Samuel Brannan (March 2, 1819—May 5, 1889)
Born in Saco, Maine, Brannan was apprenticed to a
printer as a young man. Brannan joined the Church of
Jesus Christ of Later Day Saints in the early 1840s and
travelled with a missionary group in 1846 to Yerba
Buena (present day San Francisco). Brannan used his
printing skills to start the first newspaper in San
Francisco, the California Star. When gold was discovered at Sutter’s Mill,
Brannan owned the only store between San Francisco and the gold field. He
capitalized on this opportunity by buying all of the gold mining supplies and
selling to the miners at outrageous prices. In nine weeks he made $36,000
and soon became California’s first millionaire.
Joseph Walker (Dec 13, 1798 — Oct 27, 1876 )
Walker was born in Tennessee. In the spring of
1833, Benjamin Bonneville sent a party of men
under Joseph Walker to explore the Great Salt
Lake and to find an overland route to California.
Eventually the party discovered a route which later
became known as the California Trail, the primary
route for the emigrants to the goldfields during the California gold rush.
Walker was likely the first white man to gaze upon Yosemite Valley.
Abraham Thomson
Thompson was a mule-train packer leading a group
of men from Oregon to the Scott River, where gold
had been found in 1851. They had stopped to camp
overnight on the journey. Heavy rains caused
clumps of grass to come up when the mules were
eating. Abraham noticed there will little specks of
gold attached to the clumps of dirt. Thompson and his friends had
stayed the night on what became known as “the richest square mile on
earth.” Thousands of miners came, forming what is now Yreka,
California
James Lick (Aug 25, 1796—Oct 1, 1876)
James was born in Stumpstown, Pennsylvania and
learned many trades at a young age. He was an
entrepreneur and was willing to go anywhere to make
a profit. His travels brought him to San Francisco in
January 1848 and began buying and selling real estate.
When gold was discovered he tried his hand at mining, but decided after a
week that his fortune would come from selling land. His wealth continued to
grow and in 1861 he build the Lick House, a grand hotel which became
known as the finest hotel west of the Mississippi River. Near the end of his
life he gave $3,000,000 of his fortune to various public works, including the
construction of an observatory with the most powerful telescope of his day.
Joseph McKinney (? - Aug 15, 1850)
McKinney was Sacramento’s first sheriff, elected in
April of 1850. Not much is known about his life
before he came to California. He arrived in 1849 and
is believed to have been in his early 20s. Arguments
between landowners and newcomers to the gold
rush arose. Violence on both sides increased until
the “squatter’s riots” began. Sheriff McKinney and his team rode out to
a house in Brighton when they heard some “land squatters” had
barricaded themselves in. When he arrived, he asked them to lower
their weapons, but they shot him instead.
Eliza Farnham (Nov 17, 1815- Dec 15, 1864 )
Eliza was born in Rensselaerville, New York. She was
a school teacher in Boston when her husband,
Thomas, left for California. He died in 1848 and she
took her two sons out to San Francisco in 1849 to
settle his affairs. She managed his ranch and taught
elementary school for most of the 1850s. She wrote
the first book about California written by a woman, California, In-doors
and Out.
Hiram Pierce (1810-1866)
Hiram lived with his wife, Sara, in New York, where he
worked as a blacksmith. Pierce’s health was very poor
and his doctor recommended a sea voyage for his
health. They had heard all of the stories about gold in
California, so in March of 1849 he began his journey to
California. About 3 months later he arrived in San Francisco. Hiram struggled
to make ends meet and was not able to send money home to his family.
$100 in debt, Hiram decided to make one last effort by joining a mining
company. He worked very hard, only to find a few dollars a day. Pierce
returned home near the end of 1850 and resumed his blacksmith business,
though he always dreamed of returning to California.
Luzena Wilson (1820-1902)
Luzena and her husband Mason left for California in
1849 to seek their fortune. Luzena soon discovered
what a rarity and asset she was as a woman in
California. A man offered her $5.00 for a biscuit. She
wrote in her memoir, “I hesitated ... he repeated his
offer to purchase, and said he would give ten dollar for bread made by a
woman.” The Wilsons sold their oxen and purchased a small hotel. Luzena
made the meals, which she could sell for top dollar because she was a
woman. Women made up 3% of the non-Native population and she was
treated like a queen. She reminded the miners of their homes, mothers,
wives, and sisters.
Charles Crocker (Sep 16, 1822—Aug 14, 1888)
Charles quit school at an early age to help support his
family. He worked various jobs from farming to
blacksmithing. He and two of his brothers ventured
together to California in 1850. He gave up on
prospecting and opened a store in 1852. He became
extremely wealthy and was elected to city council and eventually state
legislature. In 1861 he joined forces with Huntington, Stanford and Hopkins
(together known as “the Big Four”) to form the Central Pacific Railway. They
built the western part of the transcontinental railroad.
Mary Jane Caples (?)
One of the few women to come to California in the
Gold Rush, Mary earned her money by selling pies to
the miners while her husband panned for gold. She
sold fruit pies for $1.25 and mince pies for $1.50 each.
Some days she sold over one hundred pies, using just
two small Dutch ovens to cook them all in.
Juliette Brier (Sep 26,1813—?)
Juliette and her husband, Rev. John Wells Brier, set out
in a party of 80 wagons and 250 people on Oct 9, 1849.
They were being guided by Captain Jefferson Hunt. The
captain made a wrong turn, and though he corrected
his mistake, the Briers and 4 other families decided to
go their own way in search of a short cut. Unfortunately, their “short cut”
took them through what became known as the Death Valley. They suffered
extreme dehydration and sickness and eventually were led out by a group
called the Jayhawkers. They arrived safely 4 months later and settled in
Marysville. Juliette was a prominent care giver of the entire group, still
remembered and honored today at Jawhawker reunions.
Elsa Jane Guerin (?)
Elsa was raised by her uncle in Kentucky and sent away to
boarding school in New Orleans. At 12 she ran away and
married a steamboat pilot. Together they had 2 children
before he was killed by a shipmate named Jamieson when
she was just 15. She was left with no money and a growing
hatred for the man who left her a widow and a beggar. Elsa turned her kids
over to the Sisters of Charity, cut her hair and became Mountain Charley.
She travelled and worked many jobs as Charley, always looking out for signs
of Jamieson. She to California, panning for gold, purchasing a saloon and
selling pack mules. She eventually found Jamieson, shot him and he died 3
days later.
Sheldon Shufelt (1818-1852)
Sheldon was one of 200 men who boarded the Panama
in New York with hopes of striking it rich in California in
May 1849. Like many others, he left his wife and child
at home, intending to return with riches. A letter
Sheldon wrote to his cousin was discovered in 1924
and reveals what life was like for the miners. Diet was poor and disease was
rampant. Though a decent amount of gold was found, prices were
extremely high and most men lost whatever money they found at gambling,
which was one of the biggest problems Sheldon wrote about. Shufelt was
captured by bandits on his return voyage home. He escaped, but died from
a tropical disease shortly after his return home.
Alonzo “Old Block” Delano (Jul 2, 1806—Sep 8, 1874)
Alonzo was working in Illinois as a merchant with his
family when he contracted consumption. His doctor
recommended a change of scenery, so he moved
California. He came first to Marysville, where he earned
money by drawing portraits of the gold miners. He later
came to San Francisco, working for the San Francisco Daily Courier and The
Pacific News. He was one of the first to write in the “California Humor” style,
a satirical social commentary featuring whimsical sketches of miners and
gamblers. Alonzo began working for Wells Fargo in 1854 and was Grass
Valley’s first Wells Fargo agent.
Louise Clappe (July 28, 1819 – 1906)
Louise and her husband Fayette headed out west while
Fayette was studying medicine. They lived in San
Francisco and Plumas when they arrived. Louise wrote
23 letters to her sister back home under the pen name
Dame Shirley in 1851 and 1852. Her letters give
amazing insight into life as a woman in California. Her desire was to give a
true picture of mining life, even when it was not pretty. Louise took pride in
doing things she was told she could not do, including panning for gold. She
noted that it was dirty and difficult work and did not try it for long. Some of
her letters were published in the The Pioneer. Fayette and Louise separated
and eventually divorced. Fayette returned home and Louise taught school.
Hetty Green (Nov 21, 1834—Jul 3, 1916)
Hetty was born in Massachusetts to the richest whaling
family in their city. In the 1860s both of her parents and
two of her aunts passed away, each leaving a significant
fortune to her, which she invested in Civil War bonds. She
was notoriously frugal. She wore only one black dress,
which she had only spot cleaned to save on soap, she rode and old carriage
and reportedly at mostly 15¢ pies. She was known to many as the “witch of
Wall Street.” Hetty also owned the Old Eureka Mine, just south of Sutter’s
Creek. She was the richest woman in the world at one time.
Stephen Chapin Davis (1833-1856 )
Stephen and his brother Josiah came to California together
in 1850. They quickly discovered that gold mining would
not make them rich, so they took up other professions.
They purchased a store for $260.00 and all of its goods at
cost value. They found they could sell their merchandise
for more than twice the original cost. Stephen kept a journal during his time
in California and during his travels, revealing what life was like when
traveling, in the gold fields and in his store.
Elijah Steele (November 13, 1817 – June 27, 1883)
Elijah was from New York, where he became a lawyer in
1840. He practiced law briefly in Illinois and Wisconsin
before coming to California in 1850. Elijah prospected at
Shasta, the Scout River, Greenhorn and Yreka before
trying a few more occupations. He was a driver, butcher
and rancher before he returned to practicing law in the mid-1850s. He was
elected to the California State Assembly in 1867 and to the Superior Court in
1879.
James Beckwourth (1798-1866)
James was born in Virginia. His mother was a slave and his
father was her owner. He was apprenticed to his father as
a blacksmith until he was 19, when his father/master freed
him. He was employed by the Rocky Mountain Fur
Company and became a prominent trapper and mountain
man. While trapping in Native American territory he was mistaken for the
lost son of the Crow chief and he lived with them for a while. In 1848 he
went to California at the start of the Gold Rush. He was a shopkeeper for a
bit, but then became a professional card player. He discovered Beckwourth
Pass through the Sierra Nevadas in 1850 and Beckwourth Trail in 1851,
saving gold seekers 150 miles of travel and dangerous passes.
Nikola Budrovich (? )
In 1849, Nikola Budrovich, Frano Kosta, and Antonio
Gasparich, immigrants from Croatia, set up a tent on Long
Warf and called it “Coffee Stand.” They sold fresh fish on
the busy wharf to merchants and sailors. Soon their
business grew and they built a shack of corrugated iron.
Eventually they had to relocate and they became the New World Coffee
Stand and finally the New World Saloon. The business went under several
more changes, but still exists today in San Francisco as the Tadich Grill.
Dr Fayette Clapp (June 1824—? )
Fayette was born in Chesterfield, Massachusetts. He
graduated from Brown University in 1848 and began
studying medicine at Castleton in Vermont when he
decided to go with his wife, Louise, to California. Louise
and Fayette both fell ill when they arrived, and Fayette
was sick for the first year they were there. He completed an absentee
degree program, earning his doctorate. He was elected as a delegate to a
political nominating convention also while he was there. Fayette did not like
California and he ended up returning home in the mid 1850s. He and Louise
later divorced and she added an “e” to the end of her name as a form of
separation.
Oliver Cromwell Hackett (Mar 29, 1822—Apr 8, 1905)
Oliver was born in Kentucky and moved with his family to
Illinois in 1835. He married his wife, Ellen, in 1854 and in
1849 or 1850 he travelled to California. Hackett came
through the Isthmus of Panama and staked his claim in
Auburn. Like many others, we was disillusioned by false
promises of gold, and he soon returned home to manage his farm in Illinois.
William Ide (Mar 28, 1796 – Dec 19, 1852 )
William was a carpenter in Virginia. He married his wife,
Susan, and they lived in Massachusetts, moving westward
until they reached Illinois. He was a farmer and school
teacher there. In 1845 he sold his farm and travelled by
wagon train from Independence, MI to Oregon. Reports
that the Mexican government was going to expel all settlers who were not
Mexican citizens led Ide and about 30 other men to conduct what became
known as the Bear Flag Revolt in 1846. They seized the pueblo of Sonoma
and raised the California Bear flag, proclaiming themselves to be the
California Republic until US armed forces took possession of California 25
days later. Ide returned home and was successful at gold mining.
Louise Bancroft (? )
Louise and her husband Curtis owned the Empire Hotel.
Not much is known about the Bancrofts other than what is
found in Dame Shirley’s letters. Louse, or Mrs. B., was the
first woman Dame Shirley met at Rich Bar. Louise was
about 25 and would cook dinner for the guests at the
hotel. When Dame Shirley met her, Louise “was cooking supper for some
half-a-dozen people, while her really pretty boy, who lay kicking furiously in
his champagne basket cradle and screaming…had that day completed just
two weeks of his earthly pilgrimage.”
Charles Bennett (Aug 18, 1811 – Dec 7, 1855 )
Charles moved to Oregon in 1844 with the US Army. In
1847 he moved south into California, where he was
employed by James Marshall as a carpenter at Sutter’s
Mill. He was there when gold was discovered. Some
reports state that Bennett was the one who first sighted
the gold, though Marshall if accredited with the discovery. In 1850 he build
the Bennett House hotel in Salem, Oregon. It soon became the town’s
principal hotel.
James McClatchy (1824–1883)
James was born in Ireland. He was working for the New
York Tribune when gold was discovered in 1848 and his
editor encouraged him to go west. He was shipwrecked,
but eventually made it to the gold fields in Sierra Nevada.
He made no fortune, so he returned to journalism, writing
for the Placer Times. He became a champion of the people by taking a stand
against the land speculators in what became the Squatter’s Riot in 1850. He
wrote for several other papers before becoming the editor of The Bee,
which is now The Sacramento Bee.
Levi Strauss (Feb 26, 1829—Sep 26, 1902)
Levi was born in Buttenheim, Germany. When he was 18,
he went with his mother and sisters to the US to join his
brothers, who had been selling dry goods in New York
under the name J. Strauss Brother & Co. Levi was selected
to represent the company when they opened a branch in
San Francisco in 1853. Levi opened the business under the name Levi
Strauss & Co. He imported goods from his brothers and sold them to the
miners and other stores. He partnered with a customer in Nevada who had
created a new way to make durable pants, but could not afford the patent.
Together they patented the rivets which made their “waist high overalls”
popular among miners, farmers and lumberjacks.
Horace Greeley (Feb 3, 1811 – Nov 29, 1872)
Horace was born to a poor family in New Hampshire. He
was apprenticed at a printer and moved to New York to
seek his fortune in 1831. He founded the New York
Tribune in 1841, which became the highest circulating
paper in the country. In 1859 he travelled to the West to
see the country and write about the need for the transcontinental railroad.
Horace travelled the Overland Trail to Salt Lake City. He popularized the
settlement of the west with the phrase, “Go West, young man and grow up
with the country.”
Emperor Norton (1818-1880)
Born Joshua Abrahram Norton in England, he spent much
of his young life in South Africa. He emigrated to San
Francisco in 1848 after his parents’ deaths. He initially did
well as a business man, but lost his father’s inheritance
with a bad investment. He filed for bankruptcy in 1858 and
in 1859 proclaimed himself to be Emperor of the United States. As Emperor,
he issued numerous decrees, including one to disband the US Congress. He
spent his time mostly inspecting the streets of San Francisco. He was loved
and revered by the citizens. Though he was penniless, he issued his own
currency, which many local establishments accepted.
Dr. Yee Fung Cheung (? - 1907)
Yee Fung Cheung immigrated to the Gold Rush fields early
in the Gold Rush. He gave up on panning for gold and
established an herbal medicine store in Fiddletown, where
he treated patients. He also opened shops n Sacramento
and Virginia City, Nevada. He even treated Leland
Stanford’s wife from her severe pulmonary condition.
Domingo Ghirardelli (Feb 21, 1817 – Jan 17, 1894 )
Domenico was born in Rapallo, Italy to a spice merchant.
As a teenager he was apprenticed to a chocolatier. In 1838
he moved to Lima, Peru, where he opened a confectionary
and began going by the Spanish equivalent of his name,
Domingo. In 1849 he moved to San Francisco at the
recommendation of James Lick, whom he met in Peru. He tried his luck in
the gold fields for a few months before becoming a merchant. In 1852 he
established the Ghirardelli Chocolate Company, becoming San Francisco’s
most successful chocolatier.
Mark Hopkins (September 1, 1813 – March 29, 1878)
Mark was born in Jefferson County, New York. His father
died in 1828 and he left school to become a clerk. He
studied law and opened a firm for a time, was later a
bookkeeper and then a manager for a company. He
created the “New England Mining and Trading Company”
when the Gold Rush began with a group of 26 investors who purchased
goods to be shipped and sold in California. He opened a store in Placerville,
but did not succeed. He moved to Sacramento where he opened a grocery.
In 1861 he became part of the “Big Four” who founded the Central Pacific
Railroad. Known as “Uncle Mark”, he was the eldest of the partners and
known for his thriftiness.
John Mohler Studebaker (Oct 10, 1833 – Mar 16 ,1917)
“Snowshoe” Thompson (April 30, 1827 – May 15, 1876)
John was born in Pennsylvania and moved with his family
to Ohio in 1836. John’s two brothers became blacksmiths,
while John chased his gold rush dreams to Placerville, CA.
Shortly after his arrival, he gave up gold mining and began
making wheelbarrows for the miners. In 1852 he gave
$8,000 to his brothers’ Studebaker Wagon Corporation. They supplied
wagons to the US Army during the Civil War. In 1868 they became the
Studebaker Brothers’ Manufacturing Company and named John as it’s
president. In 1902 the Studebaker Company produced the first electric
automobiles, called “horseless carriages.”
John was born in Norway. His father died when he was 2
and he came to America with his mother when he was 10.
In 1851 John drove a herd of cows from Wisconsin to
Placerville, CA. He panned for gold for a while and used his
little savings to buy a small ranch in Sacramento. Between
1856 and 1876 he delivered mail from Placerville to Genoa, Nevada. He
travelled by 10-foot skis and a sturdy pole. Snowshoe eventually taught
others to make skis and use them. Though he served for 20 years, Snowshoe
was never paid for delivering the US mail.
Richard Mason (January 16, 1797 – July 25, 1850)
Born in Fairfax County, Virginia, Richard was
commissioned in the US Army in 1817. He served in the
New Mexico Territory and California during the MexicanAmerican War and was promoted to Colonel in 1846. He
was appointed Military Governor of California from 18471849. When gold was discovered he made a report of the finding to
President Polk. His description of the discovery is credit with sparking the
Gold Rush and populating the land.
John Sutter (Feb 20, 1803– June 18, 1880)
Born Johan Augustus Sutter in Germany, he moved to
Switzerland and married at age 21. Sutter was threatened
with jail charges because of his large debts, so he ran away
to America, leaving his wife behind, in 1834. In 1838 he
travelled the Oregon Trail and eventually settled in Alta
California on nearly 50,000 acres. John wanted to build a city on his land and
hired James Marshall to be a contractor on his land. Marshall discovered
gold on Sutter’s land in 1848 and John tried to keep it quiet so that he could
keep construction on his city going. Word got out and prospectors began to
destroy his land. He eventually deeded his land to his son and left to live in
Hock Farm.
Chief Wahla (?)
Wahla was chief of the Yuba tribe. Chief Wahla worked for
Samuel Brennan. He eventually became a coachman for
Governor Milton Latham. Governor Latham thought a lot
of Chief Wahla and had him educated. Latham apparently
loved Wahla so much that he had a portrait of him
painted. The Yuba tribe were a part of the Nisenans, who lived and did
agricultural work seasonally, some on Sutter’s land. The Yuba were a
rebellious tribe and caused problems for men like Sutter who advocated for
the Native Americans.
James Marshall (Oct 8, 1810 – Aug 10, 1885)
James was born in New Jersey and left in 1834 to head
West. In 1844 he settled in Missouri and began farming.
He contracted malaria and left upon the advise of his
doctor. He joined a wagon train to Oregon and eventually
came to Sutter’s Fort, CA. He was hired by John Sutter to
work at his sawmill in 1845. He began farming there and entered into a
partnership with Sutter. He oversaw construction on the mill in exchange for
wood. They ran into some problems with the land, so Marshall decided to
use the natural flow of the river to excavate the land. On January 24, 1848
they discovered some shiny flecks—gold!
Sam Houston (March 2, 1793 – July 26, 1863)
Sam joined the Army in 1813 to serve in the War of 1812.
In 1822 he began his political career when he was elected
to the House or Representatives. In 1836 he signed the
Texas Declaration of Independence and was made the
President of the Republic of Texas. After Texas became a
part of the US, he served as a Senator. The Mexican-American War of 18461848 ended and Sam was instrumental in the signing of the Compromise of
1850. This gave much of what was Mexico to the US, including California.
Because of the Gold Rush there were enough people in California for it to be
admitted as a state.
Mark Twain (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910)
Mark Twain was born Samuel Clemens in Missouri. He was
apprenticed to a printer at 11 and later began writing
articles for the Hannibal Journal. He learned to pilot a
steamboat, an experience from which he received his pen
name (the leadsman calls out “mark twain” to indicate the
water is safe). Twain’s brother worked with him on the boat until he was
killed in an explosion in 1858. Guilt-stricken, he headed west. He was a
miner on Comstock Lode in Nevada, but soon gave up and began writing for
the newspaper there. He moved to San Francisco in 1864, where he met
other writers. He began writing about his experiences, including his first
major success, “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County.”
James “Grizzly” Adams (1812–1860)
Born and raised in Massachusetts, James was first
apprenticed in footwear manufacturing at 14. At 21 he left
to pursue a brief career as a zoological collector and
showman until he was injured by one of his tigers. In 1849
he invested his savings to buy a large supply of shoes he
wanted to sell to miners out of St Louis. He lost his entire investment in a
fire at the wharf. He headed to California where he tried mining, hunting,
trading and ranching. Eventually, he built a cabin in the mountains where he
hunted, trapped and kept animals. He traveled with a grizzly bear he named
Lady Washington and a cub named Ben Franklin. He put on shows of his
animals and eventually opened the Mountaineer Museum, to hold his
Jean Baptiste Charbonneau (Feb 11, 1805–May 16, 1866)
Jean Baptiste was the son of Sacagawea and Toussaint
Charbonneau, a trapper and interpreter of the Lewis and
Clark expedition, and the adopted son of William Clark. Clark
lived with the boy in St Louis while he was in school and
called him Pomp. At 18 he met the Duke of Württemberg,
who took him to Europe with him, possibly as a servant. In 1829 he returned
to St Lewis and was hired by the American Fur Company. From 1833-1840 he
was a fur trader for the Rocky Mountain Trapping System. He came to Placer
County in 1848 to pan for gold and was apparently successful enough to
survive the cost of living. He lived there until 1866, when he left to prospect
in Montana.
Joseph Folsom (May 19, 1817 – July 19, 1855)
Born in New Hampshire, Joseph became a cadet at the
Military Academy at West Point, graduating with a rank of
Second Lieutenant. In 1846 he left for California with the
First Regiment of New York Volunteers, where he was
promoted to Captain. He invested in real estate, purchasing
a controversial plot of land, which eventually made him a millionaire. In 1854
he purchased a plot of land, which he called Granite City. He hired a city
planner to map out the town and named the streets after his friends and
family. He suddenly died at the age of 38. The executors of his estate
changed its name to Folsom, CA.
Wah Lee (?)
According to US Census, there were 3 recorded Chinese
residents in California in 1848. By the end of 1849 there
were 300 and by 1852 there were 30,000. The Chinese had
left their impoverished villages with hopes of striking it rich
in the “Gold Mountain” and returning home to their
families. Many worked on the gold mines and railroads, but as anti-Chinese
sentiment grew they began seeking other work. In 1851, Wah Lee opened the
first Chinese laundry service in California. Within a few weeks he had 20
workers on three shifts washing the miners’ clothes. It was hard labor that
the Americans did not want to do. By the 1870s there were Chinese
Laundries in all towns with Chinese populations.
Leland Stanford (March 9, 1824 – June 21, 1893)
Leland was born in New York and became a lawyer in
1848. in 1852 he lost his library and property to a fire and
followed his brothers to California. He went into business
with his brothers and opened a general store for miners in
Michigan City, CA. By 1856 he had become known as one
of the “Big Four”, key investors in the Central Pacific Railroad. Stanford was
elected Governor of California in 1861, became director of the Wells Fargo
Co. in 1870, and in 1874 he became president of the Occidental and Oriental
Steamship Company. He and his wife established Stanford University in
honor of their only son, Leland Stanford Jr., who died of typhoid as a
teenager.
Charles Fairfax (March 8, 1829 – April 4, 1869)
Charles was born on Vaucluse Plantation in Virginia. He was
the potential 10th Lord Fairfax, Baron of Cameron. He left
with 74 other gold seekers on the Glenmore, arriving in San
Francisco in 1850. He left the goldfields in 1851 and became
a politician. He served as a delegate of the Democratic
National Convention, was a member of the California State Assembly and
eventually Speaker of the Assembly, and was a Clerk of the Supreme Court in
California.
Bela Wellman (December 17, 1819 – January 31, 1887)
Bela left home at 12 to work on a farm in Connecticut and
become a clerk in a country store. In 1842 he formed a
cotton textile firm called Lamphier, Wellman and Company.
He also became a wholesaler in New Orleans. When the
Gold Rush began he saw an opportunity for riches and set
out for California. He built his shop on Kearny St and opened an auction and
commission business, but soon specialized in groceries. In 1861 he formed a
partnership that eventually became Wellman, Peck and Company, California’s
largest wholesale grocer.
Dr Hugh Toland (1806-1880)
Hugh was born in South Carolina. By 16 he was working with
the town doctor in the apothecary shop. He graduated
medical school in 1828 and did his postgraduate study in
Paris. He returned home in 1833 and opened a very
successful medical practice. In 1852 he set out for California
in search of gold, but he soon gave up and opened a medical practice in San
Francisco. He became the city’s foremost surgeon. In 1864 he founded
Toland Medical College, which was gifted to the University of California in
1873. Toland used Wells Fargo messengers to deliver his advice and
medicines to miners in the fields.
Wong Ming-Chung (1842—?)
Ming-Chung was 10 years old when he came to America
with his uncle in 1852. Like many others, they heard the
stories of hope and riches and they came in search of their
own. His journal describes the battle of being run off their
claims and having to hide the gold they found to protect it
from thieves.
* Wong Ming-Chung is not a real historical figure, his story is based off of
The Journal of Wong Ming-Chung