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The Gold Rush

The Gold Rush. Pre-Gold Rush. John Sutter- moved from Switzerland to New York in 1834 Granted 50,000 acres in California by the government to build a colony, Sutter’s Fort Moved to California in 1840 Built the fort on the American River Employed 100 to 500 people at a time. Discovery!.

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The Gold Rush

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  1. The Gold Rush

  2. Pre-Gold Rush • John Sutter- moved from Switzerland to New York in 1834 • Granted 50,000 acres in California by the government to build a colony, Sutter’s Fort • Moved to California in 1840 • Built the fort on the American River • Employed 100 to 500 people at a time

  3. Discovery! • James Wilson Marshall- carpenter for Sutter • Discovered gold in the American River while building a sawmill for Sutter’s Fort • Checked the gold by pounding it flat and boiling it with lye soap • Also used information from an old encyclopedia • Also discovered by General John Bidwell in the Feather River and by Major Pearson B. Reading in the Trinity River

  4. Announcement • March 15- announced in “The Californian” in San Francisco • May 12- Sam Brannan rode through the streets of San Francisco announcing the gold • August 1858- discovery of gold was announced in the “New York Herald” • December 5, 1848- discovery formally announced by President James K. Polk

  5. Getting There • Water Routes: Panama Route, Cape Horn Route, Strait of Magellan Route • Land Routes: Santa Fe Trail or California Trail • Traveling by land was the most common way but it required carrying more equipment in wagons

  6. Australia France Germany Ireland Mexico New Zealand Hawaiian Islands Turkey Other areas of the United States China Where People Came From

  7. Population/Growth • Chinese-among slower to arrive • In 1848, there were 3 Chinese in California • In 1850, there were 791 • By 1855, there were over 25,000 Chinese living in California • Native American population decreased-by 1900, their population had gone from 300,000 to 16,000 • From 1848 to 1850 alone, 90,000 people traveled to California

  8. Population/Growth Continued • By 1854, over 300,000 people had moved to California • Before the end of the Gold Rush, over 500,000 people lived in California • In 1847, one lot of land was worth $16, but eighteen months later, that same lot was worth $45,000 • An average of 30 houses were built each day for new settlers

  9. Mining Areas • Mining camps found in the Coloma Valley, Sierra foothills, and the banks of the American, Feather, and Yuba Rivers • Mining towns included: Squabbletown, Chucklehead Diggings, Mad Ox Ravine, Frenchman’s Flat, Git-Up-And-Git, Rattlesnake Bar, Cut Throat, Hangtown, Bedbug, Total Wreck, and Ten-Cent Gulch

  10. Section 4: The Gold Rush Life in Mining Camps and Towns • lack of law and order • diverse populations • high prices/inflation • lack of available goods and services

  11. Mining Techniques • Panning • Rockers • Long Tom • Hydraulic Mining

  12. Food Miners Ate • Went to town to buy food • Bought bacon, beans, flour, rice, salt pork, coffee, dried apples, molasses, and baking soda • Hunted, fished, gathered acorns and greens • Bought food from Mexican women • Everything was overpriced

  13. Diseases, Aches, and Pains • Backaches, sore hands and feet, inflamed joints, aching muscles • Dysentery, malaria, diarrhea, coughs, chills, fever, rheumatism, and scurvy were common • Only medicines available were painkillers

  14. Housing • It was rare for a miner to own a house • Shacks, tents, or just a blanket laid out on the ground were the homes for the common miner • No plumbing • Bathed in streams

  15. Sundays • Miners chopped wood, repaired tools, washed clothes, wrote letter, and kept journals • Sometimes preachers came to camps • Preachers were considered a form of entertainment

  16. Evenings • Social: Sat around campfires, told stories of home, played cards

  17. Entertainment • Preachers • Social Events • Holidays • Professional entertainers went to camps and sang, danced, or acted

  18. Prejudice • Due to many races existing in one area, prejudice increased • Caused crime to rise • Led to Foreign Miners Tax, first passed in 1850 • Native Americans were discriminated against

  19. Stealing Lying Swearing Drinking Gambling Murdering Land Ownership Eventually, miners appointed magistrates to conduct trials Sometimes, miners were punished with flogging or lashing Hangings were very rare Issues

  20. Gradually, the gold rush ended • James Marshall, the first discoverer of gold, died penniless and alone. His farm was burned to the ground • Many miners stayed in California and set up towns, going back to the professions they had before the gold rush began

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