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Mariposa in 1 850's 



Hood-like Mexican bandit who roamed 

 the area from Los Angeles to Stockton 

 in the 18 5 O's. (According to recent 

 studies he may have been a legendary 

 figure generally accepted in folklore.) It 

 is said that he found friendliness in the 

 little mining town of Hornitos of the 

 gold rush days. Remains may still be 

 seen of an underground passage leading 

 from the dance hall in Hornitos which 

 Murieta may have found useful for es- 

 cape when things grew too hot. Hor- 

 nitos, Mexican for "little bake oven," is 

 about 10 miles northwest of Cathay Val- 

 ley. It derived its name from the pres- 

 ence of many odd Mexican graves or 

 combs that sat on top of the ground, 

 built of stone in the shape of little bake 

 ovens, (the fascinating history of this 

 foothill gold mining country may be 

 followed in "A Guide to the Mother 

 Lode Country," available at museums 

 and gift shops.) 



(7.6 miles from Cathay) 



AGUA FRIA — Agua Fria — cool 

 water — was the name of the town 

 which grew up around the Agua Fria 

 Mine and which was the first county 

 seat of Mariposa County from 1850 to 

 18 54. Once located about a half-mile up 

 the course of Agua Fria Creek (dry 

 most of the year), this once-important 



community has disappeared completely. 

 Its name was derived from a stream of 

 water gushing from the mountainside 

 An historical marker along the highway 

 was placed by the Mariposa County 

 Chamber of Commerce. 



(4.2 miles) 



MARIPOSA— In 1 806 Padre Munoz 

 of the Moraga Expedition recorded in 

 his diary: "This place is called (place) 

 of the mariposa (butterflies) because of 

 their great multitude, especially at night 

 and morning . . . One of the corporals 

 of the expedition got one in his ear, 

 causing him considerable annoyance and 

 no little discomfort in its extraction." 

 Located on the Fremont Grant (de- 

 scribed under Mariposa County above) , 

 Mariposa became county seat when the 

 county government was moved from 

 Agua Fria in 18 54. At that time the 

 courthouse was built. It is now the old- 

 est courthouse in continuouse use in the 

 State of California. The seats and bar 

 have remained unchanged through the 

 years. The belfry clock, operated on 

 cables and pendulum alone, was brought 

 around The Horn from England in 

 1866. Its bell has been chiming ever 

 since. The only newspaper in the county, 

 a weekly, was started here January 18 54. 

 First published as the Mariposa Chron- 



