Effects of the Gold Rush to the Californian Indians as Genocide - Essay Example

Research Paper Was the Gold Rush Era a bane or boom? here) History and Political Science March Was the Gold Rush Era a bane or boom? Introduction Gold is a precious metal that costs heavily in the market. It is used to make jewelries, decoration and used to guaranty currencies. Because it is such an expensive metal, it has become a symbol of prosperity ever since. Gold is not only a sign of wealth but also a mark of achievements like winning golden medal awards in sports in Olympic Games and honors in academic excellence. But little is known that as gold started the economic growth of America when it was discovered in 1849, there were also people who lost lives and fortunes in the process. So in this context, was this discovery good or bad for America? Discussion It is my firm belief that everything that we have now in our economy, we owe it to the discovery of gold in California in 1800s. Gold has made California and it was good for the economy because of wealth it has contributed. Let us recall that back then before the “gold-rush era”, progress was so little with only about 1,000 people residing in the California, and my guess is, it was a sleepy town; but by the end of 1840s, population swelled to 100,0001. This burgeoning population encouraged growth of business and economy as shops, brothels, and salons began to flourish. At the same time, “lawlessness became rampant such as prostitution, burglary, violence, gambling and banditry”2. Nonetheless, San Francisco developed into a bustling economy. The discovery of gold in California has helped in the early ushering of its bid to be admitted as the 31st State of the United States3 and to be admitted as a free state. The controversy of California’s admission led to the amendment of the Fugitive Slavery and to avert the crisis between the north and the south4 As the influx of immigrants continued to grow in California, gold mining became difficult and hard labor. Going to California is hard but still, they came, as described in on line websit5e: In what has been referred to as the "first world-class gold rush," there was no easy way to get to California; forty-niners faced hardship and often death on the way to the gold fields Gold became difficult to reach and hydraulic mining has destroyed the region’s landscape. To give you an idea of how much gold was extracted at that time, it was claimed that a total of $2billion worth of gold was pulled from the ground during its peak on 18526. With this kind of wealth I could imagine the excitement of the people then who all wanted to partake on the gold discovery. Gold was first discovered by James W. Marshall on January 24, 1848 who saw something shiny in Sutter Creek. It was an unexpected discovery only as he was there as a worker overseeing construction of a saw mill. People had always a notion of finding gold somewhere, but it was only when they saw the discovery they came to believe rumors were true. Upon the discovery, one of his co-workers overheard Marshall said: “Boys, I have got her now.”7 They began to believe when they saw rolled in Marshall’s hat 10 to 12 pcs. of gold. Others, upon discovery said “Gold! Gold! Gold from the American River!"- Samuel Brannan, running through the streets of San Francisco waving a bottle of gold dust in the air, 18488 News like that is hard to contain, and after it was backed up by US President James Polk in 1848, the gold rush began. It had attracted people from all walks of life and from other parts of the world and they were called “forty-niners” because of the year it was foretold.9 But did this discovery really 5 bring the people wealth? To Gen. A. Sutter, who was approached by Marshall who brought him the news, it was not at all. This was so because as soon as his workers knew of this, they all left him to seek their own fortune of gold. As he related in his own words10: “What a great misfortune was this sudden gold discovery for me! It has just broken up and ruined my hard, restless, and industrious labors, connected with many dangers of life, as I had many narrow escapes before I became properly established”. “… By this sudden discovery of the gold, all my great plans were destroyed. Had I succeeded for a few years before the gold was discovered, I would have been the richest citizen on the Pacific shore; but it had to be different. Instead of being rich, I am ruined.” The experience of Franklin A.Buck, a young man at 20, was success at business rather than of gold. Franklin was one of the pioneers in California, but instead of digging which everybody did, he made a fortune from his supply store. As he wrote to his sister on November 25, 184911 ." Young Buck told Mary about the success of his business. "Week before last," he boasted, "we sold out of our little store $1,500 worth of goods. All cash trade in one day. Tell Joseph to beat that . . . The flour that I bought in San Francisco for $18 per sack (200 lbs) we sold for $44 and are all out." “Among those seeking gold in California in 1849, many went home again penniless. But merchants, like Buck, who provided supplies for the miners, tended to do well in the golden West.” A heatbreaking letter from one of the early miner said: "Jane," 49er Melvin Paden wrote home to his wife, "I left you and the boys for no other reason than this: To come here and procure a little property by the sweat of my brow so that we could have a place of our own, that I might not be a dog for other people any longer."12 I said heartbreaking because, he had to leave a family and a relationship which was a sacrifice. One of Art of the Collection of the Library of Congress, entitled Eyewitness to History showed this letter of one of the miners named S. Shufelt. He wrote to his cousin in March 1850, the following …Life in Camp: "There is a good deal of sin and wickedness going on here.There is a good deal, Stealing, lying, Swearing, Drinking, Gambling & murdering. There is a great deal of gambling carried on here. Almost every public House is a place for Gambling, & this appears to be the greatest evil that prevails here. Men make & lose thousands in a night, & frequently small boys will go up & bet $5 or 10 (Equivalent to $115-$225 today) -- & if they lose all, go the next day & dig more. We are trying to get laws here to regulate things but it will be very difficult to get them executed." Shufelt continued: "Many, very many, that come here meet with bad success & thousands will leave their bones here. Others will lose their health, contract diseases that they will carry to their graves with them. Some will have to beg their way home, & probably one half that come here will never make enough to carry them back. But this does not alter the fact about the gold being plenty here, but shows what a poor frail being man is, how liable to disappointments, disease & death. As earlier stated, because of influx of miners, gold became harder to find and many people were hard-lucked and penniless. Many people who struck gold became wealthy, but there are those whose wealth came from other sources. For instance, the exodus of workers to gold fields created a shortage of employment. This became an opportunity for jobseekers and immigrants who flocked to California and eventually realized gold was hard to find.13 The ethnicity of people in California was composed of different breeds of culture that belonged to Europeans, South Americans, Chinese, Americans and free black slaves. Naturally, the place became a turbulent community and an opportunity for greedy owners who found this an opportunity for exploitation which is similar to slavery. As slavery became a big issue, the government was forced to come up with a Compromise deal that would end territorial issues and slavery that unfortunately did not work out, thereby causing rife and civil war. By 1855, the gold rush had committed progress to California as it has opened up economic opportunities such as trade, business, agriculture, banks, and entertainment. The gold rush has impacted the Californian economy that had somehow shaped it today. Gold produced in California grew steadily from 1848’s $245,301 to $44,095,163.00 in 185914. Surely, this is a big amount that helped in the growth of California. The discovery of gold changed the design of California, from the structures, cultures and beliefs to what it is today. Today, its population estimate as of 2013 is 38,332,52115. So far, it is one of the most populated states of the United States. Its populations continues to be a mixed of ethnicity that leads to diversity. Diversity brings in improvements as they carry technological improvements, trade and expertise that are needed in the economy. I have no doubt that that the golden era transformed the government in many ways. Conclusion To the question posed: “is the god rush a bane or boom?, my answer is yes it is a boom. A boom is an explosion, while bane is something of a pest, an irritation, or annoyance. In my review, gold rush was an irritation and an annoyance because it disrupted their way of living and made them poorer than before. Disgusted, because they had to eke out a hard living that was contrary to what they have dreamed of. They had become victims of circumstances and of vicious greed of some. “California presented to people a new model for the American dream—one where the emphasis was on the ability to take risks, the willingness to gamble on the future." - Historian H.W. Brands16 In a separate argument, historian Richard White describe effects of the gold rush to the Californian Indians as genocide as he describes it “ Genocide is a word I hesitate to use, but what happens in California is very close to genocide."..Richard White But to some who were fortunate enough, it was a boom who took the opportunity of the exploding economy of trade and the haul of gold. The discovery of gold in California according to Iowa historian Malcolm J. Rohrbough said: "When California discovered gold," notes University of Iowa historian Malcolm J. Rohrbough, "the world discovered California. Willingly or not, as a consequence, Americans were about to learn some sobering and exhilarating truths about themselves."17 Read more here: http://www.calgoldrush.com/part1/01overview.html#storylink=cpy Weighing things over, the golden era created more advantages than disadvantages. The advantages are more lasting than the physical weight of gold. These advantages are all piped in the economy of our country. Think of the technologies, education, employment, peace and order and all of the economic comforts people have today. All of these were all because of wealth discovered by our forefathers in 1800s. Yes, many had sacrificed their lives. Yet many have also sacrificed to get the coveted peace and wealth.. Some things have to be given up to get something. In that era, the landscape of the environment was destroyed; stability of relationship was destroyed; and a great deal of sacrifice was given by people. If I were there in that era, I would probably take the stance of boom because seeing the difficulty of labor of miners, business and trade would be a lighter path for me The golden era was good and will not be forgotten. It will be embedded in our history and in our minds that once upon a time, gold was a-plenty and was just waiting to be picked up. Before I wrote this research, I thought of it as magical only, but I saw that there is a realm of truth as there are witnesses who swore to this era. References America’s Story. Gold Discovered in California. Library of Congress http://www.americaslibrary.gov/jb/reform/jb_reform_fortyniners_1.html.Viewed 27 March 2014 … “Boys…”. Gold Discovered in California. Library of Congress http://www.americaslibrary.gov/jb/reform/jb_reform_fortyniners_1.html. Viewed 27 March 27, 2014 (Primary Source) … “Pioneer life in Sacramento”; … Gold Discovered in California. Library of Congress http://www.americaslibrary.gov/jb/reform/jb_reform_gold_3.html. Viewed 27 March 2014.(Primary Source) Eyewitness to History. The California Gold Rush 1849. http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/californiagoldrush.htm(Primary Source) History.com. “The Gold Rush of 1849”. http://www.history.com/topics/gold-rush-of-1849 Viewed 26 March 2014 ... “49ers. Come to California.” http://www.history.com/topics/gold-rush-of-1849. Viewed 26 March 2014 …“Lasting impact of the gold rush” http://www.history.com/topics/gold-rush-of-1849. Viewed 26 March 2014 Sutter A., The Discovery of Gold in California. The Virtual Museum of the City of San Francisco. http://www.sfmuseum.org/hist2/gold.html (Primary Source) Steve Weigand, The California Gold rush: An Era Remembered. http://www.calgoldrush.com/part1/01overview.html ….Ibid. “California Gold Rush”. ww.siskiyou-county-online.com/California_Gold_Rush.html The impact of gold http://lessons.ctaponline.org/~dbaker/dbaker/A%20folder/theimpactofgold.html …”Gold produced in California. http://lessons.ctaponline.org/~dbaker/dbaker/A%20folder/theimpactofgold.html U.S. Census Bureau. California Quick Facts. http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/06000.html Web Guides. “Primary Documents in American History” http://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ourdocs/Compromise1850.html. Viewed 27 March 2014 Read More