Fools Gold
Cód:
491_9781618090423
De: R$ 0,00Por: R$ 118,49ou X de
Sutter, the father of California, is one of the most enigmatic figures in the history of the West. With Fools Gold, famed California historian Richard Dillon (Wells, Fargo Detective, Embarcadero) brings to life the story of Swiss immigrant John A. Sutter.Via a circuitous route, John Sutter arrived in Yerba Buena-todays San Francisco- on July 1, 1839. At the time, the territory had a population of only 1,000 Europeans, in contrast with 30,000 Native Americans. It was at that point a part of Mexico and the governor, Juan Bautista Alvarado, granted him permission to settle; in order to qualify for a land grant, Sutter became a Mexican citizen on August 29, 1840 after a year in the provincial settlement. He identified himself as Captain Sutter of the Swiss Guard. The following year, on 18 June, he received title to 48,827 acres. Sutter named his settlement New Helvetia, or New Switzerland, after his homeland, Helvetia being the Latin name for Switzerland.Sutter employed Native Americans of the Miwok and Maidu tribes, Kanakas, and Europeans at his compound, which he called Sutters Fort; he envisioned creating an agricultural utopia, and for a time the settlement was in fact quite large and prosperous. It was for a period the destination for most California-bound immigrants, including the ill-fated Donner Party, for whose rescue Sutter contributed supplies.In 1848, gold was discovered when James W. Marshall and Sutter began the construction of Sutters sawmill in Coloma, along the American River. Sutters attempt at keeping this quiet failed when merchant and newspaper publisher Samuel Brannan returned from Sutters Mill to San Francisco with gold he had acquired there and began publicizing the find. Masses of people overran the land and destroyed nearly everything Sutter had worked for. In order to keep from losing everything, however, Sutter deeded his remaining land to his son, John Augustus Sutter, Jr. The younger Sutter, who had come from Switzerl
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