California Gold Rush

High school (ages 12+)
History & Culture

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/california-gold-rush

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. Who discovered California Gold Rush?January 24, 1848
2. What is the primary migration period?1848-1855, with peak arrivals in 1849 ('49ers')
3. What is the estimated migrant numbers?Over 300,000 people arrived in California between 1848 and 1852
4. Why did so many people go to California?People were drawn by the chance to find gold and make money quickly. They also hoped for a fresh start and new opportunities.
5. How did people travel to California?They could sail around the tip of South America, go through Panama, or walk thousands of miles across land on trails like the California Trail. The trips were long, hard, and sometimes dangerous.

Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo: The treaty that ended the Mexican-American War and ceded California to the United States in 1848.
Transcontinental Railroad: A railroad line that connected the eastern and western United States, significantly aided by the population growth from the Gold Rush.
Hydraulic Mining: A mining technique that used high-pressure water jets to wash away hillsides, extracting gold but causing severe environmental damage.
Californios: Spanish and Mexican residents of California before and during the Gold Rush era.