The growth of California’s population was undoubtedly a factor in its being admitted as the 31st state of the Union in 1850. By the end of the Gold Rush, the population was around 25 times that number. When the gold rush began, the population of California was about 12,000. In the 1870s, the California government passed the first laws to protect the environment.Ĭhanges in California after the Gold Rush Unfortunately, both hydraulic and mercury mining caused significant environmental damage, which led to conflicts between miners and agricultural workers. Another mining method involved using mercury to separate gold from crushed rocks. The principle was the same as for panning and placer mining: lighter elements were washed away, while gold and other heavier elements remained. Miners used high-pressure hoses to wash soil and rocks over sluices. Panning was soon replaced by placer mining, a method involving the use of “cradles” or “rockers” to process larger amounts of soil and rocks to find gold. But panning took a lot of time and effort for a small return, and it wasn’t feasible on a large scale. Early efforts usually involved “panning” to separate the heavy gold from lighter rocks and dirt. Methods for finding gold evolved over time. Law enforcement was virtually nonexistent, and disputes were often settled personally or by groups of miners. If they abandoned it later, someone else could “claim-jump” and take over the staked-off land as their own. One widely accepted practice was “staking a claim,” in which gold-seekers “staked off” an area of land and began working it. It had no formal government or legal system, so residents developed their own codes of conduct. When the Gold Rush started, California was not yet a state and was under military rule. Sometimes families mined together, but more often men left their families at home as they went to search for gold. Prices for food and supplies were high as merchants tried to get their share of the miners’ expected profits. At the time, California had few established cities, so conditions were often primitive in the makeshift camps and boomtowns that grew up seemingly overnight. Mining was difficult and often dangerous. Life during the Gold Rushĭreams of making a fortune in gold didn’t match reality for many people. Not surprisingly, it didn’t remain a secret for long. After they confirmed that the metal Marshall had found was indeed gold, Sutter asked the mill workers to keep the discovery a secret. He reported his findings to the mill’s owner, John Sutter. Marshall discovered gold while working at Sutter’s Mill (now part of Coloma, a few miles northeast of Sacramento). ![]() The California Gold Rush began on January 24, 1848, when James W.
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