Essay On The California Gold Rush

The California Gold Rush was an event crucial to the development of California. The discovery of gold caused a mass migration to the area and attracted all kinds of people from as far as China, and as close as a couple towns away from the initial discovery site. Even though the chances of success were slim, prospectors and entrepreneurs alike tried to capitalize on the gold in hopes of gaining wealth. The Gold Rush was a major reason for people from all over the globe to come to California. This influx of people caused exponential growth in California’s economy, industries, and population. Despite the Gold Rush’s immense influence on California, it started from a simple origin. Beginning in the 1840s, the Gold Rush started when a miller discovered

This was especially true for China, which, at the time, was undergoing a particularly rough period of time due to war, famine, and economic issues. This led to lots of Chinese men looking for money and work, and the Gold Rush presented a perfect opportunity to get rich and bring wealth back home. The migration of Chinese men brought around 24,000 more people to California. Unfortunately for most of the Chinese, most were not successful in integrating into American society. The Americans were heavily taxing the Chinese who had to pay this charge in order to mine on Californian land. Although this was corrupt, it was another source of income derived from the Gold Rush. For those who did not choose to endure this treatment, they instead chose to open businesses such as restaurants and laundries, which evidently provided jobs and boosted consumerism in California. Beyond the 24,000 Chinese people who migrated, tons of people from all over the world migrated too. By the end of 1849, the population had risen to 40,000, and by 1852, California’s population peaked at 100,000

Mainly, people were enticed by the idea of living a luxurious life off of gold money. This sudden population increase did wonders for the territory of California and its economy. The amount of gold and money being moved about was astronomical. In the year of 1852, around 81 million dollars in gold money was produced. Due to inflation, the value of 81 million dollars in that time is equal to a little over 300 million dollars today. To migrate to California from inside the US cost anywhere from 100-300 dollars, which, in today’s value, is anywhere from around four to eleven thousand dollars. The cost of people moving to California and the gold being pulled from the earth wasn’t the only thing that boosted the economy of the state. Entrepreneurs began making their own businesses to capitalize on the people that were migrating to California, and industries that produced tools and other miscellaneous items were seeing lots of customers. For example, by 1853 most of the gold that was on the surface of California’s land had been mined away; mining deeper into the earth was no easy task, so hydraulic mining was invented. This was a new way for people to mine gold, and once again, the profits were monumental. Beyond the money and businesses the rush of people brought, the growth in population enabled the territory of California to officially become a state. On