What if: Californian Gold discovered early?

Exactly what it says on the title. What if California's enormous Gold Reserves had been discovered earlier, during the 1820's as it was a Mexican territory or even before when it was a Spanish posession?

Would Spain and/or Mexico actually developed the region? Would it have fallen faster to the US, or would it have remained Mexican (or Spanish), or even go on its own?
 
Simply no way the Spanish/Mexican governments are going to hold on to California. Just as their were Americans in sizable numbers in Florida, Missouri, Louisiana, Texas all prior to their annexations, so to will it be Americans that Spain/Mexico turn to, to colonize California and mine that gold. Plus neither government had the means to keep them out anyways. Remember, even the Mormons were in Utah when it was still Mexican. Americans move west. That's a fact of history that in order to butterfly away you'd have to have a POD in the 1600s. And even then it's probably a result of geography and human nature and it becomes a POD to human development 10,000 or more years ago.

Choices are- Earlier American conquest, or independent California like Texas but soon after join the USA.
 
would early gold discover spur even further territorial loses for Mexico? Baja California, Sonora, possibly Chihuahua.
 
would early gold discover spur even further territorial loses for Mexico? Baja California, Sonora, possibly Chihuahua.

Good question. There was a moderate push for those areas OTL plus Yucatan, or even all of Mexico. The Mexican-American War turned into a quagmire and was the Iraq War of its time, complete with misinformation and conspiracy theories, and a protracted occupation of the enemy. People think about it being, oh border dispute with Texas, we occupied the territories we wanted, we won the war, we got what we wanted. But in reality we occupied Mexico City and the entire country, and later figured out what we wanted to keep, what they'd give up without further resistance, and went from there.

The Trans-Continental Railroad was really spurred by the Civil War and the need to make sure California, the Mormons, and the rest of the West never got the idea of secession even if they didn't join the South. There's a reason the Union Pacific was chartered in 1862. Even though since 1848 California was American part of the delay was where the eastern terminus would be- Northern non-slave, or Southern pro-slavery. The Civil War made the decision for Council Bluffs easier. So we might not see an earlier Transcontinental Railroad, and we might even see an early Civil War. Which means no Lincoln in charge, possibly Grant too young to distinguish himself. Winfield Scott might be young enough to actually be in charge of the Union. Robert E. Lee at a younger age might not go with the South. It's possible certain states might not secede either. Or maybe they do. Maybe Southerners get Missouri and even Kansas and Kentucky in an earlier Civil War.

An earlier gold rush, therefore an earlier Mexican-American War, could also mean more time before a Civil War in which more filibustering is successful in incorporating more overseas territory into the US. Maybe even an earlier Cuba, which probably means no conquest of the Philippines unless the US decides to bully Spain a second time.
 

Deleted member 67076

I really have my doubts that the 1820s US, with very little railroads and still focused on settling its own Midwestern frontier, and possessing a very small population advantage to Mexico will be able to steamroll across the continent.

More likely the Commanche push back the Americans like they depoulated Northern Mexico.
 
I really have my doubts that the 1820s US, with very little railroads and still focused on settling its own Midwestern frontier, and possessing a very small population advantage to Mexico will be able to steamroll across the continent.

More likely the Commanche push back the Americans like they depoulated Northern Mexico.

First paragraph is very true EXCEPT the Midwestern frontier had already been pushed past the Mississippi quite a bit, and was basically almost to Kansas City in Missouri, and Texas already was starting to see a big influx of Americans.

Your last sentence is anachronistic. It isn't until the Mid-1800s that the Comanche start becoming somewhat cohesive and strong enough to bully around Mexicans and Americans and other tribes being pushed to their area such as the Shoshone. The 1820s could be early enough to stop the population explosion of Comanche and their aggressiveness. Butterflies and all, you know.
 
You probably see California do what the Republic of Texas, the Republic of the Rio Grande and the Republic of Yucatán all did. The Californios had little love for the Mexican government and always fought against centralization. They'll soon be outnumbered by immigrants, but their vast wealth and land holdings will put them in a place of power and authority in the state. Plus the Anglo-American immigrants that arrive will likely have similar issues with Centralization under Santa Anna's dictatorship.

I really have my doubts that the 1820s US, with very little railroads and still focused on settling its own Midwestern frontier, and possessing a very small population advantage to Mexico will be able to steamroll across the continent.

The Panic of 1819 had caused a massive spike in the price of land in the US which was a major contributor to Anglo-American migration into Texas. California was already getting migration from the US and with the added incentive of the gold rush it's not unlikely that their would be more Americans moving to the region. That doesn't necessarily translate to an earlier manifest destiny, but I'm just addressing the claim about the Midwestern frontier.
 
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If the discovery is as early as the 1820s, the British are far more likely to be the power brokers/policemen taking over the area than the US would be.

OT3H, this is before steamships, so there won't be as massive a rush of gold seekers.

Still, it's likely to be more than the local Spanish authorities can deal with, and most of the gold miners will likely be Anglos, although with heavy admixtures from around the world.
 
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