In a Gold Rush, Service the Miners
How the biggest opportunity might not be the one right in front of you
In 1849, one of the biggest influx of people in the history of the United States started. More than 300,000 people migrated to the state of California in less than a year. These people came from all around the world, half arrived by sea and half came overland. Most of the newly arrived were Americans. Yet the gold rush attracted thousands from Latin America, Europe, Australia, and China. Their goal was simple. They wanted to capitalize on the biggest opportunity in the world at the time. Finding and mining gold in America.
The precious metal was first discovered in the state in 1848 by James W. Marshall in Coloma, California. In an astonishing information speed at the time, news flew by. By 1849, the state was already flooded by people looking to make riches beyond their dreams. The peak of the rush lasted until 1855. After that, gold could be retrieved from the goldfields only by large groups of workers, either in partnerships or as employees. Otherwise, it would not be profitable. By the mid-1850s, only the owners of these gold-mining companies were making money. Even though the Gold Rush was short-lived for the adventurous pioneers, its impacts are still around us nowadays. For starters, it spawned the statehood of California. It also…
