Learning about the "California Gold Rush"

In 1849 people discovered gold in the California rivers. People came from every part of the country to get the gold.

Today was our 4th grade field trip to the California Gold Rush! We rode buses up to Stevens Creek Canyon. Most of us were dressed in the Gold Rush clothes. There we participated in many activities that the people back then did. We first went to the barber shop and had our hair braided in pigtails. We then made lemonade, butter and ice cream from scratch. They were all yummy! I also tried to sew, but that didn't go so well. I also played horseshoes with a friend Jody. We got pretty close to the ring. They also had a letter writing booth using Quill's, but I did not have time for that. After the activity we went down to the river to pan for gold. We worked in teams of "Families" in my family there were 6 members. I was a child of 4 years old and my name was Lilly Cavin. We received our gold pans from the "Banker" (which happened to be my dad). After searching for gold we took it all to the "Assayer" and he weighed it. We then took our claim to the banker (my dad) and traded it for $. We each got $25 to spend in the "Mercantile". I bought a bag of marbles, checker board, and glass hearts. It was so fun and I learned a lot!