Historic Gold- James W. Marshal

In recognition of the Fourth of July holiday, the Cash4Gold blog embarks on its latest Historic Gold segment by remembering one of the most important gold finds in the history of the U.S.

The significance of carpenter James W. Marshal’s first gold find was unparalleled in terms of California’s history. Marshal’s discovery set the stage for the events that turned California into an official state, when his catalyst find created the California gold rush, sending in hundreds of thousands of people to the settlement, resulting in its culture and creation as a state.

Marshal was employed to build a sawmill in the California area by Joan Sutter for the use of lumber production. The construction of the mill was done in Coloma beside the American river. On the morning of January 24, Marshal was examining a channel that ran below the Sutter sawmill and discovered flecks of a shiny material in the channel’s bed. He scooped up only a handful of these flecks and in doing so discovered the first gold of the California Gold Rush.

Photo: The actual river channel where Marshal discovered gold as seen today.

Source and photos: http://www.coloma.com/gold/marshall-park.php

Hopes for a "Modern Day" Gold Rush

In our last post, we talked about the most profitable gold rush in all of history, The Australian Gold Rush of 1851. But now, after the recent discovery of a $460,000 gold nugget in Nevada County, California, there are hopes for a newer “modern day” gold rush.

The trigger of new attention to the Nevada County was this gold nugget pictured above, weighing in at 8.2 pounds, it was sold for the 460k at a Sacramento auction. Reports say that the man who discovered the gold (who keeps anonymity to his name) did so using only a metal detector, and in his own backyard.

Since the discovery of the 460k gold nugget, more gold has been found in the old gold harvesting valley of Nevada County, and geologists as well as prospectors are convinced that there is still more gold to be found.

"And there's no question, obviously, that there's still gold out there in those hills," said Don Edgeman, the owner of a nearby store.’- http://www.wdam.com/story/14512726/geologist-search-for-gold-after-460k-nugget-was-found

With the value of gold continuing to rise and even reaching its highest record breaking price ever in recent weeks, what does the future hold for gold?

The Australian Gold Rush

In 1851, a prospector by the name of Edward Hammond Hargraves proclaimed that he had discovered gold on a site he called “Ophir” in Bathurst, New South Wales Australia. Six months later, more gold was found in Australia, and the Australian Gold Rush began, rising its population from 400,000 to over 1,000,000 over the course of the next 50 years.

With Australian road conditions poor in the late 1800’s by the mines, most miners would travel on foot with equipment on their backs to the mines. These travels were at times difficult, however the rewards of the gold rush were extreme.

When the word “gold rush” is used, many tend to think of the gold rush of California and the Wild West. But the Australian Gold Rush has remained throughout history as the wealthiest of all gold findings. The World’s largest gold nugget to ever be unearthed was discovered during the Australian Gold Rushes, by Bernhard Otto Holterman. The weight of the nugget was a groundbreaking 630 pounds.

Wachovia Sells to Gold-Backed Wells Fargo

This week, Wells Fargo surprised the investment community with news that it planned to purchase Charlotte-based Wachovia for $15.1 billion.

Wells Fargo & Co is a San Francisco-based financial institution that began as a result of the West Coast gold rush. Founded in 1852, the bank opened in the port city of San Francisco as additional cities and gold mining camps developed during the Gold Rush. The company started solidly by buying gold and selling paper that was backed by gold. Additionally, the bank guaranteed rapid delivery of the gold and valuables by a six-horse stagecoach that remains the corporate logo today. The bank had significant assets in both railroads and steel with expansion into the northeast.

Today, the company is a leading U.S. lender. The company practices extremely conservative lending practices that make the bank one of the strongest in the U.S. The company did not get wrapped up in the sub-prime mortgage market that has affected the majority of U.S. banking institutions.

The Wells Fargo purchase marks entry into the southeastern U.S. market. The buyout will add to Wells’ 5900 locations, 160,000 employees and $600 billion in assets.

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Gold as currency through time.

People have been buying and selling gold almost since the dawn of time. In Ancient Egypt Pharaos were buried with gold ornaments and gold jewelry because gold doesn’t rust or decay and would therefore be a source of currency when the deceased reached the next world. In the early days of the US the California Gold Rush was the primary reason for western migration. The gold standard is the basis for most of the world’s monetary systems. The use of gold as currency has faded over time but gold still remains a solid investment.

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