Fair Oaks Bluff Signs
The beautiful Plaza on Bridge Street is located on the north side of the old Fair Oaks Bridge next to the Fair Oaks Bluff. It has been created to honor the major donors who helped purchase the last piece of open space along the Bluff in order to keep it open to the public. The Plaza also provides a quiet resting place, with a drinking fountain for visitors and their canine friends.
Six signs at the Fair Oaks Bluff Plaza offer a brief look at the natural and cultural history of that area. This web page provides more information for those who would like to learn a little more.
Please click on a link below to see an image of the sign and to learn more about the topic:
Special thanks go to several folks for help with this project:
- Lois Frazier, a member of the Fair Oaks Historical Society, for donating her binder of newspaper clippings and other documents that helped in the compilation of the story of ‘Saving the Bluff’.
- Guy Galante (of "Another Guy Productions") for the use of several of his photos on the flora and fauna sign.
- The folks at the Effie Yeaw Nature Center (in particular, Betty Cooper and now retired Marilee Flannery) for their help in putting our signs together.
- Marie Davis, a Registered Professional Geologist, for her time and consultation on the Geology sign.
- Roy Schlemon, a well known consulting soil geologist, for letting us join in as he lead the “Sacramento Valley & Foothills Soil and Geomorphology Field Tour” for the National Society of Consulting Soil Scientists, Inc., March, 2009, and for his insights on the geological history of Fair Oaks and the surrounding area.
Any questions on this project can be directed to:
- Diane Shakal, Fair Oaks Bluff Donor Plaza Committee, dshakal@pacbell.net
Other members of Fair Oaks Bluff Donor Plaza Committee:
- Barry Brown & Marty Maskall, Co-Chairs
- Ralph Carhart, Hugh Gorman, Shelley Mathews, Warren McWilliams, and Tracy Shearer
We thank ARNHA for letting us post this information about this very special area along the American River – the “Fair Oaks Bluff”.
Sources: There are many sources available for more information on each of the topics. Since some of the sources used for this project provide information on more that one topic, a single list of sources is created below to avoid the duplication of listing them after each source.
ARNHA’s Effie Yeaw Nature Center (http://www.sacnaturecenter.net/) provides a comprehensive collection of resources on the natural history of the area, as well as on the history of the Native Americans who first populated the area. A trip to the Center is well worth the small parking fee required for your vehicle. (Parking is free for supporters of the Center!) A hike or a bike trip is also an excellent way to visit the Center.
The Fair Oaks Historical Society is also a great resource for many of the topics covered in this project. Their website (http://www.fairoakshistory.org) is chock full of links to wonderful historical maps, photos, and articles, as well as current activities. Members of the group are welcoming and more than happy to share their wealth of information.
Other sources used (listed alphabetically by title):
The American – River of El Dorado. Margaret Sanborn, Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York, 1974.
Before California: an archaeologist looks at our earliest inhabitants. Brian Fagan, Rowman & Littlefeld, Lanham, 2003.
Biking and Hiking The American River Parkway, a cultural and natural history guide. 3rd ed., The American River Natural History Association, Central Valley Press, 2001.
California’s Indians and the Gold Rush. Clifford E. Trafzer, Sierra Oaks Pub Co.,1989
California Indians and Their Environment-an Introduction. Kent G. Lightfoot and Otis Parrish, Berkeley: Univ. of California Press, 2009.
Geologic History of Middle California. Arthur D. Howard, Berkeley: Univ. of California Press, 1979.
Geology of the Sierra Nevada. Mary Hill, Univ. of California Press, 2006
The Golden Corridor. ed. Jody & Ric Hornor, 2005
The Great American Gold Rush. Rhoda Blumberg, Scholastic, 1989
Historic Highway Bridges of California, Calif. Dept. of Transportation, 1990
Images of America – Fair Oaks. Lee M. A. Simpson and Paul J. P. Sandul, Arcadia Pub., 2006
The Laws Field Guide to the Sierra Nevada. John Muir Laws, Heyday Books, Berkeley, California, 2007
The Lower American River, Prehistory to Parkway, 3rd ed., The American River Natural History Association, 2005
Native North American Almanac v.1, Gale Group 1994
The Northern Maidu. Marie Potts, Naturegraph Pub.,1977
Oaks of California. Bruce M. Pavlik, et al., Cachuma Pr. 1991
The Outdoor World of the Sacramento Region. The American River Natural History Association, 2004.
Roadside Geology of Northern and Central California. David Alt & Donald Hyndman, Missoula, MT, Mountain Press, 2000
Wildflowers of the Sierra Nevada and the Central Valley. Laird Blackwell, Lone Pine,1999.
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