The Empire City Historic Landmark is a

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

Historic Landmark A historic site or heritage site is an official location where pieces of political, military, cultural, or social history have been preserved due to their cultural heritage value. Historic sites are usually protected by law, and many have been rec ...

in honor of the

pioneer Pioneer commonly refers to a settler who migrates to previously uninhabited or sparsely inhabited land. In the United States pioneer commonly refers to an American pioneer, a person in American history who migrated west to join in settling and dev ...

John C. Marvin who from 1850, settled on the south bank of the

Tuolumne River The Tuolumne River ( Yokutsan: ''Tawalimnu'') flows for through Central California, from the high Sierra Nevada to join the San Joaquin River in the Central Valley. Originating at over above sea level in Yosemite National Park, the Tuolumne ...

and called the town "Empire City". Empire City was the head of navigation for small steamboats that could ascend the Tuolumne River carrying passengers and supplies. It was the shipping point for the large grain crops grown in the area. At its height, the town had three stores, a three-story hotel, two boarding houses, a blacksmith shop, a church, and a school house. Empire City was voted as the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

Stanislaus County , image_skyline = , image_caption = Images, from top down, left to right: Modesto Arch, Knights Ferry's General Store, a view of the Tuolumne River from Waterford , image_flag = , i ...

from October 1854 to December 1855. The town was destroyed by flood waters during the

Great Flood of 1862 The Great Flood of 1862 was the largest flood in the recorded history of Oregon, Nevada, and California, occurring from December 1861 to January 1862. It was preceded by weeks of continuous rains and snows in the very high elevations that began in ...

. A new railroad town was built 40 years later 1 mile north of the old town site, taking the name Empire. Empire City; The Historical Marker Database
from hmdb.org The

Historical Marker Database The Historical Marker Database (HMdb.org) is an online database that documents locations of numerous historical markers in the United States as well as other countries. The database was launched in 2006 by computer programmer J. J. Prats. The HMd ...

accessed December 29, 2015

The site today

The state's

historical marker A commemorative plaque, or simply plaque, or in other places referred to as a historical marker, historic marker, or historic plaque, is a plate of metal, ceramic, stone, wood, or other material, typically attached to a wall, stone, or other ...

is located in

Empire, California Empire is a census-designated place (CDP) in Stanislaus County, California, United States. The population was 4,189 at the 2010 census, up from 3,903 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Modesto Metropolitan Statistical Area. Influenced by the M ...

, and was relocated from Santa Fe Avenue to the new

Empire Community Park Empire Community Park is a community park in Empire, Stanislaus County, California. It includes the Empire Community Pool and the Empire City (Historic Landmark) The Empire City Historic Landmark is a California Historic Landmark in honor of the ...

. Another historical marker for Empire City was erected on October 28, 1961, by Estanislao Chapter 58 of

E Clampus Vitus The Ancient and Honorable Order of E Clampus Vitus (ECV) is a fraternal organization dedicated to the preservation of the heritage of Western United States, the American West, especially the history of the Mother Lode#California Mother Lode, Mother ...

(# 418), also in Empire Community Park, at the eastern end of the parking area.E Clampus Vitus historical marker location:

References

Former county seats in California Former settlements in Stanislaus County, California California Historical Landmarks History of Stanislaus County, California History of the San Joaquin Valley Tuolumne River 1850 establishments in California Populated places established in 1850 Former populated places in California {{StanislausCountyCA-geo-stub