Merv Corning was a self-taught master painter who is well-known for painting a variety of subject matter, especially the America that he saw around him. The city of Placerville was the heart of the Gold Rush in California. "Placerville House" is an actual place that exists in California, where Corning was from. It is now a Bed and Breakfast and on the national register of historical places, forever preserved in America’s history. Thomas Kinkade painted this exact same Placerville house in a snowy scene with horse-drawn carriages and sled riders, titled "Placerville Victorian Christmas."