January 24, 1848: James Marshall spots flakes at Sutter's Mill. Sam Brannan runs through Portsmouth Square shouting “Gold! Gold from the American River!” — holding a vial high. Within a year, Yerba Buena (pop. 800) becomes San Francisco (pop. 25,000). Ships rot in the harbor as crews desert.
Not miners — merchants. Levi Strauss sold denim, Domingo Ghirardelli chocolate, Wells Fargo banking, Brannan real estate. Miners paid $20 for eggs, $100 for boots. “The miners mined the mines; the merchants mined the miners.”
State-sponsored genocide killed ~100,000 California Natives. Foreign Miners' Tax drove out Chileans, Chinese, Mexicans who taught panning. Laws barred them from claims they discovered.
| Dozen eggs | $10–$20 |
| Pair boots | $40–$100 |
| Whiskey shot | $1 ($40 today) |
| Shovel | $15 |
| Laundry / shirt | $8 |
| Gold per oz | $16–$20 |
You strike it rich — what do you do first?