Rancho Cordova's heritage is rooted in a historic corridor used by dreamers heading east from Sacramento to early gold mining towns in search of fame and fortune in 1849, one of California's most historic corridors. At 11 miles, the road forked near this site, with Coloma Road going north along the river to Coloma and the northern mines, while the south fork headed for White Rock and the southern mines. The area was first known as Hangtown Crossing, heralding the road to Hangtown, now Placerville, where many gold fever hangings took place. This dusty path later gave way to improved roads and way stations, saw the first railway in the far west, and witnessed the coming and going of the Pony Express. The area became known as Mills, and the road through it became part of the first transcontinental highway, now known as Folsom Boulevard, the historic backbone of Rancho Cordova. Between the 1850s and 1880s, a community of vineyards and orchards grew up here. In 1911, John Studarus Jr. built what is now the Mills Station Building, which housed a tavern and grocery store with a large second-floor ballroom. Over time, the building also served as a post office, library, gas station, and restaurant, meeting the needs of farmers, vintners, business people, rocket scientists, and Air Force officers. It was relocated a couple of times and reopened in 2002 as a light rail transit station, and its image and the story of this heritage corridor became the centerpiece of the Seal of the City of Rancho Cordova after the city's incorporation in 2003, more than 150 years after gold-seekers first passed this place.