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| Details: | Mormon Gold: Mormons in the California Gold Rush Contributing to the Development of California and the Monetary Solvency of Early Utah, 2nd Edition; by J. Kenneth Davies & Lorin K. Hansen; 2010; Hard Cover; Dust Jacket; 8.5x11; 460 pp; ISBN: 9780983083207; Item #: GMP1D
Few people are aware it was the job foreman and half-a-dozen Mormons who first discovered gold at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. Even fewer are aware of the overall presence and contribution Mormons made during the gold rush years. The Mormon people had been in Salt Lake for less than a year when Gold was discovered. A year later the rush to riches was on. People flooded California from around the world in an effort to lay claim to part of California's rich Gold deposits. Mormon Gold: Mormons in the California Gold Rush Contributing to the Development of California and the Monetary Solvency of Early Utah examines the Mormon people and their participation in the famous Gold Rush of 1849 and the subsequent mining years The early years for Mormons in Salt Lake and surrounding settlements were economically difficult for many. Most who came, and were continuing to arrive, had come across the plains with few possessions. Many were destitute and were doing their best just to survive those early years. The temptation to seek wealth and prosperity in the gold rich hills of California was strong. Sensing this pull and knowing most would not find the wealth they dreamed of, and understanding the need to keep the new communities in Utah as strong as possible if the Mormons were to survive, Brigham Young ordered the saints to stay, to work, and to follow God's will. Meanwhile, he also knew that California Gold could be a boon to the struggling economy in Salt Lake. Thus, he selected men to go and seek opportunities in California, to build businesses and seek opportunities to gain advantage from the flood of gold seekers. Some were to also mine gold and gather tithes and return what they could to Utah. Mormon Gold provides the facts and details about the Mormon participation in the gold rush. Mormon Gold tries to "identify individuals involved in the gold rush and piece together their lives and interactions. It is extensively illustrated with portraits, landscapes, and maps." The book is filled with background stories and details. Inset into the chapters are independent, brief, biographies of individuals found within the story. Likewise, added details, historical facts, and explanations are provided in similar manner for key locations, settlements, and interest items. One inset shows and describes the gold mining process using a sluice with a riddle plate. Brief bios are presented for more famous individuals, like John A. Sutter (not a mormon, but obviously a major player in the Gold Rush thanks to the discovery of Gold at his mill), Brigham Young, and Orrin Porter Rockwell. Some of the less historically famous individuals, whose presence are noted within the Gold Rush story, are given individual space with their own brief bios, such as Francis Martin Pomeroy (my own forth-great grandfather). Here are some of the other California Mormon highlights found in the book:
The first edition of Mormon Gold was published in 1984. At the time, researchers praised the author for "having left no stone unturned in recounting all there is to know about Mormons and the gold rush." That may have been true at the time. However, in the over twenty-five years since then, much research has been added to the collective knowledge on the subject. Thus, the authors felt the book needed a major update. This second edition make uses of dozens of resources not available at the printing of the first edition. Some of the additional materials include extensive biographies on major participants and leaders among the Mormons in California; plus, annotated diaries, including, the diary of George Q. Cannon, an apostle in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, during his California years. Contents
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