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Alaska Gold Rush Centennial Photographs

For Students 9th - 10th
This resource has posted numerous gold rush images with a brief description. Click on the various subjects to view historic photos of these early Alaskan towns and folks.
Handout
Sacramento Bee

Gold Rush: Fortune Smiled on Many Black Miners

For Students 9th - 10th
This CalGoldRush.com site discusses the triumphs African American's had during the California gold rush. Many blacks were able to purchase their freedom and the freedom of their families back home.
Handout
Sacramento Bee

Gold Rush: Chinese Transformed

For Students 9th - 10th
This CalGoldRush.com site discusses the role of the Chinese immigrants during the gold rush in California and the mark they made on history.
Lesson Plan
Oakland Museum of California

Gold Rush: Curriculum

For Teachers 9th - 10th
A great site to find lesson plans, connections to state standards, and curriculum links to the California Gold Rush. Offered by the Oakland Museum of California.
Website
Kidport

Kidport: The California Gold Rush (1848 to 1859)

For Students 6th - 8th
From here, access simple write-ups on the San Francisco Gold Rush. Topics covered include: "Life of a 49er," "Foreign Miners," "Law and Order," and "After the Gold Rush."
Website
Huntington Library

Huntington Library: Land of Golden Dreams: California in the Gold Rush

For Students 9th - 10th
A rich site on the California gold rush, 1848-1858. An online exhibit traces the gold rush using primary sources, a teacher page gives lesson plans from 4-12 and a kid's page offers further online adventures. Takes a long time to load.
Handout
Sacramento Bee

Gold Rush: On Your Mark, Get Set, Gold

For Students 9th - 10th
This CalGoldRush.com site is an article that discusses where people came from, as well as the number of people involved in the California gold rush. The article focuses on the massive migration to California.
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Other

The Gold Rush: Fantastic Facts

For Students 3rd - 8th
This resource provides information about the Gold Rush.
Website
Sacramento Bee

Gold Rush

For Students 9th - 10th
A four part analysis of the California Gold Rush: Gold! An Era Remembered, At Work & Play, Chasing a Dream, and A Lasting Impact.
Handout
Museum of the City of San Francisco

Virtual Museum of the City of San Francisco: Gold Rush Chronology 1846 1849

For Students 9th - 10th
A nice timeline of events that occurred from 1846 to 1849 in the California Gold Rush. Hyperlinks to additional information. From the Virtual Museum of the City of San Francisco.
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Other

California State Parks: Gold Rush Overview

For Students 3rd - 8th
Get basic facts about the 1848 discovery of gold by John Marshall at Sutter's Mill and the subsequent Gold Rush in California and American history.
Website
Smithsonian Institution

National Postal Museum: As Precious as Gold

For Students 9th - 10th
"As Precious as Gold," is an online exhibit from the National Postal Museum which explores the rich history of the Alaskan/Klondike gold rushes. Find stories on extraordinary women, the trails, the Palm Sunday avalanche, the U.S. Postal...
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Other

Montana Junior College: Mining History and Geology of the California Gold Rush

For Students 9th - 10th
The physical characteristics, history, and mining of gold in California are examined in this thorough site.
Website
Oakland Museum of California

California's Untold Stories: Gold Fever

For Students 9th - 10th
A comprehensive site that offers a look at the "Gold Fever" of the California Gold Rush, with photos.
Primary
Duke University

California Gold: The Diary and Letters of James M. Burr

For Students 9th - 10th
Wonderful primary resource on the California Gold Rush. Read actual letters and a diary--with explanatory annotations--by a prospector from 1850-1853.
Lesson Plan
American Geosciences Institute

American Geosciences Institute: Earth Science Week: Gold Panning

For Teachers 5th - 9th
Have students simulate the Gold Rush by panning for gold in the classroom.
Article
Khan Academy

Khan Academy: Us History: 1865 1898: The Gold Rush

For Students 9th - 10th
The 1848 discovery of gold in the territory of California prompted 300,000 hopeful prospectors to flood into the region, altering it forever.
Activity
Read Works

Read Works: Gold Rush

For Teachers 3rd
[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text about a man who found a buried treasure in England. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.
Primary
Other

The Object of History: Behind the Scenes With Curators of the Nmah: Gold Nugget

For Students 9th - 10th
Take a look at and lend an ear for primary sources featuring the California Gold Rush. Men and women from around the world landed in the United States and flocked to the west coast in search of nuggets of gold.
Handout
Sacramento Bee

Sacramento Bee: Gold Rush Cost in Environmental Damage

For Students 9th - 10th
This site discusses how the California gold rush left lasting damage of the California environment. Read how the state's environment has been forever changed.
Handout
Sacramento Bee

Gold Rush: 'Real Women' Who Defied Stereotype

For Students 9th - 10th
This CalGoldRush.com site discusses the role of the women during the gold rush in California. They served in a variety of roles and many made more than miners. This page tells their stories.
Handout
Sacramento Bee

Gold Rush: His Path Back to Japan Was Paved With Gold

For Students 9th - 10th
This CalGoldRush.com site discusses the life of Manjiro Nakahama, a Japanese immigrant who made enough money during the gold rush in California that he was able to return home to Japan.
Handout
Sacramento Bee

Gold Rush: Justice Wasn't Pretty but It Was Quick

For Students 9th - 10th
This CalGoldRush.com site contains information on justice and law in California during the gold rush. Many felons lost their lives at the end of a rope.
Handout
Sacramento Bee

Gold Rush: Some Found Riches, Many Found Themselves

For Students 9th - 10th
This site discusses how many miners never made it rich, but had an adventure of a lifetime during the California gold rush.

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