The Age of Gold: The California Gold Rush and the New American DreamFrom the two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist, bestselling historian, and author of Our First Civil War—the epic story of the California Gold Rush, “a fine, robust telling of one of the greatest adventure stories in history" (David McCullough, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of John Adams). The California Gold Rush inspired a new American dream—the “dream of instant wealth, won by audacity and good luck.” The discovery of gold on the American River in 1848 triggered the most astonishing mass movement of peoples since the Crusades. It drew fortune-seekers from the ends of the earth, accelerated America’s imperial expansion, and exacerbated the tensions that exploded in the Civil War. H.W. Brands tells his epic story from multiple perspectives: of adventurers John and Jessie Fremont, entrepreneur Leland Stanford, and the wry observer Samuel Clemens—side by side with prospectors, soldiers, and scoundrels. He imparts a visceral sense of the distances they traveled, the suffering they endured, and the fortunes they made and lost. Impressive in its scholarship and overflowing with life, The Age of Gold is history in the grand traditions of Stephen Ambrose and David McCullough. |
From inside the book
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The California Gold Rush and the New American Dream H. W. Brands. BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE FIRST AMERICAN " An engrossing , multifaceted history . " -The New York Times THE AGE OF GOLD THE CALIFORNIA GOLD RUSH AND THE NEW AMERICAN DREAM ...
The California Gold Rush and the New American Dream H. W. Brands. BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE FIRST AMERICAN " An engrossing , multifaceted history . " -The New York Times THE AGE OF GOLD THE CALIFORNIA GOLD RUSH AND THE NEW AMERICAN DREAM ...
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The California Gold Rush and the New American Dream H. W. Brands. BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE FlRs'rA_AI1;R1<:.-I .\ “An engrossing. multifaceted history." —The New Mark 'I'imcs THE CALIFORNIA GOLD RUSH AND THE NEW AMERICAN DREAM ACClfllII ...
The California Gold Rush and the New American Dream H. W. Brands. BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE FlRs'rA_AI1;R1<:.-I .\ “An engrossing. multifaceted history." —The New Mark 'I'imcs THE CALIFORNIA GOLD RUSH AND THE NEW AMERICAN DREAM ACClfllII ...
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The California Gold Rush and the New American Dream H. W. Brands. THE AGE S ANCHOR BOOKS New York GOLD The California Gold Rush the New American Dream H.W.. A Division of Random House , Inc.
The California Gold Rush and the New American Dream H. W. Brands. THE AGE S ANCHOR BOOKS New York GOLD The California Gold Rush the New American Dream H.W.. A Division of Random House , Inc.
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The California Gold Rush and the New American Dream H. W. Brands. GOLD The California Gold Rush the New American Dream H.W. BRANDS FIRST ANCHOR BOOKS EDITION , OCTOBER 2003 Copyright © 2002.
The California Gold Rush and the New American Dream H. W. Brands. GOLD The California Gold Rush the New American Dream H.W. BRANDS FIRST ANCHOR BOOKS EDITION , OCTOBER 2003 Copyright © 2002.
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The California Gold Rush and the New American Dream H. W. Brands. FIRST ANCHOR BOOKS EDITION , OCTOBER 2003 Copyright ... California Gold Rush and the new American dream / H . W. Brands . - 1st ed . p . cm . Includes bibliographical ...
The California Gold Rush and the New American Dream H. W. Brands. FIRST ANCHOR BOOKS EDITION , OCTOBER 2003 Copyright ... California Gold Rush and the new American dream / H . W. Brands . - 1st ed . p . cm . Includes bibliographical ...
Contents
1 | |
21 | |
47 | |
65 | |
To the Bottom of the World and Back | 93 |
To See the Elephant | 122 |
Where Rivers Die | 162 |
From Vulcans Forge | 191 |
A Millennium in a Day | 226 |
PART FOUR | 359 |
PART FIVE | 439 |
Sources | 493 |
Bibliography | 509 |
Other editions - View all
The Age of Gold: The California Gold Rush and the New American Dream H. W. Brands Limited preview - 2003 |
Common terms and phrases
American Archer Archy argonauts arrived Bancroft Library bank Benton Brannan California Gold Rush California State Library called camp canyon Cape Horn captain Central Pacific Chagres Chileans Chinese Coloma crew desert dollars east emigrants feet fire George Hearst Gold Rush goldfields Harpending Hearst hoped horses Hugh Heiskell hundred Huntington Library ibid Indians Jessie Frémont Jessie's Joaquín Murrieta John Frémont John Sutter journey knew land Leland Stanford looked Manly Manly's Mariano Vallejo Mariposa Marshall Mexican Mexico miles miners mines Missouri Monterey Mormons mountains mule nearly Nevada never night party Pérez Rosales political Press railroad reached Republican river road rock route Royce Sacramento Sam Brannan San Francisco Sarah Sherman ship Sierras slave slavery South southern Stanford Stovall Sutter Sutter's Fort Swain thousand tion took trail travelers Union Vallejo valley wagon Walker Waterman William William Sherman wrote York