Downieville, CA

Downieville is a census-designated place in and the county seat of Sierra County, California, United States. The 2020 census counted 290 residents. Downieville is on the North Fork of the Yuba River, at an elevation of 2,966 feet. Gold was discovered here by Francis Anderson on September 14, 1849. Downieville is surrounded by the Yuba River District of the Tahoe National Forest. Popular outdoor recreation activities include fishing, mountain biking, back country "jeeping" and motorcycling, kayaking, hiking and nature walks, gold panning, and sites of the California Gold Rush. The through line in Downieville is the way its history and present-day settings remain visible on the same map. Downieville makes the most sense through those concrete details, with its history still visible in the settings people use today. Haven that same year along the North Yuba River. Most of the town is built on riverwash soils; higher locations are on Hurlbut gravelly loam or Deadwood gravelly sandy loam.