wild west americans 18th centruary Flashcards
what, where, when was the gold rush in america?
In 1848 gold was discovered in California, and soon thousands of prospectors (the ‘49ers’) rushed there, hoping to make their fortune. By spring 1849 there were 40,000 miners in California.
how long did it last?
1849-1856
who were the doner party
They were a group of 87 people that tried migrating west to strike rich or have a fresh life. when they left they took a couple of routes that led them to disaster and made them wait out winter. The route was too hard. They had to abandon all their cattle while crossing the Salt Lake Desert. They were attacked by Paiute warriors. Fights broke out - in one, a man was killed.
On 30 October the party reached the last mountain pass before California, where they were stopped by snow - after a journey of 2,500 miles.
They were just 150 miles from Sutter’s Fort (now Sacramento) in California.
For four months the party ate first their cattle, then bark and twigs, and finally each other. Many died of starvation.
Rescue groups from Fort Sutter managed to rescue the others - the last one only in April 1847. Of 87 who set out, 46 survived, and 41 died.
who were the normons?
a group of religious people led by joseph smith. They were deeply hated by people because they tried making new laws that affected people and did illegal things. soon the leader died and they went to great lake city to make their own Mormon town away from others.
