Join me and my sister, Terri in her new hometown, Grass Valley. There we enjoyed a watermelon cooler while planning our trip to the Empire Mine founded in 1850, the year California became a state and 49ers were rushing to find gold. After touring the mine museum, we toured the owner's cottage and surrounding gardens. Gold fueled a population surge, new towns, huge fortunes, city and country estates, and now familiar businesses like PG&E and Levi Strauss.