Color in the River: The California Gold Rush

It was one of the most memorable events in the history of America: A fellow named James Marshall, a talented jack-of- all- trades, was operating a sawmill about forty-five miles northeast of Sacramento in the territory of California. The year was 1848, and the region was still under Mexican control. One morning, Marshall took a walk along the American River near the mill and found some bits of bright metal in shallow water near the shore. He was almost sure it was gold. About a week later, he went to Sutter's Fort in Sacramento to show it to John Sutter, the mill owner. Sutter confirmed that, indeed, it was the precious metal. A group of soldiers at the fort got wind of the find and spread the word. Thus began one of history's biggest gold rushes.