An upcoming presentation sponsored by the Benicia State Parks Association (BSPA) will bring attendees back to a time of looting, murder and gang activity and the people who took it upon themselves to stop it all. That period is the 1840s and 1850s and will be the subject of Sunday’s presentation “Vigilante Movement in 1850s California.”

In 1848, flakes of gold were discovered by Sutter’s Mill along the American River, triggering the Gold Rush that drew hundreds of thousands of people into California. Many new towns were established during this period, and many smaller towns suddenly experienced an explosion in population. Many of these communities did not have strong governments, which resulted in a wide array of criminal activity by the early 1850s, including robbery, homicide and arson. Soon, private citizens took the law into their own hands and even formed groups in an attempt to rid communities of crime. One of the most famous of these was the San Francisco Committee of Vigilance, which was formed in 1851 as a response to the activity of the Sydney Ducks, a gang of Australians that had relocated to San Francisco. Some methods were legal, while others were illegal, such as assaulting accused thieves and murderers and stealing their gold to give to the accusers. The vigilantes would often hang the accused, send them to prison or even banish them from the state— or even drive them further south to Los Angeles, which also had its own vigilante movement.

A presentation on this period will be delivered by Steve Beck, a chief historian at Sutter’s Fort State Historical Park in Sacramento.

Mike Caplin, a BSPA spokesperson, said the goal of the event was to enable people to picture themselves in those days and provide answers to the question “What else was going on in California and in the area during the time when Benicia was the capital?”

“It’s to give them a better feel for the time,” he said. “It’s a real shot at living history.”

Caplin said that a lot of people passed through Benicia during the Gold Rush, and thus saw its share of criminal activity. In the midst of it, the U.S. was experiencing growing friction in the lead-up to the Civil War. Benicia, which had Southern soldiers and officers stationed in the Arsenal, was considered to be a pro-slavery community. Napa, on the other hand, was considered anti-slavery, which resulted in a few raids that led to brawls and even death.

“That caused additional friction between people,” Caplin said. “Benicia was right in the middle of it.”

Caplin noted that the vigilantes came from all over, and many ended up serving in government positions.

“They weren’t a bunch of mobsters or criminals, but they came from all aspects,” he said. “With such a wild time with this influx of people coming in through the Gold Rush, you had a cross-section of the population.”

In addition to the presentation by Beck, the event will feature early California folk songs performed by Faulkner’s California Trio.

Caplin hopes that attendees will get a sense of what was happening in California from the 1840s through the 1860s.

“We want them to take away a better appreciation for the very building that they’re sitting in, the streets that they’re walking on and what was going on during that time,” he said. “Some of it was pretty interesting stuff.”

“Vigilante Movement in 1850s California” will be held from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 20 at the Benicia Capitol, located at 115 West G St. Refreshments will be served after the presentation. This event is free. For more information, go to ProtectBeniciaStateParks.org or call 745-3385.

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