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EXPLORE The Gold Rush

The discovery of gold at Sutter's Mill in 1848 transformed California and America, sparking massive migration, breakneck development, and a national strike-it-rich fever. Explore the stories of the 49ers who prospered or foundered, the international immigrants who sought their fortunes in the American West, and the Native Americans displaced by the influx of prospectors.

EXPLORE other NEH-funded projects

photograph: Black Sunday dust storm approaching Ulysses, Kansas, April 14, 1935
The Dust Bowl
The Papers of the War Department, 1784 to 1800
The Papers of the War Department 1784 to 1800
Codex Selden
Explore Mesolore
black and white photo of woman holding matzah ball soup, 1954
Chosen Food: Cuisine, Culture, and American Jewish Identity
Portraits of Abigail and John Adams, from the Massachusetts Historical Society
John & Abigail Adams
Appalachian Spring - dancer silhouette on yellow background
American Icons: Appalachian Spring
1910 painting by Edward Percy Moran of Battle of New Orleans
The War of 1812
Stone portrait of a girl from the Roman city of Salona
Women in World History