Placer County is known for its agricultural legacy, railroad history, natural beauty and plethora of housing styles and settings. All these are found in Lincoln.
Wedged into the county’s northwestern boundaries, Lincoln began as a cluster of farms and ranches in the early 1850s. It remained a rural village until Charles Wilson Lincoln pushed the tracks of the California Central Railroad from Folsom northward to Marysville.
When grading began in 1858, a town site was plotted to follow the proposed course of the tracks. The new city was dubbed Lincoln to honor the railroad mogul.
The CCRR tracks reached Lincoln in 1861, setting off a business boom as farmers and ranchers brought their goods to the terminus to ship them to distant markets. But funding to extend the line to Marysville ran dry and Mr. Lincoln’s planned rail route only made it to Placer County.
Visiting the area while working on finding financing to extend the rail line, Lincoln noticed a vein of coal and sunk a shaft to harvest the fuel source. The coal mine brought new industry — and investors — to the territory.
When a second tunnel was burrowed, a ledge of high-quality potters’ clay was discovered. That attracted the attention of a visiting businessman, Charles Gladding.
In 1875, Gladding and two partners — Peter McBean and George Chambers — founded the Gladding, McBean & Company pottery works, manufacturing sewer pipes from locally mined clay. They eventually expanded the operation to produce ornate terra cotta architectural decorations, chimney pipes, and tile used for roofing and drainage.
Other companies also were extracting clay from land in the vicinity, but the 64-acre Gladding McBean factory was the most successful. Still dominating the local landscape, it continues to be one of the community’s largest
employers.
The city of Lincoln incorporated in 1890 but remained a semi-rural district into the late 20th century when an explosion of growth in neighboring Rocklin and Roseville sent bursts of development its way. After finding eager buyers at its Sun City Roseville subdivision, Del Webb purchased land to the north in the master-planned Twelve Bridges domain and created Sun City Lincoln Hills, another amenity-loaded micro community for active seniors.
By that time, the city had its own airport and light-industrial hub in place. It also had waves of new homes rippling through former ranch lands to the west.
Swanky shopping centers, busy strip malls, novel office complexes and contemporary commercial spaces now spill across the Highway 65 corridor. The historic precinct is matching that progressive pace, with revitalized buildings, quaint shops, singular eateries and a modern city hall thumping new life into the heart of the city.
The Thunder Valley Casino, and an anticipated high-rise hotel and entertainment venue, add gaming fun and assorted restaurants to Lincoln’s list of leisure time options.
Recreation and cultural arts also abound in Lincoln, with the annual Feats of Clay international art competition and exhibition putting the focus on the city’s revered clay factory. The not-for-profit Lincoln Arts organization also supports such endeavors as the Arts in the Schools programs, local exhibits and classes.
McBean Park hosts a variety of community events, and offers a public pool and skate park in addition to its playgrounds, sports fields, pavilion and picnic areas. A recent expansion of the 23-acre park now includes a nature trail along Ferrari Ranch Road.
Many neighborhood parks and private recreation centers offer sports courts and play yards. Camp Far West is to the north of Lincoln, with fishing, boating and camping facilities operated by a concessionaire.
Working ranches, rice paddies and grain fields still populate the countryside, but Lincoln’s pastoral personality is evolving to a more genteel temperament.
With young families, energetic seniors, cultural events, fun zones, light industry, commerce, a plethora of housing choices and bucolic scenery, Lincoln gives visitors a little taste of all that Placer County has to offer.