Opinions

California was not the first gold rush in American history. North Carolina’s 17-pound gold nugget find proceeded the California Sutter’s Mill find by fifty years. However, the California gold rush massive migration of settlers increased the non-native American population of California from 800 to 100,000 between mid-1848 and 1850. These settlers were from all over the world and were mainly men. La Grange residents were not immune to these get rich quick gold stories. Various newspapers printed exciting stories of discoveries of gold treasures which had young and old alike infatuated with gold fever. John Murchison’s teen age son, Duncan Alexander Murchison, pleaded with him to allow him to join one of the parties bound for the gold fields of California. Unwilling to let his young son, Duncan, head to California alone, John made the decision to form a wagon train with military organization and rules. This group would leave from La Grange for the California gold area on May 1st of 1849.