GOLD!!!!
On January 24, 1848, a carpenter working at a mill in northern California made a discovery that would change the course of American history—two gold nuggets. Within a year, tens of thousands of people (popularly known as ‘49ers) were traveling to the land around John Sutter’s mill in hopes of striking it rich. Some failed, some were successful, but nearly all of the prospectors faced severe hardships during their fortune-hunting days. Today, 165 years after….. READ MORE ON HISTORY.COM