Founded in December 1848 by John A. Sutter, Jr., Sacramento grew out of Sutter’s Fort established by his father, Captain John A. Sutter, in 1839. State capital since 1854, it became a major distribution point during the Gold Rush and developed as a commercial and agricultural center, as well as the terminus for wagon train, stagecoach, riverboat, telegraph, Pony Express, and the first Transcontinental Railroad.