Sawmill Flat took its name from two sawmills erected there in the early 1850s to supply mining timbers. At one time its population reached 1000, and in its heyday it was rich in pocket gold. At the north end of the flat was the mining camp of a Mexican woman, Doña Elisa Martinez, which was reported to have been a hideout of the famous bandit Joaquin Murieta. It was also the site of the story, “The Battle of Sawmill Flat.”