The California Gold Rush
California's gold rush goes back to the date of January 24, 1848, when James Marshall made his customary inspection of the sawmill he was building for John Sutter. During the previous night, Marshall had diverted water through the mill to wash away loose dirt and gravel, and on that fateful day, he noticed some shining flecks of metal left behind by the running water. He picked them up and showed them to his crew, but while he was pretty sure that it was gold, the full significance of his discovery was truly impossible to imagine. He was still concerned about getting the mill finished.
Word of Marshall's discovery leaked out and immediately set off a "rush to the mines." By the spring of 1849, the largest gold rush in American history was under way. At the time of Marshall's discovery, the state's non-Indian population numbered about 14,000. By the end of 1849, it had risen to nearly 100,000, and it continued to swell to some 250,000 by 1852.Gold was both plentiful and - by happy geologic accident- easy to extract, making the gold-bearing gravels of California's rivers into what has been described as "the finest opportunity that, has ever been offered on any mining frontier."
California's population grew from nearly 14,000 in 1848 to almost 100,000 in 1850. Ten years later, the population was 380,000. People from all walks of life came to California, seeking their fortune. The exhaustion of the supply of gold dust forced gold-seekers to dig deep mines in search of the precious metal. The Gold Rush is famous also for encouraging the construction of wagon roads and railroads west. Another development was the great success of farmers, merchants, and others who sold goods and services to the gold-seekers.
For more information, click the link below.
http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/californiagoldrush.htm
Word of Marshall's discovery leaked out and immediately set off a "rush to the mines." By the spring of 1849, the largest gold rush in American history was under way. At the time of Marshall's discovery, the state's non-Indian population numbered about 14,000. By the end of 1849, it had risen to nearly 100,000, and it continued to swell to some 250,000 by 1852.Gold was both plentiful and - by happy geologic accident- easy to extract, making the gold-bearing gravels of California's rivers into what has been described as "the finest opportunity that, has ever been offered on any mining frontier."
California's population grew from nearly 14,000 in 1848 to almost 100,000 in 1850. Ten years later, the population was 380,000. People from all walks of life came to California, seeking their fortune. The exhaustion of the supply of gold dust forced gold-seekers to dig deep mines in search of the precious metal. The Gold Rush is famous also for encouraging the construction of wagon roads and railroads west. Another development was the great success of farmers, merchants, and others who sold goods and services to the gold-seekers.
For more information, click the link below.
http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/californiagoldrush.htm