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The California gold rush The big idea
What might the social, cultural, political, and environmental implications of this “gold rush” have been for northern California
Esssay about californa gold rush
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Recommended: The California gold rush The big idea
In the Early 1840’s a wealthy man by the name of John Sutter headed West to a place very few people had ever seen or heard of, called California. His plans were to start his own private empire. He was well on his way building his kingdom, until January 24th 1848 when one of his workers James Marshall caught something glittering in the riverbed on the American River. Marshall reached down and grabbed the shiny pea sized rock and after taking one look at it he was certain it was gold. He tried to forget about it and go back to work, but kept stumbling into more gold. Unable to believe that it was actually gold that he found he took samples back to Sutter. Sutter confirmed that his findings were gold, but wasn’t happy about it. He didn’t want the word to get out to people that there was gold in the river because he knew that crowds of people would come and destroy his empire. Marshall and Sutter decided to keep it a secret, but it didn’t last long. Rumors of a gold strike spread across the country fast. Sam Brannan, a merchant in California, saw opportunity in the situation. After buying every pick axe, pan, and shovel in the region, Brannan ran through the streets holding up a bottle of gold dust shouting about the gold strike. “It was a masterstroke that would spark the rush for gold and make Brannan the richest man in California” (www.isu.edu/~trinmich/discovery.html). In 1849 thousands of people from all around the world left their families and...
On a stop in Colorado during a business trip to California in 1883, Coin became fascinated with silver and took up a pick to try his hand at mining. Calling his mine “Silver Bell,” Harvey’s mine was the second largest producer in the area; however, due to the increase in transportation costs, increasing labor unrest, and the plummeting market value of silver, Harvey abandoned his mine. From Coin’s mining days, he formed an interest in silver as opposed to gold as the U.S. monetary system standard. In 1891, he became the chairman of the Trans-Mississippi Congress, whose interest was in promoting legislation that would benefit the states west of the Mississippi.
The Gilded Age was known as the Second Industrial Revolution because there was change in the economy, politics, and society. Most of the change was occurring because of the growth of large companies. The in the 1900s up to the 1920s, the companies started to decrease in power but not all since Henry Ford was being successful because of his automobile company that allowed the people to move more, and think differently depending on their sexuality. Even though Ford was successful, the businesses still didn’t run the people anymore, the people started to control the government more.
The exact period of time in which the Gilded Age occurred is ever-debatable, but most historians can at least agree that it started within the 20 years after the Civil War ended and lasted until the early 1920s. (West) The Gilded Age itself was characterized by the beginnings of corporations and corrupt political machines. Policies such as the General Incorporation Laws allowed business to grow larger more easily, and with less red tape involved. New technology allowed faster and more efficient production, but this explosive growth of industry called for not only more resources, but new business practices and leaders as well. (Moritz 10-12)
The Gilded age and the Progressive Era are time periods that played an important role in the development of the American society. The Gilded Age is a period of American history between 1870 and 1900. This term was coined by Mark Twain in the late 1800s. By this, he meant that this period was glittering on the surface but corrupt underneath ("Learn About the Gilded Age"). The Gilded Age is well known for its political scandals and extravagant displays of wealth. At the same time, this was an era of major achievements in the industry and economy, which significantly changed life of American people. The Gilded Age was followed by the Progressive Era which lasted from the 1890s to the 1920s. Progressive Era is well known for its economical, political, social reforms and technological inventions. In my opinion, The Gilded Age had a more significant impact upon the United States than the Progressive Era because it gave rise to new industries, created transportation and communication networks which provided the infrastructure for further development of technology in the Progressive Era.
What do you think of when you hear the term “Gold Rush”? The 1849 gold rush in California?
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.
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.
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 term Gilded Age was named for a Mark Twain book. It meant covered with gold, and was applied to this period as a whole. This was a period of corruption in sordid politics.
Rohrbough, M. (1997). Chapter 17: The California gold rush and the American nation, days of Gold, University of California Press: Berkeley
...iches? Evidence from the California Gold Rush." The Journal of Economic History 68.04 (2008): 997-1027. Print.
The Gilded Age Era was an important era because it brought new inventions and the skills of American entrepreneurs by increasing the countries industrial capacity. It also spread railroad lines and telegraph wires helped to the emergence of a national market. All of the new inventions and innovations were a spread of a new life to the American people that we still use as of right now.
The Gilded Age (1870-1900) was considered the golden age of America. The term the Gilded Age was coined by Mark Twain and Charles Dudley Warner in their book The Gilded Age: A Tale of Today (1873). The Gilded Age had success, like the economic boom and the formation of labor unions, but the weaknesses of that era were far greater than those accomplishments, like the ill prepared government, the unequal distribution of wages and the racial discrimination held against the Chinese, African Americans and the Indians
The Gold Rush was a time when many people in United States rushed west in hopes of discovering gold. This attracted thousands of people from all around America. Women played a key role in the Gold Rush. They had lots of jobs when it came to migrating west.
"Gold! Gold! Gold from the American River!" said Samuel Brannan, as he ran through the streets of San Francisco waving a bottle of gold dust in the air that he purchased from John Sutter’s Fort. The encounter of gold nuggets in the Sacramento Valley in early 1848 triggered one of the most crucial occurrences to influence American history during the beginning of the 19th century, the Gold Rush. The Gold Rush of 1849 (1848–1855), also known as the California Gold Rush, was one of the most captivating happenings during westward expansion. The Gold Rush of 1849 is also a fundamental event that not only impacted California but the United States as a whole and individuals from throughout the world. Thus, despite laborious toilers and their small chance to improve their lifestyle, California is defined by its promise of industrial success and its acceptance and inspiration of obtaining the American Dream.