Adventure 051, Site 061 – Lady Adams Building

Capture California, the Game-2012

Adventure: 051, Site 061 – Lady Adams Building

California Landmark Number: 603

Team: Thing One, Thing Two

Date:  September 25, 2012

Location:

Latitude: 38° 34.942′ N

Longitude: 121° 30.316′ W

Address: 117 K St, Sacramento, CA

Description:

Date Built: 1852

Our walk around Old Sacramento continued and pretty soon we came across the Lady Adams Building. From the signs on the building and the history found, this building has seen it all—ship-wreck, flophouse, mercantile, skid-row, collapse and now rejuvenated as a store. Bravo.

NO. 603 LADY ADAMS BUILDING - This store and office building was erected in 1852 from materials brought around the Horn in the ship Lady Adams.
Location: 117-19 K St, Old Sacramento



From Plaque Inscription:
Built in 1852 by the Lady Adams Mercantile Co.; named after the brig which brought the partners around the horn. She has survived fires, flood, and being lifted one story. She has served merchants, bankers, and as a “rooming house”. And has been flat busted more than once. The only survivor of the fire of 1852. She was named California Historical Landmark No. 603 on May 22, 1957 before we got around to it.



From HMDB:
The first owners of the Lady Adams Building were two German merchants who came to California “around the horn” on a ship named The Lady Adams. After setting up their business in a tent, they had the building built using much of the ship’s parts as building material. The bricks used in the building had acted as the ships ballast and the mast was used as a “backing up” place for wagons and horses to back up to. Because of its brick roofing it survived the “great fire of 1852”. It also survived the floods that occurred almost annually until the streets were raised in the 1860’s and is considered to be Old Sacramento’s oldest building.

In the 1950’s Old Sacramento went through its “skid row” days and the Lady Adams was a flop house and also a brothel. It eventually was unused and fell into total disrepair. In 1970 the brick roof collapsed and damaged the building.

This proud old building was restored and now serves as a retail business in the bustling rejuvenated Old Sacramento State Historical State Park.



References:

• HMDB.org
  

Overall Landmark References:

• David Schmitt's California State Historical Landmark (Schmitt)
  
• Wikipedia: California's National Landmarks (WCNL)
  
• State of California's California Historical Landmarks (CHL)
  
• Wikipedia: California State Landmarks (WCSL)
  
• State of California Historical Resources (CHR)
• Noehill (NOE)
  
• Historical Marker Database (HMDB)