The story of California’s gold rush has all the aspects of a great drama. Countless characters crossed great distances to fulfill their dreams of obtaining riches in the golden land of El Dorado. The great rush to California’s goldfields from points around the globe changed the face of California and transformed the United States, a young country still grappling with the growing pains of its fairly new independence. Readers will explore this exciting chapter in American history through primary sources such as broadsheets, lithographs, and poems.