1849: The California Gold Rush "R"

What did James Marshall do?

• He ran a store near Sutter’s

  Mill and sold tools.

• He was the first person

  to find gold in California.

• He made a deal with

  the Mexican government

  for land.

• He kidnapped and enslaved

  Native people to work the

  land.

Why did John Sutter most likely

want to keep the discovery of

gold a secret?

• to help the store owner sell

  goods

• to test that what was found

  was actually gold

• to make a deal with the

  Mexican government for land

• to find as much gold as he

  could before others came

  to look

The way people searched for

gold in California’s rivers was

called .

• erosion

• panning

• prospector

• placer miner

Why were the gold rush settlers

called forty-niners?

• California was the 49th state.

• There were 4

  9,000 settlers.

• They moved to California

  in 1849.

• By then, 49 people had found

  gold.

How does the map on page 8

help the reader?

• It shows the safest route for

  forty-niners to take.

• It shows the reader how many

  people took each route.

• It shows how many miles each

  route was that forty-niners

  could take.

• It shows which routes were

  by wagon and which routes

  were by ship.

How was traveling by ship

different than traveling

by wagon?

• Traveling by ship took less

  time.

• Traveling by ship was much

  safer.

• Traveling by ship faced bad

  weather.

• Traveling by ship required

  buying tickets.

According to the book, how were

miners from China treated badly?

• They were taxed.

• They were enslaved.

• They were not allowed

  in California.

• They were forced off

  their land.

According to the book, how did

people make fortunes during the

gold rush?

• Many forty-niners made

  fortunes off gold they found.

• Business owners made

  fortunes selling goods

  to forty-niners.

• Travel companies made

  fortunes selling tickets

  to gold rush settlers.

• Government officials made

  fortunes from land stolen

  during the gold rush.

Why does the author believe

California still lives up to its

nickname?

• California has a huge

  economy today.

• Wealthy people chose to stay

  in California.

• White settlers benefited the

  most from the gold rush.

• Native peoples from

  California had a different

  experience.

Why was the gold rush appealing

to settlers?

• Settlers wanted a safe route

  to travel across Native lands.

• The government had begun

  to take land and enslave

  people.

• The gold rush was an easy

  way to become wealthy and

  only required a few tools.

• Settlers wanted a quick way

  to make money since many

  workers only made a dollar

  a day.