The Economics of the California Gold Rush of 1849

The Economics of the California Gold Rush of 1849

Introduction

In the record of past events and developments of almost any of the American states one can find a few events and trends that in importance stand out from the purely local as sharply as an alone tree upon a desert flatness . The California Gold Rush is an example . Within California the Gold Rush was a profound change that altered forever the status of the state . Beyond California 's frontiers it was a force exerting a powerful attraction that sent its lines

of magnetism into every nation

The Great Migration

After Marshall 's discovery of pieces of shiny metal every civilized country knew the name California ' despite the fact that at that period few persons in Europe , or Asia , or Latin America could have found Illinois , or Massachusetts , or Georgia . All over the world people made ready to seek the Golden Fleece . People ventured their money in the voyages arranged by those more courageous than themselves , or to invest in the expanding of trade and shipping business to which the California Gold Rush was giving rise

Even if prudent men reached a decision to remain at home and keep their material wealth with them , still they could not escape completely the consequences of the series of events set in motion at Sutter 's Mill near Coloma . As has often happened in the past , the discovery in one region soon stimulated similar discoveries in other countries specifically in Australia in this case . As a result , the basic medium in the world 's currency began to grow rapidly . This growth was faster than in any foregoing period in history . For example , in the United States alone , gold production increased seventy-three times during the six years that began in 1848 , and from a position of insignificance among the gold producing nations , the United States climbed upward so rapidly that during the period from 1851 to 1855 it contributed nearly 45 per cent of the world 's affected all the countries on the earth 's surface (Ridgway 1929 ,

br 61

More considerable and more straightway obvious was the acting of the Gold Rush as a population movement and rapid accumulation . Here the first stage was kept within boundaries of California itself . It consisted of an impulsive headlong rush to the Sierra lower slopes of mountains by the people already in the province . The departure began from Sutter 's Fort in March and April , from San Francisco and Sonoma in May , from San Josy , Monterey , and Santa Cruz in May and June , and finally , from the strongly Hispanic southern communities in July and August (Roberts 2000 ,

. 64

A mass of the American immigration did not arrive at California until the unit of the Cape Horn sailing ships had built port in June , July and August , 1849 , or until the overland caravans had begun to spread during August and September . Considerable movement from Europe was even later , and is registered about at the end of...