WI No California Gold Rush

NapoleonXIV

Banned
In 1848 John Sutter (I think) sees a flash of yellow in his stream, ignores it and goes back to work. California's rich deposits of gold remain secret, then and later. How does this affect the subsequent development of the US?

If this has been done before I apologise and please direct me if you know where the thread is.
 
Interesting. Of course I suspect this would just delay the Rush by a few years, but still interesting.
 

NapoleonXIV

Banned
Gold, even when its in "rich deposits" is still rare and hard to find. Even in areas where it is geologically indicated and assiduously searched for it can easily elude discovery. If CA remains a generally remote region I see no good reason why the discovery might not plausibly be delayed until the early 1900's, if it takes place at all.

If its not ASB, let's say its delayed to 1906.
 
That would be James Marshall at John Sutter's mill. I think putting it off until 1906 would be a little unreasonable, I think by the 1860s or 70s most likely. The influx of American settlers into California is still plentiful, most were drawn by the oppurtunity of land, and very fertile land at that. While its full potential as an agricultural powerhouse isn't probably really tapped until the construction of the transcontinental railroad California is still a powerful magnet for settlers.

The gold was always there, even during the Spanish and Mexican times, but people just never saw it. Even if Marshall missed the 'yellow flash' the steady arrival of settlers increases the chance of discovery. What definately gets delayed is the discovery of the Comstock Load and the Silver Rush which are made possible by the '49ers leaving the exhausted gold fields of California in search for new strikes.
 
The Geographic pattern of settlement whould have continued with new englanders in the north, and southerners with their slaves in the south. As this is much slower, Statehood is deleyed

Come 1860 and the ACW the Territory of California, Splits with the southerern half being admitted to the CSA as a State. The USA counters by admitting the northerern half.

After the war they continue as two states. The north half with the gold Develops more like Washinton/Oregon. While the South half remains more like New Mexico/Arizonia.
 
Been thinking about this, and wondering how no State of California affects the ACW.
?Does no 49er's in California also slow the migration too & admittance of Oregon?.
?Would no West coast States butterfly the election of Lincoln?




The search funtion is your freind:D -- I found this instead of making a new thread;);)
 
If there is no California gold rush then the Australian gold rushes might get more immigrants (especially the Chinese whom would have gone to Cal in OTL) which could have far more political consequences in Australia
 
Historical sites and place names around here might be more interesting. One gets tired of all the "Gold Country" stuff.;)

I agree that early statehood of united CA would be prevented. Interestingly, there was a lot of Southern sympathy in California, and it came fairly close to joining the CSA. I'm sure the CSA would have welcomed South California but the population was really small then. A significant California theater would be interesting; I think North California would gain statehood during the war. Doubt if any of this would have affected Oregon.

The rest of the country might not resent us Californians as much.:)
 
Here's how I've divided OTL California in "Course of Human Events":

1853 SierraCalifornia.png
 
I think it would be delayed 5, maybe 10 years tops. California becoming a state may be delayed, or it may become multiple states.
 
Wasn't California gold significant OTL in the Union's ability to finance the Civil War? If the discovery was delayed until the war, this would have a large effect on the course of the war.
 
If California had not looked so desirable might it have been given to former slaves in the late 1860s?

It was already highly desirable farmland. So no. The former slaves were still wanted back east anyway.

And (South) California's capital would be San Diego, not LA.
 
Been thinking about this, and wondering how no State of California affects the ACW.

It delays the ACW. The Compromise of 1850 admitted California as a free state without a counterbalancing slave state to maintain the balance in the Senate. It also delays the creation of the Fugitive Slave Law, which made a lot of northerners who could care less about slaves upset by the blatant trampling on their State's rights by the south.
 
It delays the ACW. The Compromise of 1850 admitted California as a free state without a counterbalancing slave state to maintain the balance in the Senate. It also delays the creation of the Fugitive Slave Law, which made a lot of northerners who could care less about slaves upset by the blatant trampling on their State's rights by the south.

This.

Without Cali suddenly being populous enough to be a new state it gives the lawmakers another excuse to hit the "snooze" button on the Slavery Issue Clock. This possibly avoids Bleeding Kansas, arguably the first "battleground" of the ACW. Perhaps TTL the OTL 1850 compromise measures are used rather than the controversial allowance of a slave state north of the Missouri Line. Perhaps we just see the north/south CA split others have mentioned as the next compromise. Either way we possibly delay the ACW by a decade or more.
 
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