Cement, California is a mining and manufacturing

ghost town A ghost town, deserted city, extinct town, or abandoned city is an abandoned settlement, usually one that contains substantial visible remaining buildings and infrastructure such as roads. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economi ...

in Solano County now enveloped within the boundaries of the United States city of Fairfield. Cement was established as a

company town A company town is a place where all or most of the stores and housing in the town are owned by the same company that is also the main employer. Company towns are often planned with a suite of amenities such as stores, houses of worship, schoo ...

at the turn of the 20th century and it quickly became a

boomtown A boomtown is a community that undergoes sudden and rapid population and economic growth, or that is started from scratch. The growth is normally attributed to the nearby discovery of a precious resource such as gold, silver, or oil, although t ...

. It was founded and owned by the Pacific Portland Cement Company, who produced

Portland cement Portland cement is the most common type of cement in general use around the world as a basic ingredient of concrete, mortar (masonry), mortar, stucco, and non-specialty grout. It was developed from other types of hydraulic lime in England in th ...

that was bagged and labeled under the company's "Golden Gate" trademarked brand. It was shuttered in 1927, structures and equipment were auctioned off, and its remains are now in ruins or were moved away.

History

The town of Cement was established in 1902 by the Pacific Portland Cement Company and was originally named after the large deposits of high-quality

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

rock deposits found in the area. This limestone was ideal for the

lime Lime most commonly refers to: * Lime (fruit), a green citrus fruit * Lime (material), inorganic materials containing calcium, usually calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide * Lime (color), a color between yellow and green Lime may also refer to: Bo ...

that was needed for the production of

produced by the company at Cement. Enormous conveyors, rock crushers, tube

cement mill A cement mill (or finish mill in North American usage) is the equipment used to grind the hard, nodular clinker from the cement kiln into the fine grey powder that is cement. Most cement is currently ground in ball mills and also vertical roller ...

s, and rotary kilns were created to process the raw quarried limestone. The town also had its own open pit clay and gypsum mines with clay and gypsum being necessary components in the finished Portland cement the plant produced. The establishment of the cement industry in Cement brought a large influx of workers to the area, and the town quickly grew into a thriving community of people with a strong economy. It became more populous than the three nearest cities combined Fairfield,

Vacaville Vacaville is a city located in Solano County, California, United States. It is located from Sacramento, California, Sacramento and from San Francisco, it is on the edge of the Sacramento Valley in Northern California. The city was founded in ...

and

Suisun City Suisun City ( ; Wintun for "where the west wind blows") is a city in Solano County, California, United States. The population was 29,518 at the 2020 census. Etymology The city takes its name from the adjacent Suisun Bay, which in turn is named ...

. The cement industry was the lifeblood of Cement for many years, and the town prospered as a result. The population of the town grew steadily to 500 people, and businesses and services were established to support the needs of the growing community. This included the three-story Golden Gate Hotel, hospital, restaurant, bar, livery stable, post office, telephone exchange, park, baseball diamond, general store, fire station, churches, and a grade school.

Railway

The town owners constructed a single-track standard-gauge steam railway to get products and supplies to and from Cement and Tolenas which were away from each other. The company had a total of of track including yard and side tracks. The railway's name was .

Decline

The prosperity of Cement was not to last. As the limestone deposits were depleted, the industry in Cement began to decline, and the town's economy began to suffer. Over time, the population of Cement continued to drop, and many of the town's businesses and services were forced to close. The town was finally sold off in 1927 for only a few thousand dollars. The once-thriving town became a shadow of its former self, and today it is a ghost town. The ruins of the town, including remnants of the old cement mill and the foundations of abandoned homes and buildings, stand as a testament to the once-prosperous community that was a center of the cement industry in California. The most prominent and visible concrete ruin on Cement's hillside is large and referred to locally as "The Castle." The Castle can be seen all the way from Interstate 80 in Fairfield.

Present day

Despite its demise, Cement is an important part of California's history and culture. The remaining ruins serve as a reminder of the impact that the cement industry had on the region and the lives of its residents. Cement still interests people wondering about the history of the cement industry, the American West, the ghost town, and its past. Cement is privately owned land and the owner's permission is required to visit the property that is approximately .

References

External links

Comprehensive information about ghost towns in the U.S.

"Dusty Memories and a Castle on the Hill"

KPIX Channel 5 ''Eye on the Bay'' segment featuring Cement
(2009)

Town of Cement
{{Authority control Ghost towns in California History of Solano County, California Populated places established in 1902 1902 establishments in California * Cement

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

Limestone industry