Fryeburg Academy - Academy Bell Yearbook (Fryeburg, ME)

Page 29 text:

THIS JCADEMY BELL 27 Men, eager for gold and anxious to see this wonderful land of which they had heard so much, did not hesitate to take their wives and small children on this hazardous trip. Regardless of wind or weather, this mighty wagon train must go on and on over the scorching plains of the Middle West. Many died of sickness and exposure during this steady march. They left a trail behind, which was marked by the skeletons of horses and oxen and by empty food boxes which were thrown out. Men died and children were born in this white caravan, but the wagon train went steadily on. Sometimes they were met by unfriendly Indians and this meant the burning of wagons, stealing of food, and often loss of life. Eagerness for wealth inspired bad men as well as good to brave the many hardships in order that they might, too, get to this land of wealth and dig their fortunes from the soil of California. At times the bad men made serious trouble, but in California a Vigilance Committee, organized from the best people of the land, soon taught them that life and property must be respected. Sometimes these wagon trains would meet friendly Indians and trade with them. Rivers that were too deep and dangerous to be crossed by the emigrants sometimes had ferry boats piloted by Indians who would take the wagon across for pay. These wagon trains did not stop in order that the drivers might rest, but men and women would take their turn at driving while others slept in the covered wagon that seemed to rumble eternally on. Of course it was often necessary to stop so that the horses and oxen might be refreshed. These stops were usually made in the nightg and while the horses and oxen were resting, crude overnight camps were made, where the luxury of a bed was not known. Thus by patience, energy, and determination, a small percentage of the people who started out finally reached California, their promised land of gold. Although many of the people died, there were about a hundred thousand who reached this state, within two years, in search of their fortunes.

Page 28 text:

26 THE' ACADEMY BELL Oregon and California. Some of these men had already traveled over a thousand miles to get to the Middle West from the East and now were anxious to try their fortunes on the Pacific Coast. It was in the spring of this same year that gold was discovered in California. In the Sacramento Valley, on a fork of the American river, about a hundred miles northeast of San Francisco, a mill race for a sawmill was being dug for Captain Sutter. It was while digging for this mill race that two men found some shining, yellowish metal. They took this metal to Colonel Mason, who was left in charge of California at the close of the Mexican War. The General examined one or two pieces. It was gold, real gold, that shining metal for which thousands have laid down their lives and for which many have tried the cleverest swindling schemes to obtain. As soon as this news was spread abroad, every man for miles around who could possibly get away, bought a shovel and started off to dig his fortune. That spring the homes were left unbuilt and the fields were left unplowed, for everyone had the gold fever. When news of the discovery of this gold reached the Middle West the desire of the people to try their fortunes in the far West was such as it had never been before. So when in the next spring of 1849, emigration by land and sea began toward California, the majority of the people were struck by this gold fever, while a few were still desirous of getting to this new land so that they might try their plows in new soil. So great was the desire to get westward that the people faced all sorts of hardships to get to the promised land. At this period there were no railways, not even good roads. The only roads were trails which had been blazed by the Indians during their travels from one section of the country to another. Some of the people went by the way of the Isthmus of Panama, others went around Cape Horn, while many of them went by land, going through wilderness. Those who went by land travelled in wagons, covered with white can- vas, which were drawn by horses and oxen.

Page 30 text:

28 THE ACADEMY BELL But after all the hardships suffered and endured by these faithful pioneers, did they find a land of wealth and sunshine at the end of their journey? A few gained the rule they so eagerly sought, but the majority barely made a living tilling the soil, for the labor of getting this gold was worth three times as much as the gold itself. Was the sacrifice of our ancestors then in vain? No, for in the end it gave us a firm possession of the Pacific Coast, for this wilderness of California was settled by brave and energetic men and women. By increasing the amount of gold in circulation it brought trade and industry not only in California but throughout the United States. After the gold began to give out the men found the real gold of California: its vast farms of sheep and cattle, its vast vineyards, and its orange plantations of which California is proud today. So through the desire of the people from the East and Middle West to explore and build up this unknown land, through their desire for gold, and by their hardships, suffer- ings, patience, energy, and endurance, California has grown to be a state of the Union of which the people of the United States today speak with so much pride. HELEN EASTMAN, '28. GETTING EVEN WITH SISTER I Without correctzfonsj My sister she's 'awful fussy when it comes Saturday because her boe comes to see her. The other night I wanted to go skating so I told her I was going. She told me to stay at home and go to bed early so I Wouldn't spy on her and her boe. So I got good and mad and I went. She had been curling her hair and getting all slicked up for him. I went skating and got back before he come so I hid under the couch and pretty soon my sister KL and her boe came in and sat on the couch and began to talk. They turned the light low and I wondered why they done this because she had slicked up so. I thought she wanted everybody to see her. They laughed over every little thing and once my sister said something funny which made me laugh. I laughed right out loud. They heard me and asked each other what that noise was so of course they looked under the couch and he pulled me out and asked me what I was doing. I said I was asleep under the couch and somebody made a noise and woke me up. But I got even with her and I am glad I did. WILFORD NICKERSON, '31.