How Did James Marshall Find Gold

Words: 524
Pages: 3

~Introduction~

In 1848 James Marshall discovered gold in the American River. The American River is located in Coloma. At first he and John Sutter tried to keep it a secret but soon everyone knew about it. At first no one believed it but then it was proved by Sam Brannan.

People came from all over the world hoping to strike it rich. It took months to get to California. Tools and other supplies were in great demand due to the population increase. Miners were call the forty-niners because most of them arrived in 1849.

Sam Brannan

$Gold$

Gold is a precious mineral that is hard to find. Gold is not easily found pure. It is really hard to find pure gold. It is normally mixed with a little silver, copper or other minerals.

Every once and
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Miners would put it in the water and put gravel in it. Then they would swish it back and forth in the water until there is not much left and if they were lucky they would see gold at the bottom. Pickaxe, shovel and pan
∾Routes∾

There were many routes to California. Some them were dangerous and some took a long time.

One way to get to California was to sail around the tip of South America. It normally lasted 6 to 8 months. The waves would be harsh and rough. Some ships ran out of food, coal and other supplies.

Some People would sail to Panama and go thru the rainforests. They usually got diseases like malaria. Not many people survived the walk thru the rainforest. Even tho it was dangerous many people sailed to panama and it was hard to get on a ship.

Other people went on the Oregon trail by wagon. It lasted 6 to 8 months and sometimes even longer. In wagons people could lose supplies on the rocky road. They could also meet other animals like coyotes and other wild animals.
The Routes
⊷Conclusion⊶

In 1848 and 1849 the gold rush changed California forever. Gold had made lots of people come to California and was soon very hard to find. Tools were used to find gold. Each tool had a different purpose. There were many routes to get to California. Some were dangerous and