Marshall's monument

California · USA · Mill

He found two nuggets in the tailrace of the sawmill in January 1848. Within twelve years the population of California had gone from fifteen thousand to.

James Marshall was building a sawmill on the American River with his partner John Sutter when he found gold caught in the tailrace of the waterwheel.

Between 1847 and 1860 the population of California went from around fifteen thousand to three hundred and eighty thousand, largely because of it.

Neither man profited. Sutter's land was overrun by squatters and he died broke, petitioning Congress. Marshall died poor in a cabin at Kelsey, and the state put up a monument over his grave on the hill above the mill site, with a statue of him pointing down at the spot.

What the rush did to the people already living here is the part usually left out. The Native population of California fell by something close to eighty per cent in twenty years, through disease, starvation and organised killing that the state paid for.

The monument and mill site are a state historic park and are open.

FAQ

Hvor ligger Marshall's monument?

Marshall's monument ligger i California, USA.

Image: Mediasponge / CC BY-SA 3.0 / Wikimedia Commons