An Overview of the Gold Rush
California has always been associated with cutting edge development and ideas. For over a century and a half it has been the leader of what the rest of the country follows. No single event has been as groundbreaking (literally and metaphorically) as the Gold Rush of 1849. This historic event single-handedly connected the East to the West in what proved to be the perfect model of expansion. It was what brought hundreds of thousands of Americans and immigrants alike to the fast-paced, ever-changing world of California. To fully understand the history of the Goldrush, one must know what was actually happening before the lure of gold overwhelmed the country. In 1844, John C. Fremont ordered the U.S. Army to lead a scientific expedition to California. During a second trip in 1846, he encouraged ranchers located in northern area to revolt. These events lead to the seizure of Sonoma and the proclamation of a republic. The flag that they raised that year was a figure of a bear. It was not yet known that the Mexican War had started and that troops had been sent to quall the battles. According to the New Standard Encyclopedia, "there was little fighting in the north, and the south was taken quick
"In truth, most Panama travelers were happy to board anything that looked as if it might reach San Francisco" (87). He had Mexican Vaqueros tending to vast herds that roamed the fort and its surroundings. (Jackson 7,8) After the war with Mexico, John Sutter was left with the spoils that had been left in the aftermath. Besides that, cholera proved to be just one of the many dangers that most men were being constantly confronted with. The book Gold Dust states that about 150 Mormons who had been soldiers of the war had been ordered to stay in California by Mormon leaders in Utah. He wrote that California was unlike any other movement that America had ever experienced. A few weeks later, most travelers did eventually make it to their final destination. (Jackson 18,19) On or around May 3 was the time that Sam Brannan started making his big moves. (Marks 82) Traveling by land across America took the average traveler three months. (Wiegand 3) Racism ran rampant in the new republic. He had traveled to Sutter's Fort and found it mostly abandoned by the gold-frenzied workers.
Common topics in this essay:
Hoban Lewis,
San Francisco,
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Cape Horn,
Native Americans,
Augustus Sutter,
California America,
Sutter's Fort,
Salt Lake,
Chagres River,
gold rush,
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december 1999 available,
pan cradle,
december 1999,
1999 available,
gold dust,
sacramento bee,
cape horn,
hoban lewis,
oregon trail,
15 december 1999,
january 1998 sacramento,
1998 sacramento bee,
18 january 1998,
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Acceptance Essays
