175th Anniversary of Negro Bar, Mormon Island, Negro Hill - 1849 CA Gold Mining District

Irvine, CA - June 22, 2023

STATE PARK AND RECREATION COMMISSION STAFF REPORT
Black Miners Bar Day Use Area Renaming Update

STAFF: Leslie Hartzell, Chief, Cultural Resources Division

SUBJECT: Reexamining Our Past Initiative: African American History & Engagement Project

OBJECTIVE: The Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) provides an update for the State Park and Recreation Commission (SPRC) on the additional research underway for Black Miners Bar Day Use Area at Folsom Lake State Recreation Area.

DESCRIPTION: Since last June’s 2022, unanimous decision by the commission to rename the day use area at Folsom Lake State Recreation Area, DPR collaborated with the California African American Museum (CAAM) in developing the African American History & Engagement (AAH&E) project proposal which the legislature approved $15M in one-time general funds for in the 2022-2023 fiscal year budget for this five-year project.

The project supports not only the requested additional research and community engagement at Black Miners Bar but also over two dozen other important Black and African American historic sites across the state park system.

In March 2023, DPR and CAAM signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) and are now finalizing an Interagency Agreement for the AAH&E project.

CAAM’s history curator and program manager Susan D Anderson is serving as the principal investigator for the project team and project management support is being provided by DPR consultant, PlaceWorks.

The first parks include Black Miners Bar at Folsom Lake State Recreation Area, Candlestick State Park, Colonel Allensworth State Historic Park, Columbia State Historic Park, Fort Ord Dunes State Park, Angel Island, and Old Town San Diego State Historic Park.

Beginning in July 2023, Milman F Harrison, PhD, UC Davis Professor of African American and African Studies will lead the team developing the research report on African Americans in the gold rush centered on Black Miners Bar and the surrounding region.

Other researchers are identified to lead research at each of the other parks. The curatorial process being used to create the interpretation, exhibition, educational and training for each historic site also will be illustrated with example from projects that have used this methodology successfully.