Curated OER
Etc: Maps Etc: Distribution of Population , 1850
A map of the United States showing the population distribution in 1850. The map is coded to show population densities ranging from under 2 inhabitants per square mile to over 90 inhabitants per square mile. The map illustrates the...
California Digital Library
Calisphere: Sutter's Mill
A broad selection of images featuring the Sutter's Mill can be found on this site by Calisphere. By clicking on individual images you'll find high quality photographs and image information.
Smithsonian Institution
National Museum of American History: Treasures of Am. History: Western Expansion
Shown are images and descriptions of artifacts that express the challenges that the migrants, Mexicans, and Indians shared in their quest for westward expansion in the United States during the 1800s.
Curated OER
Whites on Horesback
This CalGoldRush site discussses the triumphs and hardships of Indians during the California gold rush. Some became rich, but many were sold into slavery.
Annenberg Foundation
Annenberg Learner: American Passages: Regional Realism: Bret Harte
This is a brief biography featuring American realist author Bret Harte who drew attention to the life and sentiment of those in the West through his writings. Click on "Bret Harte Activities" for more resources.
Varsity Tutors
Varsity Tutors: Web English Teacher: Karen Cushman
Have you ever read any of Karen Cushman's work? This site features links to lesson plans and other activities for her books.
Curated OER
Cover Art
Carol Hurst uses one of her own books, "In Plain Sight," as a basis for this lesson plan on the California gold rush. In addition to discussion questions about the book, Hurst provides ten activities designed to help students explore...
Curated OER
Photograph of Kit Carson
This site contains information about how people from New York and London viewed the California gold rush. From winter, 1849 issue of "The Pacific Spectator."
Curated OER
Virtual Museum of San Francisco Ulysses S. Grant and the Gold Rush
From Ulysses S. Grant's memoirs is this description of his 1852 trip to California across Panama and his stay in San Francisco.
Blackdog Media
Classic Reader: Von Kempelen and His Discovery
"Von Kempelen and His Discovery" by Edgar Allan Poe was written as a hoax to deter "forty-niners" from rushing to California in search of gold. Read the full text on this site.