Manifest Destiny

When Mexico won its independence in 1821, California came under Mexican rule. Mexico established a system of land grants. the typical spanish speakinf Californian, or Californio, was granted a ranch of 50,000 acres or more. The Californios produced almost everythin they needed on their ranchos with the help of Indian servants. The Indian servants did most of the work. In the 1830's cattle ranching became California's most important industry. But because California was so far away from from Mexico City, the territory was neglected by the Mexican government. That was one of the reasons why the United states wanted to annex California during the Mexican war.

 

In 1848 james Marshall spotted some gold in the Amercian River in North California. after word got out people rushed to the gold fields. By 1849 tens of thousands gold seekers form around the world had joined the California gold rush. these gold seekers were also called forty-niners. By 1852 the gold rush was over but by then abiut 250,000 people had rushed into the Golden State and more than 20,000 Chinese had ventured across the Pacific Ocean to California. The Chinese immigrants called California the Golden Mountain.

 

At first the Chinese were welcome but after gold mining became more difficult and the sightings of gold became more scarce, the Chinese were reseneted by Americans miners. In 1852, the stae legislature passed a law rquiring foreigner miners to pay a monthly fee for a licnse to mine. The Chinese wanted to stay so they paid the taxes. The Americans also resorted to bullying the Chinese by chopping their long braids, queques, and burning their shacks to try to get thhem to leave. It didn't work. Even though the Chinese stopped gold mining, the immigrants opened businesses and put their farming skills to work in California's fertile Central Valley.

 

California was important to manifest destiny because it attracted more peole to the west since it had gold, fertile soil, and beautiful sunshine by an ocean.

 

To find out more about the California Gold Rush and the forty-niners, use your phone to scan this qr code.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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