The California Gold Rush (1848–1855) began shortly after January 24, 1848 (when gold was discovered at Sutter's Mill in Coloma). As news of the discovery spread, some 300,000 people came to California from the rest of the United States and abroad. Gold, worth billions of today's dollars, was recovered leading to great wealth for a few. Many, however, returned home with little more than they started with.


Dr. Leonard Richards,
author of
The California Gold Rush and the Coming of the Civil War