Is it coincidence
that Hollywood, aerospace, the computer industry and the Internet
all started in California?
Not according
to filmmakers Michael Trinklein and Steven Boettcher. They believe
those industries all can trace their roots to an obscure event
on the American River in 1848 California--the discovery of gold.
The unprecedented
rush west that followed would create something America had never
seen before: an economy driven by high-risk entrepreneurialism.
That environment would later nurture some of California's largest
industries, and would continue to spawn new companies throughout
the United States.
An Accidental
Discovery
Gold was
first discovered in California by James Marshall, hired by rancher
John Sutter to build a sawmill for Sutter's expanding agricultural
empire. While chopping lumber for the sawmill, Marshall noticed
several gold nuggets in the American River and told Sutter. Surprisingly,
neither Marshall nor Sutter had any interest in capitalizing on
the find and feared that competition from gold-seekers would interrupt
their own operations, so they made a pact to keep the discovery
a secret.
But within
months, word spread eastward, and by 1849, thousands of young
men left their homes and families and traveled to California for
their share of the fortune. Some traveled on foot on the already
established Oregon-California Trail. Others traveled by ship around
the tip of South America, while still others took shortcuts across
Panama and Mexico. Regardless of the route, it was an intensely
difficult journey, with the adventurers often plagued by seasickness,
malaria, cholera and other diseases.
It's important
to note that the gold-seekers, or 49ers as they were called since
most left their homes in 1849, were not only American. The California
gold rush was a world event, attracting gold-seekers from Mexico,
China, Germany, France, Turkey and around the world.
High-risk
Entrepreneurialism
Some of the
most successful entrepreneurs never panned for gold, but supplied
the gold miners with much-needed supplies and services. For example,
Levi Strauss started a successful dry goods business, Philip Armour
opened a meat market and Henry Wells and William Fargo offered
miners secure, honest banking services in their company, Wells,
Fargo & Co.
Women played
an important, yet often underestimated role during the gold rush.
At the time, women were scarce, but those who lived in California
realized the entrepreneurial opportunities that existed and put
their much-needed domestic skills to work and profit. Some authorities
regard this period in history as the beginning of the women's
movement.
The legacy
of the gold rush is significant for a number of reasons. First,
gold brought people from around the world to the West--people
who stayed to form the multi-cultural nucleus that exists today
in that region of the country. Secondly, the gold rush pulled
the country itself westward, ensuring that California and the
other western regions would become a part of the United States.
Lastly, the gold rush awakened America to the idea of high-risk
entrepreneurialism, a concept that America's capitalistic society
continues to nurture.
On January
24, 1998, the United States will celebrate the 150th anniversary
of the gold rush.
