| John Sutter was a Swiss
emigrant who arrived in California in 1839. He became a
Mexican citizen and received a land grant of 50,000 acres
in Sacramento Valley.
He built Sutter's Fort at the
site of present day Sacramento. At Sutter's Fort he
developed farming and other businesses. Sutter's Fort
became a rest station for travelers and immigrants to
California. On the right is a picture of Sutter's Fort at
the time of the Gold Rush (Source: Library of Congress).
In 1847 John Sutter hired James Marshall to build a
sawmill at a site named Coloma. At the right, below, is a
picture of the Mill at Coloma. |
 |
| On January 4, 1848, James
Marshall picked up a piece of metal at the mill that
looked like gold. He took the metal to Sutter. They
tested it and confirmed that it was gold.
Sutter was
afraid that the discovery of gold would take his workers
away from the fields. He was also concerned that gold
would bring prospectors onto his land. He asked Marshall
and the others working at the mill to keep the gold a
secret.
But word got out! By late 1848, word had spread across
the country. On December 5, 1848, President James Polk
speaking to Congress confirmed accounts of gold. The
discovery of gold in California became national news. |
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