Fiddletown

Maybe the largest fiddle in the world. Fire house is to the left with bell on top of building.A fanciful tale is told regarding the naming of Fiddletown. As the story goes, the camp was first settled by a group of prospectors from Missouri in 1849. When it came time to name the place, one of the elder Missourians complained of the younger men: "They are always fiddlin,' call it Fiddletown." Another story gives credit to German fiddle players, while Edwin A. Sherman relates in his reminiscences of an old lady who claimed her family were the first settlers at "Violin City," so-called because her husband, daughter, and two sons all played the violin.

It's probably safe to say that some early settler in Fiddletown was partial to playing the fiddle.The town's early years proved uneventful, its growth slow; the number of houses could be counted on one's fingers. All this changed in 1852 when several rich discoveries were made in the region, resulting in new camps such as American Flat, French Flat, Loafer Flat, and Lone Hill among others. With the emergence of these camps, Fiddletown became a trading center for the region, and combined with the continued workings of the placers, the town boomed. Tents, brush ramadas, and substantial buildings of wood, brick and stone soon covered the landscape as the population swelled, ultimately reaching several thousand people during the mid-1850's.

Unlike the neighboring lowland camps, Fiddletown lacked the deep quartz mines which would have sustained it when the placers played out. So when the gold began to go away, so did the people. The town never really gave up the ghost; however, as it remained somewhat of a supply point for the region and home to many of its original settlers.Fiddletown didn't disappear, but it died in early February of 1878.

The Victorian Head House was built around 1865.Due to the actions of Judge Columbus Allen Purinton, a petition was circulated, signed, and submitted to the state legislature requesting that the name of the town be changed to "Oleta." Why? Apparently "Judge" Purinton, who was never a judge in Amador County, was embarrassed to write "Fiddletown" as his place of residence, after becoming known in San Francisco and Sacramento as "the man from Fiddletown." The bill passed quickly and soon gathered the governor's signature to make it official. Fiddletown was dead. Long live Oleta. But as you may have noticed, the town is once again known as Fiddletown. What happened?

All graphics created and owned by Ray and Cheryl Herndon