On the early morning of January 24th, 1848, James Marshall was working at Sutter’s Mill, when out of the corner of his eye he spotted something shiny. Gold!
To be sure it was real gold he pounded a rock against the gold, and it was malleable. It could be pounded into various shapes without breaking. “Eureka! I found gold,” said James Marshall, “Its real!”
Here is John Sutter's own account of the Discovery of Gold in California
Soon the news spread like a prairie fire through San Francisco.
The towns people, and people from all over like, China, Mexico, Peru, Chile and Hawaii came to become rich.
Not all people found gold. Some people became merchants and sold things for very high prices. Then, many people could not afford to live in San Francisco.
By Maddie, Chris