Essay On The Gold Rush

552 Words2 Pages

Joseph Laskowski 5/14/14 Gold rush: Personal stories The Wild West was a place of lawlessness and opportunity for those brave enough to risk it all in the harsh environment that was the west. The golden years of the Rush lasted from 1848 to roughly 1858. Over the decade, over a hundred thousand people migrated to the west. Over ten years and with all those new people in a foreign land, some interesting things were bound to occur. Of all the thousands of stories from the rush, I’ve picked out some of my favorites to write about. The diary of George Bonniwell is one of the first results i got while writing this paper, and is one of the best diaries I could find. The diary entries usually consist of things that happen day to day for George. The entries start off rather simple, just a few sentences to sum up the day, but as you get further into the diary the entries become noticeably longer in duration. Most of the beginning are quite similar in detail On Wednesday, May 15th George and his team saw an indian village while on the road. He wrote that the wigwams, or homes, in which...

Show More
Related

  • John Augustus Sutter: Reason For The California Gold Rush

    717 Words  | 2 Pages

    John Augustus Sutter was born in Baden, Switzerland on the 15th of February in 1803. Sutter is the reason for the California Gold Rush that began in 1848. Sutter had a fort called “New Helvetia” beginning in 1842 that ended quickly in 1844. A man named James Wilson Marshall was planning to build John Sutter a water-powered sawmill, when he came across flakes of gold in the American River near Coloma, California in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. This Discovery happened on January 24th in 1848 causing the town to have no till afterwards. Once the discovery got out it was soon the center for merchants and miners. In John Sutter’s earlier years, he claimed to have had a military background being a captain in the Royal Swiss Guard to the French King.

    Read More

  • Simon Pokagon Speech

    572 Words  | 2 Pages

    In 1893, Simon Pokagon spoke at the Chicago World’s Columbian Exposition. He was a prominent tribal leader who was known for this speech. So much so, it was printed and turned into an informative pamphlet. The speech encompassed American history and it’s push Westward, detailing the destruction of the Native lands and culture forever. He begins by telling the crowd about how he cannot celebrate with them in this great big new city, because it reminds him of all that was lost. Pokagon states, “where stands this “Queen City of the West” once stood the red man’s wigwams;” (Page 32). A bold statement follows about how nature was plentiful, until pale face came with their

    Read More

  • Summary Of The Klondike Gold Rush

    1632 Words  | 4 Pages

    “GOLD! GOLD! GOLD! GOLD!” the headline of July17, 1897 read. “Sixty-Eight Rich Men on the Steamer Portland. STACKS OF YELLOW METAL!” (Klondike Gold Rush Historic Resource Study). This would prove to be one of the most enduring images in Seattle's history, contributing to the city identity. The Klondike gold rush began when two ships docked in San Francisco and Seattle carrying miners returning from the Yukon with bags of gold. The press was alerted and papers carried the story to the masses. The Klondike stampede was an attempt by an estimated 100,000 people to reach the Klondike goldfields, of whom only around 30,000 to 40,000 eventually did. It formed the height of the Klondike gold rush from the summer of 1897 until the

    Read More

  • The Carolina Gold Rush

    2379 Words  | 5 Pages

    As most folks do, when I think of the term “Gold Rush”, it conjures up images of the West! Images of cowboys and crusty old miners ruthlessly and savagely staking their claims. Immigrants coming by boat, folks on foot, horseback, and covered wagon form all over the US to rape and pillage the land that was newly acquired from Mexico through the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo… California. But let me tell you about a gold rush of another kind, in another place, even more significant. It was the actual first documented discovery of gold in the United States! Fifty years earlier…in North Carolina!

    Read More

  • Exploring The Gilded Age

    1642 Words  | 4 Pages

    From the period between the 1870’s through the 1890’s, it became an era known as the Gilded Age. The term was characterized by a famous American Literature author named Mark Twain. The writer tried to point out that the term means that while on the outside society may seem perfect and in order, underneath there is poverty, crime, corruption, and many other issues between American society’s rich and poor. This era’s gild is thicker than the cheaper material it’s covering. This can be shown through the countless numbers of achievements and advances America has made during the period of reconstruction and expansion, industrialization, and foreign affairs.

    Read More

  • Thomas Doyel's Journey To The Gold Rush

    475 Words  | 1 Pages

    When the Gold Rush started they didnt have a law regarding property rights so anyone could go and look for gold wherever they wanted. The Gold Rush was very hit and miss. You have people like my great great great grandpa who got lots of gold and then losses it on the journey home and then you have people that where very wealthy from the Gold Rush. The Gold Rush actually had a big part in why california was called the "golden state". "The population of San Francisco exploded from perhaps about 1,000 in 1848 to 25,000 full-time residents by 1850"

    Read More

  • The Klondike Gold Rush

    1218 Words  | 3 Pages

    How would feel to be a multimillionaire in just a couple years, but you have to get the Klondike in Alaska. Many people took this challenge either making their fortune or coming up more broke than they already were. The Klondike Gold Rush played a major role in shaping peoples lives and a time in American history. My paper consists of 3 main topics: first, what people had to go through to get there; second, the harsh conditions they had to endure when they got there; and lastly, the striking at rich part or if at all they did get rich.

    Read More

  • The California Gold Rush in 1849

    824 Words  | 2 Pages

    The California Gold Rush in 1849 was the catalyst event for the state that earned them a spot in the U.S. union in 1850. This was not the first gold rush in North America; however, it was one of the most important gold rush events. The story of how the gold was discovered and the stories of the 49ers are well known. Men leaving their families in the East and heading West in hopes of striking it rich are the stories that most of us heard about when we learn about the California Gold Rush. Professors and scholars over the last two decades from various fields of study have taken a deeper look into the Gold Rush phenomena. When California joined the Union in 1850 it helped the U.S. expand westward just as most Americans had intended to do. The event of the Gold Rush can be viewed as important because it led to a national railroad. It also provided the correct circumstances for successful entrepreneurship, capitalism, and the development modern industrialization. The event also had a major influence on agriculture, economics, and politics.

    Read More

  • The Gilded Age Essay

    1337 Words  | 3 Pages

    During the 19th century, America was going through an important transition. The nation was dealing with the aftermath of the civil war and the following reconstruction of the South. The Reconstruction period was the precursor to the period deemed the “Gilded Age”. The nation saw economic growth and the creation of the mass market. The rise of industrialization and transition to urban living were some of the defining moments of this period. However, the most defining idea of the Gilded Age is Reform: Social, Political, and economic. The Gilded Age was plagued with the problems that, the reconstruction period failed to solve. During the Gilded Age, social, political, and economic reform movements were gaining ground. Blacks and other minorities (immigrants) were still facing discrimination. Blacks in particular were still facing discrimination and lack of rights despite being free United States citizens.

    Read More

  • The Gold Rush In California

    1322 Words  | 3 Pages

    A gold fever was arising. It was the talk of the country in the mid 1800’s. Worth about $1,000 per ounce today, gold meant great wealth in the 1840’s and 50’s. The news of gold findings in California soon spread worldwide. Many people were quick to react hearing that gold had been founded in California. California was a place of chaos during the gold rush of 1849. A plot of land that went for $15 in 1847, was later sold for $40,000 after the discovery of gold(Heinrichs, 23). Cities formed and California’s economy increasingly grew. A railroad was built which connected California to other states farther east in the United States because flocks of people continued migrating with the hopes of wealth. The gold rush drew much needed attention to California making it a crucial event to decisions about California in the future. The gold rush of 1849 resulted in the rapid growth of California ultimately leading to statehood and westward expansion.

    Read More

  • Decisions: Breaking Fate for a Better Life

    982 Words  | 2 Pages

    Sherman Alexie, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian. Stuttgart: Klett Sprachen, 2009. Print.

    Read More

  • California Gold Rush Research Paper

    942 Words  | 2 Pages

    The wagons ahead stretched for miles. Everyone was all going to the same place, California, to seek a fortune that they could only dream for, gold. The California gold rush lasted from 1848-1850. During this time people from all over the world were all going to California to seek a fortune of gold. However, not everyone was able to make this dream come true because there were many difficult challenges to deal with in order to make it to California. During the California gold rush many immigrants found challenges on their way to California, there was an abundance of people going to California, and there was a large crime rate.

    Read More

  • Women During the Gold Rush

    3115 Words  | 7 Pages

    The Gold Rush was one of the most influential times in California History. During the four years from 1848-1852, 400,000 new people flooded into the state. People from many countries and social classes moved to California, and many of them settled in San Francisco. All this diversity in one place created a very interesting dynamic. California during the Gold Rush, was a place of colliding ideals. The 49ers came from a very structured kind of life to a place where one was free to make up her own rules.

    Read More

  • California Gold Rush Research Paper

    976 Words  | 2 Pages

    A mining community, also known as a mining town or a mining camp, is a community that houses miners. Mining communities are usually created around a mine or a quarry. Many of the Americans dreamed of striking it rich. In 1849 the California Gold rush made that possible for a lot of the dreamers. A lot of people gave up after several years of trying to find nuggets of gold because it wasn’t as glamorous as they thought or hoped it would be. Mining was miserable you get up really early and leave really late at night. The conditions were nasty, there were rats everywhere and it was very dangerous. The miners were mainly scared of the mine caving in but also scared of the gas exploding. They were also really lonely and homesick. To really understand

    Read More

  • The California Gold Rush

    1208 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...s today. But it also resulted in many ethnic tensions in the new towns where the law was scarcely kept (“California Gold Rush”). San Francisco is a good example of the widespread impact the Gold Rush had. It prospered greatly by growing in economy and people. The city became the center of the whole rush. Many towns formed during the Gold Rush still exist in present day California. By the end of the Gold Rush in 1858, an estimated total of 500,000 had moved to California (“The California Gold Rush”).

    Read More

More about Essay On The Gold Rush

Open Document