Collection: Books and Periodicals

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Title: A Memorial and Biographical History of Northern California (1891) Collection Type: Books and Periodicals Publisher: Lewis Publishing Company Published: 1891 Copyright: In the public domain or published before 1925 Source(s): Google Books # of Pages: 713 Download PDF: User Login Required Download OCR Text: User Login Required

Date Scanned: 2024-07-22 00:25:09 Item Sourced From: PDF First Created: 2025-03-17 03:11:29 Last Updated: 2025-03-17 06:30:36

Original Held At: Searls Historical Library Location: 161 Nevada City Hwy, Nevada City, CA 95959

Page: of 713  

HISTURY OF NORTHERN CALIFORNIA. 15 precarious and unstable characteristics marking this era of wild speculation ana gambling. ‘‘ Never was there a place or people,” says Bancroft, “ where the changes of life, its vicissitudes and its successes, were brought in such bold relief as here. The rich and the poor, the proud and the humble, the vile and the virtuous changed places in a day. Wild speculation and slovenly business habits, together with the gambling character of all occupations, and the visitations or benign influences of the elements, and a thousand incalculable incidents usually classed in the category of ‘luck,’ were constantly litting up one and putting down another, replacing this town or district and shriveling that.” Even the central El Dorado and Placer districts are becoming known as _ vinicultural rather than gold-mining sections of the State. Alpine County relies upon her pastures, and most of the gold belt depends npon tillage. EARLY NAVIGATION. Doubtless the first navigation on the Sacra. mento River was condacted by the Russians from Sitka Island, who were located at Ross and Bodega on the coast, and engaged in trade in furs, hides, tallow, ete. They were in this region prior to 1840, carrying on trade with the interior up to the time of their selling out to Captain Sutter; but the hostility of the Spanish Government and the expense of maintaining their position finally caused them to abandon the field. At that time aiso there was in this part of the country an agency for the Hudson Bay Company. In 1841 Sutter purchased the property of the Russians, including a sinall schooner of forty tons’ burden, with which they had made short voyages along the coast. The tirst record we have of its appearance up the Sacramento River was in August of that year, though probably it had been upon its waters previously. This may be considered the date of the commencement of American commerce upon this stream. According to the terms of Sutter's bargain with the Russians, he was to furnish a given quantity of grain each year for their settlement on the Northwest coast, and the transportation of this product every fall to the bay was a part of the regular trade upon which this vessel entered. She was manned and subsequently commanded by Indians selected from Sutter’s domesticated tribes, and for a long time was the only “regular packet” on the river. After performing a number of important offices during the war, she was taken down to San Francisco in the spring of 1848, to carry thither the tidings of the discovery of gold. She continued to be the largest schooner on the river up to the period when the commerce with the mines began. The Brooklyn Mormons also owned a launch called the Comet, which made three trips to the settlement on the Stanislaus, and was the pioneer on the San Joaquin. The voyage from San Francisco to New Helvetia, or Sutter’s Fort, as Sacramento was then called, and back to the city, occupied from two to tour weeks. In the spring of 1848, when the rush for gold set in, the San Francisco Star (of May 20) thus ironically alludes to the first embarkations: “ Fleet of launches left this place on Sunday and Monday last, bound ‘ up the Sacramento River,’ closely stowed with human beings led by the love of filthy lucre to the perennial-yielding gold mines of the north, where ‘a man can find upward of two ounces a day,’ and ‘two thousand men can find their hands full ’—of hard work.” May 27 the same editor said; “ Launches have plied without cessation between this place and New Helvetia during this time (since the discovery of gold). The Sacramento, a first-class craft, lett here on Thursday last, thronged with passengers for the gold mines—a motley assemblage, composed of lawyers, merchants, grocers, carpenters, cartmen and cvoka, all possessed with the desire of suddenly becoming rich.” He also stated that at that time over 300 men were engaged in washing gold, and parties were continually arriving from every part of the country. San Francisco was soon made to present a desolate appearance on account of the sudden de-