The California Gold Rush began when James Wilson Marshall found flakes of gold in the American River on January 24, 1848. It wasn’t until a few days later, however, that California became US property after the Mexican-American War. After word finally got out about the newfound source of gold around mid-March, people that could get to the river flocked to try to amass a fortune. Immigrants came from Mexico, Chile, Peru, and China. In 1849, thousands of people borrowed money, mortgaged property, and spent their life savings to get to California either by crossing over the mountains or even sailing around the southernmost tip of South America. These miners became known as the ‘49ers and most didn’t receive the fortune they were after. However, miners did extract about 750,000 pounds of gold during the rush.
Source:
History.com Editors. “California Gold Rush.” History.com. A&E Television Networks, April 6, 2010. https://www.history.com/topics/westward-expansion/gold-rush-of-1849.