Migrating West
the first arrivals were the luckiest, finding nuggets of gold in the stream beds. they made quick fortunes. "It was a unique time in history where individuals with literally nothing to their name could become extremely wealthy. Gold was free for whoever was lucky enough to find it." many made the trek West on foot or with a wagon. San Francisco's population grew from about 800 in 1848 to 50,000 in 1849. Sometimes it could take up to nine months to reach California. The news of gold spread quickly. the first to arrive were from lands accessible by boat, such as Oregon, the Sandwich Islands (now Hawaii), Mexico, Chile, Peru and even China. Throughout 1849, people from every corner of the United States (mostly men), borrowed money. mortgaged their property, or spent their life savings, flocking to California. When examining the traveling condions most people faced making there way South, one could assume it was not a pleasant trip for most immigrants. Most traveled on the California Trail. It gave women a different role also, with all the husbands and sons leaving, the women took there responsibility running farms or businesses and care for their children alone. The miners, known as the '49ers, traveled from all around the world, across mountains or seas, sailing to panama or even around Cape Horn. This version of events shows that there were many people who wanted to try there luck at mining. Quickly, California was admitted into the Union as the 31st State. The gold rush was the largest mass migration in U.S history. Even after 1850, as the gold disappeared, people continued to arrive. around 80,000 immigrants poured into California during 1849.