Gold rush
California was a land where the American Dream came true for many. Before the gold rush, California was under the Mexican rule since 1821. California’s population mainly consisted of about 6,500 Californios, 700 Americans and 150,000 Native
Americans. Most of the Californians lived on vast ranches granted to them by the Mexican government. New settlers, mainly Americans, started moving into California for land and trade. Mexican control over California weakened following the Bear Flag revolt by the settlers and the United States took control of the region. The United States waged war against Mexico for manifest destiny and a dispute over Texas in the Mexican–American War on May 19,1846. The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo between United States and Mexico ended the war officially on February 2,1848. California was handed over to United States. Neither the United States nor Mexico knew that gold had recently been discovered in California in 1848. The discovery of gold set off a major historical event in California, the California Gold Rush!
James Marshall accidentally discovered gold while at work on January 24,1848 in Coloma, California. He was a carpenter building a sawmill on the banks of the American River at Coloma for John Sutter, a Swiss immigrant to California who founded the Sutter’s Fort in Sacramento. On January 24, 1848 James Marshall noticed tiny golden flakes sparkling in the American River and was astonished to find that it was gold! He reported this to John Sutter and they together confirmed that the shiny flakes were indeed gold by testing it. However, they decided to keep this as a secret in their own interests as Sutter wanted the area to be his empire and didn’t want to attract people into his land. Many sawmill workers also found gold in the American River. Marshall’s discovery of gold was no longer a secret.
The news about the gold discovery spread all across the state. It was published as early as March 15, 1848, in
Americans. Most of the Californians lived on vast ranches granted to them by the Mexican government. New settlers, mainly Americans, started moving into California for land and trade. Mexican control over California weakened following the Bear Flag revolt by the settlers and the United States took control of the region. The United States waged war against Mexico for manifest destiny and a dispute over Texas in the Mexican–American War on May 19,1846. The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo between United States and Mexico ended the war officially on February 2,1848. California was handed over to United States. Neither the United States nor Mexico knew that gold had recently been discovered in California in 1848. The discovery of gold set off a major historical event in California, the California Gold Rush!
James Marshall accidentally discovered gold while at work on January 24,1848 in Coloma, California. He was a carpenter building a sawmill on the banks of the American River at Coloma for John Sutter, a Swiss immigrant to California who founded the Sutter’s Fort in Sacramento. On January 24, 1848 James Marshall noticed tiny golden flakes sparkling in the American River and was astonished to find that it was gold! He reported this to John Sutter and they together confirmed that the shiny flakes were indeed gold by testing it. However, they decided to keep this as a secret in their own interests as Sutter wanted the area to be his empire and didn’t want to attract people into his land. Many sawmill workers also found gold in the American River. Marshall’s discovery of gold was no longer a secret.
The news about the gold discovery spread all across the state. It was published as early as March 15, 1848, in