Sonoma Plaza, Historic district and square in Sonoma, United States.
Sonoma Plaza is a historic district and National Historic Landmark at the center of Sonoma, featuring buildings in the Italianate and Spanish Colonial styles. The large square is framed by streets on all sides and filled with lawns, trees, and walkways surrounded by shops, restaurants, and public facilities.
The plaza was laid out during California's Mexican settlement period in the early 1800s and served as the center of local life from its earliest days. It gained national recognition partly because of the Bear Flag Revolt of 1846, which took place on its grounds and marked a turning point in California's path to statehood.
Wine tasting rooms and art galleries line the square, where visitors can sample local wines and regional products. The mix of shops and restaurants around the plaza shows how closely the town is tied to the farming tradition of the Sonoma Valley.
Several parking areas surround the plaza, and the square itself is easy to walk through in any direction. Visiting on a weekday generally means fewer crowds, making it easier to move around the shops and historic buildings along the edges.
The plaza is one of the largest of its kind in California, covering about 8 acres (3 hectares), which makes it noticeably bigger than most town squares in the state. This size follows a Mexican planning tradition of creating extra-large central squares in frontier settlements.
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