Livingston Low Baker & Robert Muirhead Hamilton came to California in 1849 in hopes of finding gold. Mining for gold was hard work with little rewards, so Baker & Hamilton started selling general supplies/ tools & provisions to the miners. They first conducted their business out of a tent on Mormon Island. Mormon Island was once a mining town located near the town of Folsom California. The town had an large number of Mormon Immigrants seeking gold in the American River during the California Gold Rush.
In 1850 the pair opened their first store in Sacramento concentrating on agricultural equipment and general merchandise. The trade of their Sacramento store extended throughout Northern California, Oregon & Nevada. As business florished, Baker & Hamilton eventually opened more than one store in Sacramento. The smaller store being at 922 A 2nd Street in Historic Old Sacramento. The building has been restored sometime in the "1970s "during the revitalization of Historic Old Sacramento.
Baker & Hamilton eventually had offices in Washington/Oregon /San Francisco /Los Angeles/ New York and even had their own manufacturing factory in Benicia Ca. They were able to manufacture and market their own farming supplies/ axles/ mill supplies/ mining supplies/ railroad supplies/ dairy supplies/ ect..... and advertiseing through their store catalogue .
In 1918 Baker & Hamilton merged with Pacific Hardware & Steel Company to create Baker, Hamilton, & Pacific Company.
Important people & Places in California's History !
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