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California gold rush and its impact
Essay about the california gold rush
Essay about the california gold rush
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It’s eighteen forty eight, and the talk of gold is widespread, many people pack up and head to California. The California Gold Rush has just begun. The California Gold Rush was a difficult time for most people because many did not find gold. Some did, but others made a long difficult journey for nothing. Individuals faced many challenges during The California Gold Rush like the length of the journey and which route the miners took, not every forty-niner found gold, and there was a big risk for disease. A challenge many individuals faced during the gold rush was the length of the miners travel and which route they took. By wagon the journey took four months to get there.(Mcgill, 8) The forty-niners had to spend a long amount of time in a wagon, with little space, just so they could find gold. Traveling by boat also was a four month journey.(Mcgill, 8) The route by sea was very dangerous because they had to deal with all the sea trouble, like rough waters and rapids. The journey by sea had shortcuts but “A few who tried to use the sea route tried to shorten their traveling distance by crossing the small land bridge of Panama, only to face a treacherous rain forest.”(Mcgill, 8) The four month journey was a definite disadvantage but it was better to take that than shortcuts. The length of the miners travel, and the route …show more content…
Barely anyone who went to California in search of gold found any.(Zuber, 1) Thousands went to California and did not find any gold. During the gold rush miners either got lucky and found gold or they didn’t.(Zuber, 11) Many miners struck out and did not find anything, few did, but many did not. Not finding any gold during the gold rush was just the way it went, it was very “...hit-and-miss..”(Zuber, 11) Lots of people were driven by the idea of getting rich but not many did. Not every miner found gold during the gold rush was a challenge many individuals
To accommodate the needs of the ’49ers, gold mining towns had sprung up all over the region, complete with shops, saloons, brothels and other businesses seeking to make their own Gold Rush fortune.
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.
There are many ways in which we can view the history of the American West. One view is the popular story of Cowboys and Indians. It is a grand story filled with adventure, excitement and gold. Another perspective is one of the Native Plains Indians and the rich histories that spanned thousands of years before white discovery and settlement. Elliot West’s book, Contested Plains: Indians, Goldseekers and the Rush to Colorado, offers a view into both of these worlds. West shows how the histories of both nations intertwine, relate and clash all while dealing with complex geological and environmental challenges. West argues that an understanding of the settling of the Great Plains must come from a deeper understanding, a more thorough knowledge of what came before the white settlers; “I came to believe that the dramatic, amusing, appalling, wondrous, despicable and heroic years of the mid-nineteenth century have to be seen to some degree in the context of the 120 centuries before them” .
The setting of the essay is Los Angeles in the 1800’s during the Wild West era, and the protagonist of the story is the brave Don Antonio. One example of LA’s Wild West portrayal is that LA has “soft, rolling, treeless hills and valleys, between which the Los Angeles River now takes its shilly-shallying course seaward, were forest slopes and meadows, with lakes great and small. This abundance of trees, with shining waters playing among them, added to the limitless bloom of the plains and the splendor of the snow-topped mountains, must have made the whole region indeed a paradise” (Jackson 2). In the 1800’s, LA is not the same developed city as today. LA is an undeveloped land with impressive scenery that provides Wild West imagery. One characteristic of the Wild West is the sheer commotion and imagery of this is provided on “the first breaking out of hostilities between California and the United States, Don Antonio took command of a company of Los Angeles volunteers to repel the intruders” (15). This sheer commotion is one of methods of Wild West imagery Jackson
The first reason I stated of why the Klondike gold rush was harder is because of harsh climate, and competition from other miners. The usual temperature for the Klondike gold rush was -30/-40 degrees Fahrenheit, and sometimes it would lower all the way down to -50/-60 degrees Fahrenheit. The climate in the California gold rush was 30/40 degrees Fahrenheit. It also snowed, the Klondike gold rush had severe snowstorms, in fact sometimes if you on a trail during a snowstorm your visibility could drop to only 10 feet. Also, there was much more available land to mine in, in the California gold rush so anyone who came to the Klondike gold rush from far away was beat by the people that were already there. In both gold rushes, miners were also very hostile about their land. If anyone was caught on someone else’s land than they would be forced off or even get shot by the landowner.
The gold rush not only attracted miners but people in search of new starts, whether that was from love affairs gone wrong, or debts. Some see this rush as a way to make an easy profit or fortune and settle down with new everything. Pikes Peak Gold Rush is one of the most known features in the region. It became a stepping stone that drew as many as 100,000 prospectors. With these prospectors, they brought over the slogan, “Pikes Peak or Bust,” in 1859–60.
The time of westward expansion was filled of hardships and challenges for the citizens of America. They left their homes at their own will to help make life better for themselves, and would letter recognize how they helped our country expand. The people of the Oregon trail risked their lives to help better their lives and expand and improve the country of America. However, no reward comes without work, and the emigrants of the Oregon Trail definitely had it cut out for them. They faced challenges tougher than anyone elses during the time of westward expansion.The Emigrants of the Oregon trail had the the most difficult time surviving and thriving in the west because of environmental difficulties, illness abundance, and accident occurrence.
Vigilantism is the black eye on the history of the American frontier. During the 19th century due to a lack of trust, competence, or unreliable law enforcement, the settlers on the frontiers took it upon themselves to provide security and safety for their newly progressing cities. Life in the developing American west was difficult and created many problems for everyone involved. Texas’ history is riddled with skirmishes, wars, and feuds that called upon the local civilians to turn to vigilantism. So to, Arizona and New Mexico, while struggling to gain their statehood, saw instances of civilian uprisings to quell local violence. Of course, however, neither Texas nor the American Southwest saw the hotbed of violence and destruction that was seen in San Francisco following the introduction of the Gold Rush. The descriptions that were used to describe the excitement that the discovery of gold created could also be just as easily applied to the ways it affected the peoples mentality. “In 1848 and 1849 it was usually known as the ‘Gold Fever,’ the ‘California Fever,’ the ‘Yellow Fever,’ the ‘California Mania,’ and the ‘Gold Mania.” People from all over the globe were abandoning their responsibilities and duties for the chance of striking it rich and making a big splash. This dramatic influx of people, cultures, and beliefs into one location created the right mix of hope, frustration, anger, and pride that would lead to chaos and even though “San Francisco had the most efficient, most professional police department in the United States [during the 19th century]” it could not quell the need for vigilantes to rise up and provide order amongst lawlessness.
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!
Although most of the rush to the Klondike was to go prospect for gold other people got attracted there for the adventure, wilderness, or because they had nothing left where they lived now (Stefoff). This made the trip worthwhile for some people. The easiest way to get to the Klondike was by boat up to Dawson City the whole way, but it was also the most expen...
There have been many discoveries that have shaped our nation as a whole. Discoveries have allowed our country to thrive and become one of the most powerful nations in the world. When we look back at our nation's rich history, it is clear to see that there was one discovery in particular that had a vast impact on the United States; the discovery was gold in California. It was in this vastly unoccupied territory that the American dream was forever changed and California emerged as a powerful state busting at the seams. The California Gold Rush shaped California into the state that it is today. California is defined by its promise of entrepreneurial success and its acceptance and encouragement of obtaining the American Dream.
The journey along the Oregon Trail was a very long and rough experience. Stretching out to almost a whopping 2000 miles it usually took the pioneers 4-6 months travelling at 12 to 16 miles per hour. Throughout this journey the pioneers had to battle with cholera, poor sanitation, and accidental gunshots. The travelers had to gather all the resources that they had in order to survive. Usually the travelers traveled in large groups to help dealing with obstacles such as ravines, deep mud, snowstorms, thunderstorms, and rivers. Since there were no bridges or ferries crossing rivers and streams was a major hazard. Many supplies, animals, and travelers were lost attempting to cross rivers.
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.
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.
1848, the gold rush hit. Many settlers were searching for money to stabilize themselves and/or their families, although “migrating may well have lowered earnings in relative terms” (Clay and Jones). Even with this downside settlers did not hesitate. Not only was there the obstacle of risking the expenses of travel in accordance with the money that they could possibly make, but there was the “obstacle” of the Native Americans who owned the land that they so desperately