“January 24, 1848, 9 days before US gains this territory from Mexico, gold discovered at Sutter's Mill, sparks development of SF and CA The California gold discovery put spurs to the entire world. In the eastern states, most men earned a living, nothing more. For farmers, laborers, clerks, and others in the emerging middle classes, it took years of drudgery to gain a yard of advantage. Poor Americans couldn’t ever seem to win an inch. California promised more. California offered a man the opportunity to enlarge himself, to escape the pigeonhole of his eastern existence, to aim for heights beyond his previous imaginings. Mothers, fathers, wives, and newspaper editors railed against the “unhallowed crusade for gold,” but no shrill warning could suppress the pull of the Sierra foothills. Churchmen extolled the virtues of home and family and honest toil and deplored the depravity of “Mammon,” warning against the moral quicksand sure to collect around the pursuit of instant wealth. To no avail. California emptied their congregations of young men. Most saw California as, quite literally, the chance of a lifetime, and although it took courage Tens of thousands bolted for the new El Dorado. The pull of California proved equally powerful in Central and South America, Australia, China, and Europe. stories of what a man could make of himself on the Pacific Coast propelled the largest voluntary migration in world history. The first arrivals had skimmed the best pickings in 1848 and 1849, and although California still offered broad economic opportunities and high earnings, the difficulties and dangers, as well as astronomical cost of living, also afforded a man a gigantic opportunity to fail. San Francisco’s shocking dearth of women and the near total absence of children struck newcomers as the city’s most instantly noticeable characteristics. The population was more than 80 percent male, a figure that represented represented a doubling of distaff representation in the past twelve months—the year before, women composed just 10 percent of the California population. No place in the world was more male.I Crouch, Gregory (2018-06-18T23:58:59). The Bonanza King: John Mackay and the Battle over the Greatest Riches in the American West (Kindle Locations 492-494). Scribner. Kindle Edition. A grasping mania infected the populace, everyone obsessed with making money as fast as possible. Everybody came from somewhere else; hardly anyone wanted to stay. A man’s past meant nothing in San Francisco. The city simply had no past. A man’s worth depended on who he was today, and what he might do tomorrow. Crouch, Gregory (2018-06-18T23:58:59). The Bonanza King: John Mackay and the Battle over the Greatest Riches in the American West (Kindle Locations 495-497). Scribner. Kindle Edition. Crouch, Gregory (2018-06-18T23:58:59). The Bonanza King: John Mackay and the Battle over the Greatest Riches in the American West (Kindle Locations 445-446). Scribner. Kindle Edition. ”
