Negative Effects Of The California Gold Rush

The California Gold rush of the years 1848-1849 changed the America financial status and the American population. It all started when James Marshall found some shiny metal near the river and he took this to his boss John Sutter and after testing of this metal they found out that this was Gold, But Sutter advised Marshall not to tell anyone about this because this might ruin Sutter’s chance to build a successful agricultural empire in California. But there were rumors and whispers that there was gold in the hills, and this all came to an end when a merchant named Samuel Brannan took some of the gold from the river and showed it to the town of San Francisco, and this caused almost all the residents in San Francisco to move to the hills to find

California’s gold rush quickly became brutal and dangerous. During the gold rush people became greedy and would even kill other people who found gold. Also, because of the greediness many people were killed decreasing California’s population. Around more than thousands of people would die every day from finding gold.Sadly enough, this was barely the beginning of the gold rush.

Imagine leaving everything you have, then going on one of the longest and most hardest trip ever, to have a slight chance of being rich, this is what many people did in the gold rush. The gold rush was when about 300,000 people went out west to California to start a new life by finding gold. The gold rush went from 1848 to 1855. For those seven years it was a very important time in history. The gold rush was important because many people were involved in it and it shaped a part of our future.

The Gold Rush was a period of time that totally transformed the United States. The Gold Rush expanded America and added new and improved culture into the country. People came from far and wide to search for gold and hunt for newfound money. So much gold was found it gave a lot of people that did not have money hope. It gave considerable positives like temporary economic stability and the ultimate expansion of America. Even though the Gold Rush encouraged some economic stability, it was ultimately harmful because it caused economic recession, it kept the country in economic chaos for too long a period, and expanded xenophobia due to the influx of “outsiders” coming for gold.

The outbreak of mining destroyed the environment that the Native Americans had lived off, and quickly made it nearly unlivable. During the 1850’s these Native Americans strongly depended on nature as a source of clothing, trade and food. The discovery gold was a nightmare for the Native Americans, but a gift to others. The Chinese used the gold rush as an opportunity to seek fortune and to leave devastation in their homeland of China. Very similar to the Chinese, Blacks, used this event to gain wealth or even in some cases to buy their freedom from their owners, for example Alvin Coffey in 1850 . The Gold Rush channeled people from all around the world into California. However, it was the individual goals of each ethnic group and the obstacles they faced, which determined the outcome of this epic economic

“My eye was caught with the glimpse of something shining at the bottom of the ditch” - James Marshall. The California Gold Rush officially went into full motion on January 24th of 1848. Although many events contributed to or caused the California Gold Rush, the most important events were the Westward Expansion, the discovery of gold, and immigration for work. The Westward Expansion contributed to the development of the California Gold Rush by having the Oregon Trail is one of the trails opened. By the Oregon Trail, most people were roaming along other paths such as the California Trail and others that came to be during the 1840’s. The Westward Expansion was also a way for families to move along in order to start a new phase in their lives. Another pivotal event was the discovery of gold. It led to several immigrants not only local but several from Peru, Australia, China, etc. This also created job opportunities. In addition, immigration contributed to the Gold Rush by as said before several immigrants from around the world coming. Mining also became a large job. Not only for the hunt for gold but for other natural resources such as silver, copper, and oil. These three events contributed to the mass migrations and large

The merchants and residents were being put in situation where their safety was greatly at risk. This was very scary for those who were not used to it. “With no police force in California's cities, criminals from all over the world flocked to San Francisco. There, they could commit their crimes with little fear of punishment.” (Saffer 44)

Why was the California Gold Rush important? First some background information about this past event was that the California gold rush had began on the 24th of January in 1848, when a man named James W. Marshall had discovered a gold nugget in the American River. This was during the construction of a sawmill for John Sutter, who was a Sacramento agriculturalist. The news of James Marshall discovering this gold nugget had brought thousands of immigrants to California and even brought people from elsewhere in the United States and even from other countries. “When the gold rush began, California had a population of fourteen thousand; by the end of 1849, there were an estimated one hundred thousand in the former Mexican province.”

Though most people became wealthy through other means other than mining. The gold rush created a labor shortage as many Californians abbandoned their jobs and went to the gold fields. This shortage offered opportunities for many people that dreamed of the work. Most of these people were foreigners who, when they finally reached California, found that the gold was much harder to find and alot less abundant than they dreamed.

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.

The California Gold Rush had a positive impact on California’s environment in many different ways, but along with the positives came the negative impacts. In 1848, people flocked to California in hope to make their gold filled dreams come true and strike it big, but with the more people moving to California, the more the population rose, leaving destructive effects on the state’s environment then and for the years to come. California’s physical environment was shaped not only by the influx of people, but also the manmade structures they added and how they manipulated the state’s land to embrace the large population that wasn’t there before the Gold Rush hit.

The California Gold Rush was an event that lasted from January 24th, 1848 to 1855. The event was driven mainly by the large quantities of gold reserves that were discovered in the soon to be US state of California. This event caused many Americans to move from the eastern states and middle states to California with the hopes of finding gold. In this paper, I will analyze the economy at the time the gold rush started and attempt to answer the question of why individuals found it necessary or advantageous to move out to California in pursuit of gold. I will also consider personal accounts and editorials written to gain a more personal narrative of the conditions people were experiencing as well as their mindsets in deciding whether to move to California for the gold or not.

The discovery of the California Gold Rush took place by chance. Mainly the amount of the world’s gold is deep underground and embedded in hard rock. Unlike anywhere else in the world at that time the gold in California was simple to dig up, free for the taking and required little tools to acquire any gold. Only things required: a pick or shovel and a pan to shift out the gold from the rock, sand and debris. The Gold Rush affected not only California, but the outcome of the nation. Creating the expansion of our nation into Western America and California. Hundreds of thousand Americans and foreigners moved toward the Sierra Nevada’s, with the hopes of sticking it rich. Which impacted the social life and the economy, while effected the rest of the country. Producing a number of diverse people seeking to make a fortune, influenced California and the American life.

The California gold rush began when a gold nugget was uncovered in the American River during 1848. Not only did this discovery entice Americans from all over the United States to travel to California in hopes of making their own profit, but it also brought a torrent of Chinese immigrants to the United States between 1849 and 1882. At the time of the gold rush, China's economy was very weak. There were wars and famines occurring. When news of the gold rush reached China, many Chinese men set out to America with hopes of gaining wealth and returning back to their homes. “After the gold rush, Chinese immigrants worked as agricultural laborers, on railroad construction crews throughout the West, and in low-paying industrial jobs” (Chinese Immigration to the United States - For Teachers). Some even opened their own businesses.

     The California Gold Rush of 1849 is one of the most interesting and exiting events of the United States. From the wild stories of men striking it big, to the heart wrenching tales of people losing everything, these are what make it so alluring. There are many aspects of the California Gold Rush; effects on California; individual stories of struggle; and effects on the United States as a young country looking for stability.