Henry R. Robinson, 'A Gold Hunter on his Way to California, via St. Louis,' ca. 1849, lithograph. California Historical Society, Fine Arts collection, FN-16057.

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  The Gold Rush
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The Gold Rush:
California Transformed

The discovery of gold in California was an epoch-making event. News of the discovery attracted to California hundreds of thousands of gold-seekers from across the country and around the world. Their coming transformed not only the economic history of California, but much of its social, cultural, and political history as well.