The historic town of Shasta, today a “Ghost Town” and a California Historic Park, was established in 1848 soon after early California pioneer Pierson B. Reading discovered gold in Clear Creek.  First named Reading Springs, after its founder, the town was renamed Shasta in 1850.  It prospered as a transportation hub for mule trains and stagecoaches serving the mining towns of northern California.  Once prosperous, “Old Shasta” now boasts a cozy 720 soul population, and an infrastructure that includes the ruins of the gold mining town, a church, a post office, an elementary school, a store and the oldest Masonic lodge in California.
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