Ione is a city in Amador County, California. As of the 2020 census the population is 5,141, which is a 35.1% decrease from the 2010 census. Once known as "Bedbug" and "Freeze Out," Ione was an important supply center on the main road to the Mother Lode and Southern Mines during the California Gold Rush.
Main Street in Ione
Preston School of Industry, a.k.a. Preston Castle
Amador County, California
Amador County is a county located in the U.S. state of California, in the Sierra Nevada. As of the 2020 census, the population was 40,474. The county seat is Jackson. Amador County, located within California's Gold Country, is known as "The Heart of the Mother Lode". There is a substantial viticultural industry in the county.
The Amador County foothills in April 2007
Amador County is named after José María Amador, a Californio miner who found gold in the area in 1848.
Dr. Charles Boarman (1828–1880), son of Rear Admiral Charles Boarman, and his family settled in the area. He served as the first county physician and coroner from 1863 to 1880.
The former Amador County Courthouse consists of two buildings: the second courthouse (built 1864) and the Hall of Records (1893), that were enclosed and combined in 1939 with an Art Deco exterior.