In 1848, James W. Marshall discovered a gold nugget at Sutter’s Mill sawmill in Coloma, CA, setting off the California Gold Rush. From 1848 to about 1855, people came from all over the world to stake their claim and find their fortune. Brimming with confidence, prospectors came from everywhere, to include the Minnesota Territory, hoping to strike it rich.
Some did, but many, many more found California to be a land of disappointment. Arriving with confidence and hope, many ended up broken, and left California with shattered dreams, no money, and more questions than answers than when they arrived.