The California Gold Rush

1037 Words3 Pages

California, the place to turn cant’s into cans and dreams into plans. The same situation and scenarios apply to today and even over one hundred and sixty five years ago. Then and now are not so different, people are thriving or failing from the land of plenty, supplying themselves with knowledge, wealth, or skill to either spread their wings and take flight or crash and burn. Each state in the United States of America has a correlating nickname to either why it’s famous or an explanation of its history. California’s state name is The Golden State, and going all the way back to 1849 is why this was such an influential time for California and all of America. This is the period of the Gold Rush. Reasons why this event was so impeccable, to the development of California, are the years leading up to the discovery, the first findings, the journey, and so much more.
Americans, inspired by the idea of manifest destiny meaning it was their God given right to rule the entire, mass, amount of land from ocean to ocean. Thanks to this vision it quickly sent current land occupiers, Californios or Mexico, and the United States in two completely different directions. In 1846, Mexican soldiers rose up against United States forces. On May 31, 1846 President James K. Polk declared war. A small California Republic, The Bear Flag Revolt, seized Sonoma for naval forces to occupy in hopes of wining the war. The Mexican War didn’t bring about much fighting just a hot potato game of territory conquering, but in January of 1847 Andres Pico a Mexican official surrendered to U.S. lieutenant John Fremont (Uschan 10). Formally in May of 1848 the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was reviewed by both temperamental parties and after approval from the United State...

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...ting trek by land was one to be made by wagon, horseback, or on foot either way the most popular way started in Independence, Missouri and ended in California 2,000 miles and six months later. "Start at 4, travel till the sun gets high, camp till the heat is over. Then start again and travel till dark (Uschan 21)."

Works Cited

America the Story of Us. Dir. Jackson, Michael, Jane Root. NUTOPIA. 2010.
Bowen, William A., Clark Davis. The Gold Rush. “World Book.” 2011 ed.
History.com Staff. The Gold Rush of 1849. “History.com.” 2010. 10 April 2014. http://www.history.com/topics/gold-rush-of-1849 Sonneborn, Liz. The California Gold Rush Transforming the American West. New York:
Infobase, 2009.
The California Gold Rush, 1849. EyeWitness to History, www.eyewitnesstohistory.com
2003. ,
Uschan, Michael. The California Gold Rush. Milwaukee: World Almanac Library, 2003.

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