spain. It wasn't until 1839, however, with Spain's permission, that the one-time Swiss debtor, John Sutter, built a 76-acre outpost and settlement on the land. He called it New Helvetia or New Switzerland. Next, Sutter decided a fort was necessary, and built what would later be named Sutter's Fort. After the completion of the fort, Sutter decided to build a landing on Sacramento River that he would call Embarcadero.

Sutter hired millwright James Marshall to help him build the new Embarcadero project. In 1848, Marshall discovered a gold nugget while working on the land. This sparked the California Gold Rush of 1849. John Sutter's Embarcadero quickly turned into the gateway to the goldmines.

Things never really worked out for Sutter, though. Greedy miners and prospectors trampled his settlement. Sutter's own employees fled his settlement and set out on their own in hopes of finding their fortunes. In an attempt to save his land, Sutter filed claims with the national government, but his attempts came too late and the government did not act quickly enough. Sutter lost all claims to any land or gold that could have been his.

During the peak of the gold rush in 1849, the name Sacramento was taken from the nearby river and applied to the developing settlement. The area was a boisterous and at times dangerous place to live. Miners, by nature of their work, were generally risk-taking and hard-living country folk. The area sprung up with dance halls and saloons. Gambling and fighting became common. Aside from the successful - yet sometimes disruptive - miners, Sacramento was flooded twice and caught fire during its first three years. The city survived those rough years, and in 1854 paid the state of California $1 million for the chance to be the state capital.

The 1850s and 1860s saw the make-up of Sacramento undergo great change. In early 1856, Sacramento became the final stop of the early Sacramento Valley Railroad. The railroad had been funded by Sacramento shopkeepers known as the Big Four: Collis P. Huntington, Mark Hopkins, Charles Crocker and Leland Stanford. The 1860s brought with it the Pony Express, transcontinental telegraph and, most importantly for Sacramento, the completion of the Central Pacific Railroad that connected the east and west coasts.

A trip across the country that once took six months could now be traveled in six days. This quick travel along with improved communication brought new exposure that opened Sacramento up to a whole new economy. The once-mighty gold mining industry was quickly replaced by the fast-growing agriculture industry. Sacramento agriculture boomed, and produce could be shipped back across the country in a short time. Sacramento took full advantage of this new possibility.

The next change in Sacramento's economy came with the construction of several air fields and other military installations during World War I. Mather Field was first built as a site for training pilots for combat in World War I. Next, McClellan Air Force Base was constructed in 1937. The influx of military personnel greatly stimulated Sacramento's economy. After World War II, many of the military personnel decided to stay and plant roots in the area. This helped to further the private sector of the economy. However, national trends in the 1950s also affected the city. All over the country, returning veterans from World War II sought out homes for their families outside city limits. Sacramento was no different and saw many of its people move to the suburbs.

The 1980s and 1990s saw the closing of many military institutions in the area. This included Mather and McClellan Air Force Bases as well as the Sacramento Army Depot. Due to these closures, the presence of U.S. military forces greatly decreased in Sacramento for the first time since the 1930s. Sacramento's other major industry, agriculture, had also gradually slowed over time. Many citizens looked for new jobs with the state of California in the capital. Additionally, despite the military closings, Sacramento's population grew by 20 percent between 1990 and 2000. Experts have estimated that the city's growth was due to people moving there from the San Francisco Bay area, attracted by Sacramento's lower cost of living.

Interesting points about Sacramento include:

• Present day Sacramento had actually been populated for more than 10,000 years before the first white explorers set foot on the land.
• A group of Native Americans referred to as the Nisenan had actually lived peacefully in the area until their population was mixed with European travelers. The Native Americans were later forced off the land which they had called home for hundreds of generations.
• When gold was discovered in 1848, the rush of people to Sacramento and its surrounding areas was recorded as the largest human migration in history.
• Sacramento is the oldest incorporated city in California.
• Sacramento is Spanish for "Holy Sacrament."
• Stanford University is named after Leland Stanford, one of the original "Big Four" financial backers of Sacramento.
• The first suburban shopping mall was established in northern Sacramento and opened its doors to the public in 1945.
• Sacramento has many nicknames, including Capital City, River City, The Big Tomato and the City of Trees. The nicknames most used by those living in Sacramento are Sac, Sactown, Macramento and Sacto. The area where Sacramento was originally developed is simply named Old Sacramento.
• Sacramento's adopted 1920 charter is still in use today. It established a city council and manager form of government. As a charter city, Sacramento is exempt from many laws and regulations passed by the state legislature.
• To help prevent against flooding, Sacramento used landfills to raise the level of their city with first floors becoming basements and so on.
• The State of California is Sacramento's largest employer.

Sources:
( http://www.cityofsacramento.org/ )

( http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,340694,00.html )

( http://www.saccounty.net/ )