RON HENGGELER

By the beginning of 1849, word of the Gold Rush had spread around the world.
An overwhelming number of gold-seekers and merchants began to arrive from virtually every continent.

It is estimated that approximately 90,000 people arrived in California in 1849—about half by land and half by sea.
Of these, perhaps 50,000 to 60,000 were Americans, and the rest were from other countries.

By 1855, it is estimated at least 300,000 gold-seekers, merchants, and other immigrants had arrived in California from around the world.

San Francisco had been a tiny settlement before the rush began.

When residents learned about the discovery, it at first became a ghost town of abandoned ships and businesses,
but then boomed as merchants and new people arrived.

San Francisco grew from a small settlement of about 200 residents in 1846 to a boomtown of about 36,000 by 1852.

All told, the news of gold brought some 300,000 people to California from the rest of the United States and abroad.
Of the 300,000, approximately half arrived by sea and half came from the east overland on the California Trail and the Gila River trail.

California's name became indelibly connected with the Gold Rush, and fast success in a new world became known as the "California Dream."
California was perceived as a place of new beginnings, where great wealth could reward hard work and good luck.

Miners lived in tents, wood shanties, or deck cabins removed from abandoned ships.
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.

Overnight California gained the international reputation as the "golden state".
Generations of immigrants have been attracted to San Francisco and California by the California Dream.

Overnight California gained the international reputation as the "golden state".
Generations of immigrants have been attracted to San Francisco and California by the California Dream.